Veterinarians on the margins? A qualitative interview study on the professional identity of official veterinary inspectors working in slaughterhouses in Austria

Abstract

Abstract Background Official veterinary inspectors play a central role in ensuring food safety and animal welfare within slaughterhouses, yet their role as a distinct group within the veterinary profession remains underexplored. This article uses the concept of professional identity as an analytical lens to better understand their personal backgrounds, professional norms and interactions with others. Methods Twenty semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted to explore the professional identity of official veterinary inspectors working in meat inspection in Austria. Inductive data analysis was applied, focusing on their motivations for pursuing veterinary medicine and entering the field of meat inspection, their professional values and goals, their interactions within the slaughterhouse environment, and, from their perspective, the position of this field within the broader veterinary profession. Results The findings indicate that the participants decided to study veterinary medicine primarily out of a love for animals and because of their desire to promote animal welfare. They reported that their decision to work in meat inspection was largely driven by pragmatic considerations, such as financial security and regular working hours, alongside intrinsic motivations, including contributing to food safety and animal welfare. The study identified the relationships with staff, management, regulatory authorities, and slaughter animals as crucial to the role as an official veterinary inspector; although these workplace interactions were described as ambivalent. Specifically, the participants experienced that their regulatory role placed them in a distinct and somewhat isolated professional position, characterized not only by a certain degree of distance from the slaughterhouse team but also by general limited support and recognition. Finally, the findings indicate that meat inspection is perceived as lying outside the core areas of veterinary medicine, both in official veterinary inspectors’ professional self-conception and within the veterinary profession more broadly. Conclusion The study indicates that, from the perspective of the interviewed official veterinary inspectors, their role differs from that of other veterinarians in several respects, contributing to a position “on the margins” of both the slaughterhouse and the veterinary profession—underlining the need for due consideration in veterinary education and in staff retention.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. BMC Veterinary Research, 2026 · DOI ↗