Brucellosis knowledge, attitudes, and practices along the cattle value chain in southwestern China: a cross-sectional study

Brucellosis is undergoing a significant southward expansion in China, with Guizhou Province emerging as a newly endemic region. This epidemiological shift underscores a divergence between rapid livestock industry intensification and frontline stakeholder biosafety awareness. However, socio-behavioral risk factors across the complete livestock value chain remain critically under-investigated in non-traditional pastoral eco-zones. Guided by the “One Health” framework, this study systematically evaluated brucellosis-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) along the cattle farm-to-table continuum. A cross-sectional survey was implemented from August to October 2024 across nine counties in Guizhou Province. Utilizing a multistage stratified sampling design, face-to-face structured interviews were executed with 771 key stakeholders, comprising 142 farmers, 123 slaughterers, 109 vendors, and 397 consumers. Nonparametric tests (Kruskal–Wallis and Wilcoxon rank-sum) and Spearman’s correlation were used to compare group differences and examine inter-dimensional associations. Multi-variate binary logistic regression was performed to screen independent socio-demographic predictors. The overall awareness rate was 49.59%, below the national control target of 90%. Knowledge proficiency followed an occupational gradient, highest among slaughterers and vendors and lowest among farmers and consumers. Notably, farmers demonstrated the poorest performance, yielding the lowest mean scores for both knowledge (29.14%) and overall KAP (42.21%) across all groups. Although attitudes toward health education were generally proactive (68.6%), self-reported knowledge and practices remained suboptimal, particularly concerning the consistent use of personal protective equipment (PPE) among high-risk practitioners. Multivariable binary logistic regression identified occupation and educational level as independent predictors of KAP performance. Compared with farmers, slaughterers and vendors had higher odds of achieving good KAP (OR = 2.351 and 1.857, respectively). A strong educational gradient was observed, with higher education associated with progressively better performance (ORs from 3.835 to 15.548). Our findings reveal low baseline knowledge and poor practices across the southwestern cattle value chain. Managing this zoonotic expansion requires a transition from generic public health campaigns toward node-specific, skill-based vocational training tailored to rural smallholders and processing workers. Operationalizing a true “One Health” mitigation strategy requires pairing educational interventions with structural policies, notably a transparent livestock culling compensation scheme to facilitate timely disease reporting along the continuum.