To ensure social licence and optimise animals’ quality of life, zoological institutions have been under increased pressure to routinely assess the welfare of the animals in their care. Regular, evidence based, and objective assessment is required to monitor how zoo animals are coping or thriving physiologically and psychologically in their managed environment. Species-specific assessment tools are lacking for data deficient, behaviourally inexpressive or little-known species, such as the little penguin Eudyptula spp. despite their popularity in zoos worldwide. This study aimed to use a modified Delphi methodology to achieve expert consensus on potential welfare measures for little penguins. The initial list was derived from the literature and based on the Five Domains model. This was followed by two rounds of online surveys, completed by 36 international welfare scientists, veterinary professionals, penguin researchers and caretakers. In the first round, experts were asked to rate 59 potential criteria on a 5-point Likert scale for validity and practicality. Of these measures, 44 achieved >70% consensus for being both valid and practical to measure. In the second survey, experts were asked to rank the resynthesised list from (1) most valid to (44) least valid and were asked to infer how often each criterion should ideally be measured. The experts achieved a strong level of agreement after round 2 (W = 0.72404, p < 0.01). Experts identified 28 resource-based and 16 animal-based measures that were considered valid and practical to assess little penguin welfare in managed care. The final criteria included health, behavioural, environmental and nutritional measures, representing the four functional domains from the five domains model of animal welfare. The resulting ranked criteria could be further validated in a practical setting, providing an essential first step in creating a species-specific assessment tool to measure little penguin welfare in managed care.

Smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa frequently produce rice in marginal environments where low soil fertility and other biotic and abiotic stresses limit productivity. Rice varieties developed by centralized breeding under favorable conditions on research stations have often not been adopted by farmers in such marginal environments. Our objective was to develop modern rice varieties adapted to such low-input conditions through combining pre-breeding research with subsequent selection and variety testing directly in the target environment: smallholder farmers fields in Madagascar with phosphorus (P) fixing soils. Two breeding populations were developed for this purpose, one based on marker-assisted introgression of the Pup1 locus into IR64, the second using a donor (DJ123) for internal P utilization efficiency and external P acquisition efficiency. Selection within these populations was conducted in fields managed according to local farmers practice without mineral fertilizer addition. Selected breeding lines underwent government-supervised variety release testing including farmer participatory evaluations in four Malagasy regions between 18-1350 masl altitude, and two lines were released as varieties FyVary32 and FyVary85. Both had between 0.47-0.8 t ha-1 higher grain yield than parent IR64 and local check X265. Yield advantages were stable across a range from 2.1-5.5 t ha-1 (national average: 2.8 t ha-1). Higher yields were accompanied by superior root development and P uptake and by more efficient internal P utilization in FyVary85. Results show that decentralized breeding in marginal environments can produce varieties not only superior in lowest-yielding environments but across a broader range, clearly surpassing national average yields. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS),

AbstractOne of the major barriers to improving the rice value chain in Asian countries is farmers’ lack of knowledge and their limited access to good and scale-appropriate technologies and practices. This chapter reviews the main features, benefits, and potential barriers of technologies and practices developed and promoted under the CORIGAP project. These include One-Must-Do, Five-Reductions (1M5R); ecologically-based pest management; laser land leveling; mechanized crop establishment; and sustainable postharvest management practices. 1M5R (1M = certified Seed, 5R = reductions of seed rate, fertilizer, pesticides, water use, and postharvest losses) was introduced in Vietnam in 2004 and adopted on about 150,000 ha of rice production in the Mekong River Delta (MRD) of Vietnam. Ecologically based pest management is important for the sustainable production of rice. We provide an overview of CORIGAP research on eco-engineering for the management of insect pests and the continued development of ecologically-based rodent management. Laser land leveling and mechanized crop establishment help to significantly increase agronomic use efficiency. Applying LLL, combined with best management practices in rice production in Thailand (CROP), has improved farmers’ net income, increased nitrogen use efficiency, and reduced pesticide usage. Best postharvest management practices play an important role in upgrading the rice value chain tailored to sustainability. The chapter also includes lessons learned from case studies conducted in Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Thailand.

AbstractThe CORIGAP project was implemented in six main rice granaries in South and Southeast Asia. The project introduced several country-specific sustainable best management practices, including nutrient management, pest management, water management, and several postharvest technologies, among other specific practices. This chapter introduces each country and its respective challenges to rice production. It outlines cultivation practices, historical developments, and their impacts on opportunities for the development of the rice sector. This is accompanied by specific case studies that highlight the adoption of specific technologies and practices. Case studies encompass the adoption of various best management practices in Myanmar and Thailand, especially postharvest technologies. Furthermore, the chapter highlights the outreach of “One Must Do, Five Reductions” in Vietnam, the development and implementation of the “Three Controls Technology” and alternate wetting and drying (AWD) practices in China, rodent pest management in Indonesia, and weed and water management in Sri Lanka. These case studies identified positive agronomic, social, and economic changes. The chapter concludes by harnessing the agricultural development strategies in each country with a synthesis of outcomes and impacts.

AbstractIn this chapter, we propose a framework of market-based incentive mechanisms for the adoption and scaling of sustainable production standards throughout rice value chains and review evidence of two mechanisms that have been piloted in Vietnam: “internalizing” and “embodying.” The evidence suggests that sustainable production standards can be successfully “internalized” in rice value chains through policies (public governance) that provide an enabling environment for vertical coordination and private governance of standards (e.g., through contract farming). However, the major challenge policymakers and value chain actors face for this mechanism to succeed is to reconcile differences in contract preferences between contracting parties and solve trust and coordination issues (e.g., contract breach and side-selling). Market evidence suggests that sustainable production standards can be successfully “embodied” in rice products through certification and labeling. Vietnamese consumers were found to put significant price premiums on sustainable production certification and even more so if supplemental information is provided on certification and traceability. Both examples highlight the role policymakers can play in the adoption and scaling of sustainable production standards throughout rice value chains by creating an enabling environment for vertical coordination and private sector investment in certification and information campaigns. We conclude by discussing how policymakers can overcome the challenges for these mechanisms to succeed and identifying areas for future research. Furthermore, we provide a detailed description of the monitoring and evaluation process of CORIGAP activities. We explain the development from paper-based to computer-assisted survey tools, the evaluation of changes that farmers perceive and provide a case study on impact evaluation using econometric analysis. It becomes clear that a multidimensional project like CORIGAP needs a variety of means to assess the changes on different levels. We found that farmers in all CORIGAP countries perceive positive changes. Their yields and profits have increased, and the project has exceeded its target reach in all countries. This was also due to other funding schemes that supported CORIGAP technologies and practices, such as the rollout of 1M5R in Vietnam and the 3CT in China. The project used a variety of dissemination strategies to communicate the outputs and outcomes to a plethora of different stakeholders. Among the most successful were social media campaigns, including informative videos about CORIGAP technologies and practices. The chapter closes with some anecdotal evidence of how, especially postharvest technologies, influenced policies in the CORIGAP countries. We provide lessons learned from the project to be taken care of in future projects that aim to introduce sustainable agricultural practices and technologies to improve natural resource management.

Travellers and Gypsies are recognised ethnic groups in the UK and Ireland. Horse ownership is an important cultural tradition, however, practices associated with poor welfare are often perceived to be linked to these horse owning communities. Despite this, empirical studies on the welfare status of Traveller and Gypsy owned horses are lacking. To determine the welfare status of Traveller and Gypsy owned horses, 104 horses were assessed using a bespoke horse welfare protocol. This protocol assessed animal, resource and management-based measures. In addition, Qualitative Behaviour Assessment (QBA) identified horses’ emotional state. Results indicated that 81% of horses had an optimal body condition score, with no horse recorded as very thin/fat. The absence of limb conditions (95%), ocular (98%) and nasal (93%) discharges were evident in most horses, and 81% of horses responded positively to the voluntary animal approach test. The most commonly observed welfare issues were hoof neglect (27%), with hoof cracks/breakages (19%) being the most prevalent. QBA indicated that positive emotional states were more commonplace than negative. A relationship between QBA and other horse welfare measures was observed, e.g., improved mood was associated with better water availability. This research provides novel data in the under-researched area of the welfare of Traveller and Gypsy owned horses and counters perceptions of a poor welfare state in this group of horses.

Food system sustainability has been highlighted as one of the major strategies to ensure healthy diets. A plethora of approaches to stabilize food systems have been suggested, including agroecology, climate-smart agriculture, and other forms of sustainable agriculture. However, a disconnect between sustainable production and consumption exists, which may hinder further progress toward achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2. This discourse was needed to connect these intersectional perspectives. To meet this need, we bring together the disconnected socio-environmental pillars and show how together they contribute to the food system sustainability agenda. We discuss the complexity of food system sustainability to cater to different geographies, building on evidence from development projects worldwide. We account for factors such as the need to incorporate intersectionality factors, food-system-related policy issues, food waste, food injustice, and undernutrition. While these intersectional inequalities can be solved through various human interventions, policy implementation, and dietary choices, we found that connecting the different policymakers remains a significant challenge for a sustainable food system. We propose implementing specific food system sustainability strategies that will be useful for policymakers and other stakeholders to enable the inclusion of a socio-environmental perspective for food systems that connect agricultural production with consumption.

In Myanmar, 70% of the rural population engages in rice farming for their livelihoods. Since 2013, the government and development projects have introduced a variety of sustainable rice cultivation practices such as improved fertilizer-, water-, pest- and post-harvest management. A mixed method approach was used to gain a better understanding of adoption behaviour and livelihood changes. One hundred and twenty nine farmers participated in the study which revealed the adoption of sustainable practices; reasons include higher yields, reduced costs and labour savings. Reasons for non-adoption included unsuitable or expensive practices. We find that profitability analysis and partial budgeting calculations revealed an estimated increase in income (>0) of 113 USD/ha (SD = 90.64 USD/ha), due to an increase in yield and reduced costs. Furthermore, in-depth interviews revealed that farmers (n = 32) used this extra income for religious and social activities, for food, health care and education. They were able to expand their farm business and produce rice more sustainably. The paper thus contributes to the adoption literature by linking development project outputs to outcomes and impact. Concerted efforts by the government and development projects can enable farmers to produce cereals more sustainably and experience positive changes to their livelihoods and strengthen rural development at local and regional level.

Increased urbanisation in recent decades has created a knowledge gap between farming and the Irish public. Mainstream media has begun filling this gap through reports on farm animal welfare (FAW) incidents that sometimes frame farming in a negative way. This negative framing can influence how farmers perceive the information communicated in these media stories and colour their experiences. Furthermore, perceived societal pressures may contribute to farmers feeling overwhelmed or negatively impact their mental health. In the context of FAW, the latter is particularly relevant as poor farmer mental health has been associated with poorer animal welfare. However, little is known about how the negative framing of FAW stories influence farmers’ perceptions and experiences. The aim of this study was to explore how negatively framed media stories about FAW incidents affect cattle farmers’ perceptions of animal welfare. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with seven Irish beef and dairy farmers using vignettes displaying negatively framed FAW incidents presented in the media. Five themes were identified: (1) job satisfaction and motivation, (2) impact on the human–animal relationship, (3) the importance of community, (4) negative portrayal of farmers and (5) need for FAW education. Findings suggest that negative framing of FAW in the media, as well as rural restructuring in Ireland, may negatively affect farmers’ motivation which could have indirect implications for the welfare of their animals.

Rice production in Vietnam is characterized by environmental degradation, high greenhouse gas emissions, and low wage rates. The Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP) standard is the first globally recognized certified sustainable production standard for rice. There are efforts to increase sustainability in rice production, but little is known about consumer perception of sustainability labels. This study investigates the relationship between climate change knowledge and consumer willingness to pay for SRP-certified rice in Vietnamese supermarkets. The results show that consumers are willing to pay on average a 29% price premium for SRP-labelled rice. Increased knowledge about climate change and higher income positively influence the amount consumers are willing to pay. The results have policy and market implications for scaling production and consumption of rice complying with certified sustainable production standards in Vietnam.

IntroductionStrategies for increasing rice production in the Asian Mega-Deltas have led to environmental degradation, resource overexploitation, and high greenhouse gas emissions. Certified sustainable production labels can support governments in their efforts to render rice value chains more sustainable by simultaneously fostering planetary and human health. Little is known, however, about how consumers trade off sustainability and health attributes in staple crops such as rice. This study aims to fill this knowledge gap by investigating Vietnamese consumers' preferences and willingness to pay for rice characterized by multi-attribute sustainability and health certification labels.MethodsWe collected empirical data from 410 supermarket consumers in Can Tho, Vietnam using a choice experiment survey. The results were analyzed using a mixed logit model to determine consumers' preferences for sustainability and health traits in rice. Four price levels were used to elicit willingness-to-pay for four certification labels: low-emission, eco-friendly, ethically produced, and low glycemic index rice. By separating the components that make up the concept of sustainability and by including a label related to personal health and diet preferences, we are able to gain an understanding of the value consumers place on attributes that benefit the common good vs. attributes that benefit the individual consumer.ResultsThe results showed that consumers were willing to pay a price premium for all certification labels, with the highest marginal utility assigned to low glycemic index rice.DiscussionCertification of eco-friendly and ethical production generated similar utility levels, while low-emission rice was valued lower, although it still fetched a significant price premium compared to the status-quo option of rice with no certifications. The results of this study can help policymakers and value chain actors develop rice value chains that integrate sustainable production practices as well as foster the nutrition and health of rice consumers.

Myanmar has experienced considerable economic and social changes since its political transition in the early 2010s. Its agriculture sector has demonstrated rapid intensification and modernization. Agricultural best management practices (BMPs), e.g., drum seeders and laser land levelling, were introduced to rice farmers in Bago Region in 2012 to increase sustainable production and counter negative environmental impacts. The objective of this study was to determine the socioeconomic and agronomic changes due to the adoption of BMPs between adopters and non-adopters. Using a digital survey questionnaire application to collect household data, 200 farmers in eight villages were interviewed in 2012 and 2017. Data were analysed using uni- and multivariate statistics. Mediation analysis was utilized to evaluate the effect of the farmer group on rice yields. Overall, all farmers in this study experienced substantial positive changes over the course of five years in line with the national development efforts. Differences among adopters and non-adopters were not significant, but notable distinctions existed between cropping patterns. Rice-pulse farmers had higher yields ( + 0.4 t/ha), yet rice-rice farmers had larger cultivation areas, received higher agricultural credits, and had superior income levels. Nevertheless, rice yields remained low (<4 t/ha). Education was found to be an important predictor of yield. Hence, this factor is crucial for accelerating agricultural development in Myanmar. Improving extension services and knowledge transfer are necessary to expand the dissemination of sustainable BMPs and make farmers more resilient against the negative implications of climate change.

Farmer adoption of sustainable rice farming technologies and practices is critical for climate change adaptation and mitigation. Often adoption is investigated in isolation focusing on factors influencing farmer decision making and overlooking the effects of technology adoption on farmers’ livelihoods and perceptions of change. Therefore, the present study investigated technology adoption and its effects on farmers with a special focus on additional revenue allocation and perception of social, economic and environmental change. Using a digital survey platform, 153 farmers (21.6% female) were interviewed in three sub-districts of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. On average, farmers adopted two technologies or practices, adopted high-yielding rice varieties, and increased their revenue from US$105 to US$122 per hectare per season. Barriers to adoption included time constraints, unsuitability for field conditions and incompatibility with cropping systems. Farmers invested the extra income in farming business and improved diets. Furthermore, farmers perceived changes in social and human capital and also poverty reduction due to technology adoption. This study highlights the importance of including an analysis of social impact in agricultural research.

Over the last few decades Vietnam has benefited from a rapid intensification of rice production ensuing high yields and economic gains. However, this has led to environmental degradation and adverse health effects. As a result, complex sustainable rice farming packages have been introduced but adoption still appears to be low. The present study aimed to investigate the factors affecting the adoption of sustainable rice farming practices combined in the national program “One Must Do, Five Reductions” (1M5R). Furthermore, a special focus was placed on identifying adoption constraints. Adoption was investigated by means of a survey questionnaire with 465 farmers in An Giang and Can Tho Province. Overall, results show that almost all farmers followed the requirements of pesticide reduction, post-harvest loss reduction, and the use of certified seeds. However, farmers had problems reducing their fertilizer use, water use, and seed rate. Results show that farmers perceive these practices to be difficult to implement, they do not fit farmers’ cropping pattern and the weather conditions hindered the implementation. The study further shows that ease of implementation, education, satisfaction and non-rice income are the main drivers for adopting the whole package. Adoption of the individual requirements is mainly driven by the ease of implementation and non-rice income for practices with lower adoption rates. This shows that farmers face physical adoption barriers, and that farmer satisfaction with the whole program is essential for a successful implementation. Results highlight the need for adoption monitoring and the continuation of extension services for the specific requirements specified under 1M5R.

Adolescents’ interactions with animals are of increasing interest and their beneficial developmental outcomes are well known. However, negative interactions such as perpetrating cruelty toward animals during childhood and adolescence have been related with child abuse, domestic violence, and later interpersonal violence. Cruelty toward animals by adolescents has been reported predominately in criminal and clinical samples, and links have been made between animal cruelty and interpersonal violence. However, studies often lack a clear definition of animal cruelty and the animal involved. The present study addresses methodological shortcomings by providing a clear definition of the cruelty acts and the animals involved and the time frame within which cruelty acts have been taken place. Therefore, we investigated the prevalence of animal cruelty of 979 British adolescents (419 male, 497 female, Mage = 15.1 ± 1.57 years) by means of a survey questionnaire administered in school. Animal cruelty was investigated encompassing deliberate and nondeliberate cruelty acts, a clear definition of the target animals was included and a time frame was provided. Furthermore, acceptability of animal cruelty, engaging in antisocial behavior, and family affluence were investigated. Results show high reliabilities for the measures applied. Exploratory factor analysis reveals different types of animal cruelty. Gender differences were observed for deliberate and accidental cruelty acts, with boys reporting higher levels than girls. Younger adolescents reported higher accidental cruelty acts than older ones. Acceptance of animal cruelty played a significant role in predicting animal cruelty, together with antisocial behaviors and place of living. The present study shows for the first time the importance of distinguishing between different types of animal cruelty and defining the animals involved.

Despite recent legislative amendments to address areas of highest risk to the welfare of calves (Bos taurus) in New Zealand, there are prevailing concerns that animal welfare science knowledge has not been adopted in practice. As a part of a larger, nationwide study investigating the perceptions of veterinarians towards calf welfare, the aim of the current work was to investigate the perceptions of veterinarians towards the level of welfare protection afforded to young “bobby” calves in New Zealand. This study also explored concerns for welfare compromise and identified barriers to welfare-related change for calves more generally. An electronic mixed-methods survey was completed by 104 veterinarians registered with the Veterinary Council of New Zealand. The findings revealed that veterinarians strongly disagreed with the specifications of certain calf welfare regulations. Veterinarians also identified areas at highest risk of calf welfare compromise across the production chain and barriers to welfare-related change. These findings demonstrate considerable support among veterinarians for improving the level of welfare protection afforded to calves. Given the discrepancies that exist between the current regulatory regime and veterinary perspectives, the knowledge gained from this study can be used in support of regulatory reform to strengthen calf welfare in practice and policy in New Zealand.

Vietnam is supportive of the transition to sustainable rice production in the Mekong Delta. The national program promoted best management practices for rice production through “1 Must Do and 5 Reductions” (1M5R). This review traces the technological development and uptake of 1M5R in national policies and by end-users. We highlight the outcomes from various policy-supported initiatives and unpack plausible pathways that generated the widespread adoption of 1M5R in eight provinces in the Mekong River Delta: at least 104,448 smallholder rice farmers were reached, and 1M5R practices adopted on 113,870 hectares. The scaling of 1M5R was enabled through a convergence of different socio-technical systems with varied foci, including sustainability certification, contract farming, consolidation of production, and improved use of inputs, aside from the development of sustainable technologies. In addition, 1M5R was promoted with incentives generated by a World Bank project and other initiatives in line with a national policy of increasing the quality of rice production for national and international markets. The interconnections of varied socio-technical systems, enacted by different intermediaries, catalyzed the spread of 1M5R. The widespread adoption by smallholder farmers increased their profits and raised awareness across diverse stakeholder groups of the higher marketability of rice produced with sustainable practices.

While veterinarians are instrumental to the welfare of calves (Bos taurus), limited knowledge exists concerning veterinary perceptions towards perioperative pain management in calves. As a part of a larger, nationwide study investigating the perceptions of veterinarians towards calf welfare, the current work sought to quantify veterinary perceptions towards perioperative pain management, including barriers to its use, and investigate demographic influences affecting those perceptions. An electronic mixed-methods survey was completed by 104 veterinarians registered with the Veterinary Council of New Zealand. The current work revealed that most veterinarians considered a multimodal approach as the most effective method for ameliorating perioperative pain in calves, rejected the practice of differential treatment based on developmental age, and perceived that postprocedural pain persists beyond 24 h for the majority of procedures included in the survey. Despite this, veterinarians identified certain barriers that may inhibit the provision of pain mitigation on-farm, including costs, inadequate recognition of pain, and ingrained farming practices. Certain demographic effects were found to influence perceptions towards perioperative pain management, including gender, the number of years since graduation, and species emphasis. Nevertheless, the current work demonstrated considerable support among veterinarians to improve pain management protocols during routine husbandry procedures. The asymmetries that exist between the current minimum provisions of perioperative pain management and veterinary perspectives suggest that substantive improvements are necessary in order to reconcile New Zealand’s existing regulatory regime with developments in scientific knowledge.

Over the last decades, Vietnam has increased its rice production substantially, which has resulted in environmental degradation and adverse health effects. The present study aimed to document the introduction and diffusion of the sustainable technology package "One Must Do, Five Reductions" (1M5R). Barriers to adoption were investigated with 155 farmers in 17 focus group discussions. Results show that external factors such as the geographical location of farms and access to water seem to be the main barriers. Knowledge provision, demonstration fields, and access to extension services are important to increase the adoption of sustainable rice farming practices.

Paddy rice cropping systems are largely intensive with widespread use of modern high yielding varieties, fertilizers, and agrochemicals, mostly characterized by rice monocropping, particularly when irrigated. Food provisioning is the most obvious ecosystem service derived from rice farming, but rice farming is also a way of life, particularly in Asia where 90% of rice is produced. Rice farming has been in existence for a long time and is an integral part of cultural traditions globally and is celebrated through different sociocultural festivities and forms part of societal cultural identities. Being semiaquatic, rice fields provide a habitat for a diverse assemblage of fauna and flora. The unique characteristics of paddy soils enable them to sustain intensive rice production and regulate the biogeochemical nutrient cycling. Paddy soils contribute about 11% of the greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture, largely through methane, but also sequester significant amounts of carbon, contributing to mitigation of the emissions. Nonetheless, paddy rice systems offer a range of ecosystem services that vary with growth stages and management practices.