The Concept of Animal Welfare at the Interface between Producers and Scientists: The Example of Organic Pig Farming |
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Authors: | Email author" target="_blank">Christine?LeebEmail author |
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Institution: | (1) University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Gregor Mendelstrasse 33, 1180 Vienna, Austria |
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Abstract: | In organic farming animal welfare is one important aspect included in the internationally agreed organic principles of health,
ecology, fairness and care (IFOAM 2006), reflecting expectation of consumers and farmers. The definition of organic animal welfare includes—besides traditional
terms of animal welfare—‘regeneration’ and ‘naturalness’. Organic animal welfare assessment needs to reflect this and use
complex parameters, include natural behaviour and a systemic view. Furthermore, various parties with seemingly conflicting
interests are involved, causing ethical dilemmas, such as the use of nose rings for outdoor sows (impaired animal welfare
vs. destruction of humus). Solutions can only be found when foundational concepts are translated and applied to practical
situations. On-farm animal welfare assessment and implementation of improvement strategies are increasingly relevant scientific
areas. They combine on-farm welfare assessment, identification of key problem areas and connected risk factors. Constant communication
between all parties is crucial for success. Animal health and welfare planning is one application of this approach, which
was carried out on Austrian organic pig farms as well as organic dairy farms in seven European countries. The projects included
welfare assessment, feedback and benchmarking as a tool for communication between farmers, advisors and scientists. Finally
goals were set by the farmer and improvement strategies applicable to organic farming were implemented. This included prevention
of disease by management strategies instead of routine treatment with pharmaceutical products. It appeared that next to problem
structuring, multidisciplinary problem solving demands good communications skills to relate animal welfare science to value
reflections. |
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