{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]],"date-time":"2026-03-17T01:05:42Z","timestamp":1773709542558,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,30]],"date-time":"2025-12-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767052800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sci"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This study examines the impact of sociodemographic factors on the attitudes of EU citizens towards animal welfare and their implications for trade policy. Variations in animal welfare legislation across major commercial blocks create ethical and economic challenges, with the EU implementing stringent standards compared with other countries. Data were drawn from the Special Eurobarometer 533 survey, conducted between the 3rd and 26th March 2023, which employed a multistage, clustered sampling method across all 27 EU Member States, yielding a representative sample of 26,368 respondents. The survey collected detailed information on attitudes toward animal welfare alongside sociodemographic characteristics. The results revealed substantial public support for stricter regulations and informative labelling, with attitudes differing with age (p &lt; 0.001), education (p &lt; 0.001), income (p &lt; 0.001), and political orientation (p &lt; 0.001), according to the multinomial regression applied to each of the independent variables. These results emphasise the importance of these factors in shaping consumer expectations. The findings highlight the need for policymakers to integrate ethical and societal values into trade negotiations, ensuring that policies reflect public concerns, promote fair competition, and encourage higher animal welfare standards internationally. Additionally, understanding the perspectives and motivations of livestock industry stakeholders remains critical for implementing effective welfare strategies. By aligning EU trade policy with citizen values and stakeholder practices, it is possible to advance animal welfare globally while balancing economic and ethical considerations and promoting a fair trade.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/sci8010003","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,31]],"date-time":"2025-12-31T15:05:01Z","timestamp":1767193501000},"page":"3","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Sociodemographic Factors Associated with EU Citizens\u2019 Attitudes Toward Animal Welfare Standards in External Trade"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"8","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5687-7114","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fernando","family":"Mata","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Esta\u00e7\u00e3o Zoot\u00e9cnica Nacional, Instituto Nacional de Investiga\u00e7\u00e3o Agr\u00e1ria e Veterin\u00e1ria, Quinta da Fonte Boa, 2005-424 Vale de Santar\u00e9m, Portugal"},{"name":"Centre for Research and Development in Agrifood Systems and Sustainability, Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua da Escola Industrial e Comercial Nun\u2019Alvares 34, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5981-3829","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ros\u00e1rio","family":"Marques","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Esta\u00e7\u00e3o Zoot\u00e9cnica Nacional, Instituto Nacional de Investiga\u00e7\u00e3o Agr\u00e1ria e Veterin\u00e1ria, Quinta da Fonte Boa, 2005-424 Vale de Santar\u00e9m, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2763-2134","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jo\u00e3o M.","family":"Almeida","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Esta\u00e7\u00e3o Zoot\u00e9cnica Nacional, Instituto Nacional de Investiga\u00e7\u00e3o Agr\u00e1ria e Veterin\u00e1ria, Quinta da Fonte Boa, 2005-424 Vale de Santar\u00e9m, Portugal"},{"name":"CIISA\u2014Centro de Investiga\u00e7\u00e3o Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterin\u00e1ria, Universidade de Lisboa, 1300-477 Lisboa, Portugal"},{"name":"AL4AnimalS\u2014Associate Laboratory for Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Av. Universidade T\u00e9cnica, 1300-477 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1232-3160","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jos\u00e9","family":"Ara\u00fajo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Research and Development in Agrifood Systems and Sustainability, Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua da Escola Industrial e Comercial Nun\u2019Alvares 34, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal"},{"name":"Mountain Research Centre, Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Viana do Castelo, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7130-0543","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nuno","family":"Baptista","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Escola Superior de Tecnologia e Gest\u00e3o de Leiria, Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Leiria, R. do Alto Vieiro Apartado 4163, 2411-901 Leiria, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9753-8370","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gustavo","family":"Paix\u00e3o","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Research and Development in Agrifood Systems and Sustainability, Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua da Escola Industrial e Comercial Nun\u2019Alvares 34, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal"},{"name":"Veterinary and Animal Research Centre, Universidade de Tr\u00e1s-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0022-2749","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Joaquim","family":"Cerqueira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Research and Development in Agrifood Systems and Sustainability, Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua da Escola Industrial e Comercial Nun\u2019Alvares 34, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal"},{"name":"Veterinary and Animal Research Centre, Universidade de Tr\u00e1s-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"McCulloch, S.P. 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