This paper aims to emphasize how the animal welfare can influence the cattle productive systems and in the final beef product. The study emerges from the preoccupation with the conditions that the cattle is handled and arrive for slaughter in the cold storage room. Impairing all the productive chain agentes, and the necessity to obtain safe products, with quality and produced in a sustainable and environmentally correct way. A good handling during all the breeding systems reflects in the meat quality. Aggregating quality, though by means of not very identifiable characteristics, the product diferenciation is promoted. For sure, as well as the impairment caused by the inadequate handling, the profits of diferenciation, by means of animal welfare practices, could be shared by all the agents of the productive chain.
handling; productive chain; cattle