A Visit to IRTA

Buenas Tardes!

As our week in Barcelona comes to an end, we took a drive out into the countryside away from the city to the town Monells to visit the Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA). Our host, Emma Fabrega, who is a member of the Animal Welfare Subprogram at IRTA greeted us with kindness (and cookies!). We started with an introduction to some of the research being done at IRTA and the different locations they have throughout Catalonia. At the Monells location, they are especially equipped to research animal production, animal genetics, feed technology and meat processing and quality. Another important objective of theirs is educational outreach, specifically for farmers, animal transporters, veterinarians, and slaughter house workers in order to get their research out to the consumer and make a true difference in animal welfare.

There were many research projects that Emma told us about that I found absolutely fascinating! One of these studies, ANEMOMA, was a cognitive bias test to assess the emotional state of the pig. The pig would be allowed to enter a room, and on the left would always have feed with apples as an extra treat, whereas if the food were presented on the right there would be no apples. After a few sessions the pigs learned there would be apples on the left and sometimes didn’t even bother going to check the right side. Then, after learning this, one day the pigs were suddenly presented with a trough in the middle of the room to see how they reacted. A more positive state was indicated by investigating the trough contents, and a more negative state by choosing not to investigate. These results were then used in conjunction with other studies in the welfare of the pigs. Their research found that pigs raised in enriched housing conditions had better cognitive bias scores, lower serum cortisol concentrations (they were less stressed), and had fewer lesions on their bodies (from fighting with other pigs) compared to those raised in a barren environment. Another interesting study involved finding the best methodology for the stunning of fish (so they are no longer conscious) before slaughter. I thought it was so interesting how they used EEG as an indicator of consciousness to determine the effectiveness of stunning in the fish!

After learning about the various projects IRTA is involved in we got to take a look at their experimental pig farm and slaughterhouse. We didn’t want to disturb the pigs in their pens so we just looked on from a view window. Emma explained to us that they use the facility for various projects regarding welfare, behavior assessment and best practices for farmers. Next we got an extensive tour of the experimental slaughterhouse. The facility was very impressive! Through their research into slaughter, they found that the best practice for pigs is currently to use a mixture of gasses (carbon dioxide by law has to be at at least 80%) and to do so with two or three pigs at a time. When the pigs were alone they experienced much higher levels of stress that negatively affected the meat quality. At this facility, they tend to use a much higher concentration of carbon dioxide that kills the pig itself, so that there is no risk of them regaining consciousness. Emma explained, however, that at most farms they do not use concentrations this high which can become a welfare issue. The team will often take trips to commercial slaughterhouses to recommend the best gas mixture and time of exposure to prevent these issues. Another interesting fact was they found there to be higher meat quality when there was an automated mover system bringing the pigs to the gas chamber compared to humans moving them along. After the process of slaughtering the pigs is complete, there are extensive labs within the facility to test samples for meat quality. They even have an area to cook up some of the meat and serve to taste tasters (where can I sign up?!). There are many variables to test such as the pH of the meat, vitamin E levels, and for antioxidants, all of which can affect the shelf life of the meat.

Overall the visit to IRTA was an engaging experience and eye opening for me since I have never been to a slaughterhouse before. Getting out of the city for a day was also a nice bonus for the beautiful scenery! This day trip was also a great transition to our next location since Monells is so close to it…onto France we go!