Periodic Reporting for period 3 - INTAQT (INnovative Tools for Assessment and Authentication of chicken meat, beef and dairy products’ QualiTies)
Reporting period: 2024-06-01 to 2025-05-31
In Europe, the consumption of animal products, which had been steadily increasing since the 1970s, has now plateaued or declined (except for poultry). This shift is accompanied by a rising demand for "quality," driven by ethical and environmental concerns related to animal husbandry. The livestock sector in Europe is highly diverse, encompassing contrasting production models. Previous research has shown that different husbandry systems lead to significant variations in environmental impact, animal welfare and health, and the composition of animal-derived products, all of which can influence consumer satisfaction and health. Recent changes in consumer expectations- particularly regarding animal welfare, product naturalness, health benefits, farmers’ livelihoods, and environmental impact -are fostering the development of innovative husbandry practices. However, these emerging trends have not yet been systematically assessed, especially concerning the sustainability of production and the intrinsic quality of products across the various European farming systems.
In this context, stakeholders in the agri-food chain lack objective, robust, and reliable information to effectively meet consumer expectations regarding the multiple dimensions of livestock product quality. The INTAQT project aims to conduct an in-depth, multi-criteria assessment of the relationships between husbandry systems and the quality traits of animal-derived products. This will be achieved through the development of quality assessment and authentication tools, providing science-based decision support for policymakers, industries, farmers, and consumers. The project also seeks to enhance husbandry practices to ensure both high product quality and sustainable production. INTAQT focuses on chicken meat, beef, and dairy products originating from a range of husbandry systems, from extensive to intensive, across various European countries. Adopting a multi-stakeholder participatory approach, the project involves all key actors in the agri-food chain, including farmers, consumers, scientists, certification bodies, policymakers, and the general public.
The main challenges addressed by the project are:
i) Developing comprehensive models to quantify the impact of husbandry systems on quality traits such as product safety, nutritional value, and sensory characteristics.
ii) Co-developing tools with agri-food chain stakeholders to predict the intrinsic quality of animal products, authenticate the husbandry systems they originate from, and establish multi-criteria scoring for product quality.
iii) Promoting innovative farming practices to ensure consistently high-quality, safe, healthy, and flavorful animal products from both extensive and intensive farming systems.
In this context, stakeholders in the agri-food chain lack objective, robust, and reliable information to effectively meet consumer expectations regarding the multiple dimensions of livestock product quality. The INTAQT project aims to conduct an in-depth, multi-criteria assessment of the relationships between husbandry systems and the quality traits of animal-derived products. This will be achieved through the development of quality assessment and authentication tools, providing science-based decision support for policymakers, industries, farmers, and consumers. The project also seeks to enhance husbandry practices to ensure both high product quality and sustainable production. INTAQT focuses on chicken meat, beef, and dairy products originating from a range of husbandry systems, from extensive to intensive, across various European countries. Adopting a multi-stakeholder participatory approach, the project involves all key actors in the agri-food chain, including farmers, consumers, scientists, certification bodies, policymakers, and the general public.
The main challenges addressed by the project are:
i) Developing comprehensive models to quantify the impact of husbandry systems on quality traits such as product safety, nutritional value, and sensory characteristics.
ii) Co-developing tools with agri-food chain stakeholders to predict the intrinsic quality of animal products, authenticate the husbandry systems they originate from, and establish multi-criteria scoring for product quality.
iii) Promoting innovative farming practices to ensure consistently high-quality, safe, healthy, and flavorful animal products from both extensive and intensive farming systems.
The first months of the project were dedicated to consulting various actors in the food chain (farmers, processors, laboratories, distributors, consumers, etc.) to define, together with them, the priority farming systems and quality criteria to be studied. The protocols for sample collection, on-farm surveys, and animal welfare assessment were jointly developed and then shared among the partners. Once this preparatory phase was completed, the collection of samples and their shipment to various analytical laboratories were carried out. To date, more than 90% of the quality analyses (sensory, nutritional, and health-related) have been completed. At the same time, socio-economic and environmental data from farms, as well as data related to animal welfare, have been integrated into a common database, which now needs to be enriched with the analytical results of the collected products. Based on the data collected from farms and animals, a common typology has been established to classify farms according to their degree of intensification. This classification has been shared with the entire consortium for modeling work and the development of tools for authenticating farming systems and predicting product quality. The modeling of the relationships between farming practices and intrinsic quality characteristics (sensory and nutritional) has begun for beef and poultry using existing databases. This work has already led to initial publications and the development of models and algorithms that will be used to analyze the data obtained within the INTAQT framework. The development of tools for predicting the intrinsic quality of animal products and authenticating farming systems is underway. It will be finalized once all analytical data have been shared. Additionally, the architecture of the multi-criteria assessment tool for intrinsic product quality has been defined, with completion expected by the end of 2025. Finally, innovative farming practices have been selected in consultation with stakeholders and are currently being tested in the field within living labs.
The INTAQT project aims to provide scientists, food-chain stakeholders, and policymakers with:
Objective data and models that simultaneously assess the safety, nutritional value, and sensory characteristics of chicken meat, beef, and dairy products from various European extensive and intensive farming systems. Once established, the INTAQT databases will help determine whether there are true synergies or rather trade-offs between "good farming quality" and "good food quality." By objectifying the relationship between product qualities and farming systems, the project will contribute to positioning product quality as a key element in the sustainability of livestock production systems in Europe and will offer solutions and tools that the food production chain can use to enhance product value.
Innovative tools and methodologies to identify and predict the most relevant quality characteristics of chicken meat, beef, and dairy products, as well as to authenticate the farming systems from which these products originate throughout the food chain. These tools will help secure supply chains and better integrate quality criteria directly linked to consumer expectations. They will also strengthen consumer confidence and willingness to pay for products with guaranteed quality and origin (specific farming systems).
Farming practices that enhance both the intrinsic quality of chicken, beef, and dairy products and the sustainability of farming systems. Through extensive consultation with food-chain stakeholders, an initial list of farming systems and practices has already been identified as promising for improving product quality while aligning with societal expectations regarding farming sustainability.
Objective data and models that simultaneously assess the safety, nutritional value, and sensory characteristics of chicken meat, beef, and dairy products from various European extensive and intensive farming systems. Once established, the INTAQT databases will help determine whether there are true synergies or rather trade-offs between "good farming quality" and "good food quality." By objectifying the relationship between product qualities and farming systems, the project will contribute to positioning product quality as a key element in the sustainability of livestock production systems in Europe and will offer solutions and tools that the food production chain can use to enhance product value.
Innovative tools and methodologies to identify and predict the most relevant quality characteristics of chicken meat, beef, and dairy products, as well as to authenticate the farming systems from which these products originate throughout the food chain. These tools will help secure supply chains and better integrate quality criteria directly linked to consumer expectations. They will also strengthen consumer confidence and willingness to pay for products with guaranteed quality and origin (specific farming systems).
Farming practices that enhance both the intrinsic quality of chicken, beef, and dairy products and the sustainability of farming systems. Through extensive consultation with food-chain stakeholders, an initial list of farming systems and practices has already been identified as promising for improving product quality while aligning with societal expectations regarding farming sustainability.