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1 – 10 of over 6000Marisa Anne D'Angeli, Joe B. Baker, Douglas R. Call, Margaret A. Davis, Kelly J. Kauber, Uma Malhotra, Gregory T. Matsuura, Dale A. Moore, Chris Porter, Paul Pottinger, Virginia Stockwell, Carol Wagner, Ron Wohrle, Jonathan Yoder, Leah Hampson Yoke and Peter Rabinowitz
Antibiotic resistance (AR) is a global health crisis that is attracting focussed attention from healthcare, public health, governmental agencies, the public, and food producers…
Abstract
Purpose
Antibiotic resistance (AR) is a global health crisis that is attracting focussed attention from healthcare, public health, governmental agencies, the public, and food producers. The purpose of this paper is to describe the work in Washington State to combat resistance and promote antimicrobial stewardship from a one health perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
In 2014, the Washington State Department of Health convened a One Health Steering Committee and two workgroups to focus on AR, the One Health Antimicrobial Stewardship work group and the One Health Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance work group. The group organized educational sessions to establish a basic understanding of epidemiological factors that contribute to resistance, including antibiotic use, transmission of resistant bacteria, and environmental contamination with resistant bacteria and antibiotic residues.
Findings
The authors describe the varied uses of antibiotics; efforts to promote stewardship in human, and animal health, including examples from the USA and Europe; economic factors that promote use of antibiotics in animal agriculture; and efforts, products and next steps of the workgroups.
Originality/value
In Washington, human, animal and environmental health experts are working collaboratively to address resistance from a one health perspective. The authors are establishing a multi-species resistance database that will allow tracking resistance trends in the region. Gaps include measurement of antibiotic use in humans and animals; integrated resistance surveillance information; and funding for AR and animal health research.
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Heather Allen and Alexandra Taylor
The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiences of the USA and other nations with developed veterinary infrastructure and identify the critical factors that led the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiences of the USA and other nations with developed veterinary infrastructure and identify the critical factors that led the evolution of the US foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) response strategy.
Design/methodology/approach
A thorough literature review was conducted, including official reports of US FMD outbreaks and peer-reviewed articles on outbreaks in previously FMD-free countries. Textual analysis was conducted on past and current publicly available US FMD response plans, identifying the use of the term “vaccination” or “emergency vaccination” indicating the potential use of these strategies.
Findings
The USA has shifted from a strategy of exclusively stamping-out to a response strategy that would consider emergency vaccination, including vaccinate to slaughter and vaccinate to live, in any FMD outbreak. The factors that led to this shift in policy include economic factors, the emergence of new vaccine technologies, the changed landscape of the US livestock industry, and the experiences of other typically FMD-free countries.
Originality/value
An outbreak in the USA is likely to rapidly outpace the current capacity for stamping-out. Experience from other FMD outbreaks, and lack of publicly available literature from the USA, indicates that it is critically important that further consideration, sufficient attention, and stakeholder deliberation need to occur to ensure vaccination strategies (to live and to slaughter) are implementable in an outbreak.
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The purpose of this paper is to map the field of sociological animal studies through some examples of critical and mainstream approaches and considers their relation to advocacy…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to map the field of sociological animal studies through some examples of critical and mainstream approaches and considers their relation to advocacy. It makes the argument that while all these initiatives have made important contributions to the project of “animalising sociology” and suggest a need for change in species relations, the link between analysis and political strategy is uncertain.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper develops its argument by using secondary sources, reviewing sociological positions and offering illustrations of possible interventions.
Findings
Sociological interventions in the field of animal studies have been informed by critical perspectives, such as feminism and Marxism, or taken less critical routes deploying actor-network theory and symbolic interactionism. Whilst those working in critical traditions may appear to have a more certain political agenda, an analysis of “how things are” does not always lead to a clear position on “what is to be done” in terms of social movement agendas or policy intervention. In addition, concepts deployed in advocacy such as “liberation”, “quality of life” or “care” are problematic when applied beyond the human. Despite this, there are possibilities for coalition and solidarity around certain claims for change.
Research limitations/implications
If the central argument of the paper were taken seriously by general sociologists, then sociology may be more open to “animal studies”. In implications for exisitng sociological animal studies scholarship is to trouble some of the certainties around advocacy.
Practical implications
If the central argument of the paper were taken seriously by advocacy groups, then the hiatus between “welfarism” and “liberation” might be overcome.
Originality/value
There have been recent attempts to map the field of scholarship in animal studies, but surprisingly little consideration of how different emergent positions inform questions of advocacy and the possibilities for political intervention.
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Animal production is still a major UK industry of about £10 billion and like all aspects of agriculture faces a number of challenges. The biotechnology revolution is also sweeping…
Abstract
Animal production is still a major UK industry of about £10 billion and like all aspects of agriculture faces a number of challenges. The biotechnology revolution is also sweeping through the industry with a range of major emerging technologies becoming available. Describes these technologies and discusses their potential impact on the agro‐food industry and the public. Although the issues raised appear at first sight novel, they can be regulated under the current framework available within the UK; public concern over some of the technologies is genuine but in most cases can be answered. Currently research in the UK puts this country at the forefront of these technologies and the emerging commercial opportunities must not be lost.
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Venkatesh Dutta, Manoj Vimal, Sonvir Singh and Rana Pratap Singh
The purpose of this paper is to assess the agricultural practices in a drought-prone region of India in an effort to find out how science, technology and innovation (STI) measures…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the agricultural practices in a drought-prone region of India in an effort to find out how science, technology and innovation (STI) measures can address the existing problems and help achieve sustainable solutions. This study has been planned with two specific objectives: to study the agricultural practices of small and marginal-holding farmers in a drought-prone region and to examine the opportunities for suitable interventions to mitigate the impacts of droughts. The study is based on primary survey conducted in Banda district of Bundelkhand region, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Design/methodology/approach
Empirical survey was done in eight different blocks of a drought-prone region of India using structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was pre-tested with a group of 12 farmers during a workshop through a pilot survey conducted during April 2017. Stratified sampling based on land holdings (small farmers having 1–2 ha of land, medium farmers having 2.1–5 ha of land and large farmers having more than 5 ha of land) and irrigation types (canals and tube wells) were utilised in different blocks of the district for selecting farmers in the surveyed villages.
Findings
Findings suggest that due to various reasons like change in climatic conditions, frequent crop failure, crop diseases and high cost of production, farmers have adopted certain crops which are not suited to their agro-climatic conditions. The paper recommends that farmer’s school or “on-farm training school” have to be initiated to integrate farmers’ traditional knowledge with modern knowledge systems with amalgamation of STI tools.
Research limitations/implications
Uttar Pradesh is divided into nine agro-climatic zones; however, this study is focused on Bundelkhand and may be region specific, though the findings are important for other drought-prone areas.
Practical implications
The paper links the existing agricultural practices and further linking them with farmers’ socio-economic, cultural and environmental settings. Only 17.5 per cent of respondents owned any agricultural equipment due to high cost of farm tools, difficulty in taking equipements on rental basis and lack of sharing tools among the farmers.
Social implications
This paper targets small and marginal farmers in the drought-prone region of India who face the dual shock of climate impacts and poverty. Adoption of modern agricultural practices and use of technology is inadequate which is further hampered by ignorance of such practices, high costs and impracticality in the case of small land holdings.
Originality/value
This paper has advocated for well-organised, efficient and result-oriented STI system to mitigate the adverse impacts of drought-prone agriculture. Farming community in drough-prone areas needs adequate investment, local-specific technology, better quality inputs, real-time information on weather and most importantly latest know-how for sustaining commercial and cost effective sustainable agriculture.
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This paper presents the remarkably edible landscape of Tilting, Fogo Island, Newfoundland. Tilting is a Cultural Landscape District (Historic Sites and Monuments Board) and a…
Abstract
This paper presents the remarkably edible landscape of Tilting, Fogo Island, Newfoundland. Tilting is a Cultural Landscape District (Historic Sites and Monuments Board) and a Registered Heritage District (Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador). Tilting has outstanding extant examples of vernacular architecture relating to Newfoundland's inshore fishery, but Tilting was also a farming community despite its challenging sub-arctic climate and exposed North Atlantic coastal location. There was a delicate sustainable balance in all aspects of life and work in Tilting, as demonstrated through a resource-conserving inshore fishery and through finely tuned agricultural and animal husbandry practices. Tilting's landscape was “literally” edible in a way that is unusual for most rural North American communities today. Animals like cows, horses, sheep, goats, and chickens were free to roam and forage for food and fences were used to keep animals out of gardens and hay meadows. This paper documents this dynamic arrangement and situates local agricultural and animal husbandry practices in the context of other communities and regions in outport Newfoundland. It also describes the recent rural Newfoundland transition from a working landscape to a pleasure landscape.
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The purpose of this paper is to review the development of the processed feed industry in China through the lens of one of its most successful and earliest entrants, the Hope…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review the development of the processed feed industry in China through the lens of one of its most successful and earliest entrants, the Hope Group's “New Hope” enterprise. With the feed industry in China now facing a transition phase, the paper looks at the root causes of the problems facing China's feed industry, analyzes the transition strategy undertaken by New Hope and others, and discusses the opportunities for industry growth in the world's most populous country, where urbanization and standards of living are still on the rise and per capita use of feeds is still low by world standards (e.g. one‐fifth of that in the USA). The case also addresses the potential industry impact of mandates outlined in China's Twelfth Five‐Year Plan, such as the imperative to modernize agriculture and improve peasants’ economic well‐being.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on expert knowledge of the CEO of New Hope Group's sister agribusiness company, West Hope Group, as well as New Hope Group annual reports and global economic data.
Findings
The study reveals future challenges to China's processed feed industry as being price of labor, raw materials, and energy rises; companies undergoing integration; and established companies shifting from product marketing to service marketing models.
Practical implications
This paper is useful for academics interested in industry perspectives, policymakers, practitioners, and business people considering investment in China.
Social implications
How China's processed feed and breeding industries modernize will impact the economic well‐being of each link in the nation's agribusiness chain (from small producers to conglomerates), the cost and quality of animal‐based proteins, and the world's “food vs. fuel” conflicts.
Originality/value
The paper offers a rare insider's look at one of China's largest private companies and a global player in agribusiness.
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Jikun Huang, Bowen Peng and Xiaobing Wang
Previous studies have mainly focused on public opinions regarding genetically modified (GM) technology and GM food. The purpose of this paper is to assess scientists’ attitudes on…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous studies have mainly focused on public opinions regarding genetically modified (GM) technology and GM food. The purpose of this paper is to assess scientists’ attitudes on whether China needs to develop its national agricultural GM technology and their willingness to buy GM food.
Design/methodology/approach
A stratified sampling method was used to select and interview 806 scientists from six major agricultural universities and 20 research institutes under two national academies in China in 2013. Based on these data, the authors use both descriptive statistics and multivariate regression analysis to examine scientists’ attitudes toward agricultural GM technology and food, using GM soybean oil as an example of GM foods.
Findings
The survey results show that nearly three-quarters of scientists agree that China needs to develop its agricultural GM technology, but their attitudes differ largely. Only 29 percent of scientists are willing to buy GM soybean oil, similar to urban consumers (25 percent) in China. The knowledge of biology is extensive for some scientists but varies significant among scientists and correlates positively with their attitudes toward agricultural GM technology and GM soybean oil. Younger and male scientists with higher professional titles, and those involved in GM research are more in favor of China’s GM technology compared to other scientists. Female scientists, scientists with lower professional titles, those that have never engaged in GM research or are from non-agricultural scientific disciplines are less willing to buy GM soybean oil. Interestingly, their low willingness to buy GM soybean oil is inconsistent with the fact that it is the most common edible oil in China.
Originality/value
This study is the first to examine scientists’ attitudes toward GM technology and food in China. The results of this study contribute to understanding the current debates on GM technology and the relevance of research, based on the willingness to buy GM food, for decision making regarding the commercialization of GM technology.
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Sinclear R. Ndemewah, Kevin Menges and Martin R.W. Hiebl
It is difficult to develop an overall picture of the practice of management accounting (MA) in farms and farm enterprises (FEs) because little research has been published on the…
Abstract
Purpose
It is difficult to develop an overall picture of the practice of management accounting (MA) in farms and farm enterprises (FEs) because little research has been published on the topic, and these studies are mostly discrete and unconnected to the others. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the available research, develop an explanatory framework for MA practices in farming entities and identify some major avenues for future research on the topic.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses systematic literature review methods. After an extensive database search and an examination of references/citations, 41 empirical journal articles published between 1964 and 2016 are identified, described and analyzed in this research paper.
Findings
The findings reveal that the practice of MA in farms is subject to information problems and that the empirical research on this topic largely lacks a theoretical explanation. Therefore, the explanatory framework of MA practices in farming entities reveals that these practices are subject to influencing factors such as familism, government farm policies, market competition, technological changes, the seasons and the weather/climate.
Research limitations/implications
The overall limited findings on the practice of MA in FEs indicate that caution should be taken when generalizing the current knowledge on the use of MA practices in other organizational forms to farming entities. Moreover, future research should draw on explicit theories to explain empirical results.
Originality/value
This paper is the first comprehensive literature review of studies on MA practices in farms and FEs.
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The aim of this paper is to discuss the issues of animal rights in the hospitality and tourism (H&T) industry, and to suggest ethical guidelines for the operation of animal‐based…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to discuss the issues of animal rights in the hospitality and tourism (H&T) industry, and to suggest ethical guidelines for the operation of animal‐based attractions.
Design/methodology/approach
The issue is presented through an extensive literature review, in addition to current examples and demonstrations from the industry.
Findings
For years, the H&T industry has been heavily criticized for its inconsiderate and even cruel use of animals for entertainment purposes. However, there are clear indications, presented in this paper, of a growing tendency to adopt approaches that emphasize animal welfare and even animal rights.
Research limitations/implications
The growing awareness of animal rights, the changing public opinion and the influence of animal rights' movements is forcing animal attractions to re‐evaluate their attitudes toward the use of animals. Generally, animal attractions should adopt an approach that combines entertainment, education and welfare concerns. Specific guidelines for each component and recommendations are provided. However, this issue requires further discussion and research to clarify key problems.
Originality/value
The paper is of value to researchers and practitioners who are interested in the development of H&T ethics regarding the use of animals.