Animal Welfare and Breeding: friend or foe

We are quick to talk about animal welfare, but what exactly is it?

An animal presents a satisfactory state of well-being if it is healthy, comfortable, well-fed, safe, capable of natural behavior, and if it does not suffer discomfort attributable, for example, to pain, fear, or suffering.

History and definition

According to the Italian Livestock Breeders Association (AIA?), consumers are demanding that animals destined for food consumption be treated well, and this demand is becoming increasingly pressing.

In fact, animal welfare contributes to the quality of final products in a direct or indirect form. EU legislation has also expanded in this regard in recent years and looks set to strengthen in the future. An example in this regard is the?European Broiler?Directive, which sets minimum standards for the protection of chickens raised for meat production (broilers).

In 1976 Hughes gave a definition of wellness that is still cited today: “Wellness is a state of complete health, both physical and mental, in which the animal is in harmony with its environment.”

In 1964 Ruth Harrison published the book Animal Machines, which raised the issue of the welfare of intensively raised animals. As a result of the stir caused by this book, the British government commissioned a report from a group of researchers; the Brambell Report resulted.

This publication, in addition to being one of the first official documents related to animal welfare, enunciated the principle (later taken up by the British farm animal welfare council in 1979) of the five freedoms for the protection of animal welfare.

We discussed it here:?The Five Freedoms for the Protection of Animal Welfare.

Animal Welfare: what parameters

Animal welfare cannot be assessed according to simple variables, but is derived from the combination of parameters that pertain properly to the animals (e.g., health parameters) and those related to the farm environment and its management (e.g., microclimate).

The issue turns out to be a delicate one: today, consumers want to be assured of the quality of animal products, in addition to certifying that these products are not polluting the environment, and always making sure that the animals are raised according to criteria that respect their basic needs.

As we have often mentioned, animal husbandry is a passion as well as hard and demanding daily work. In the discussion of animal welfare, it is necessary to recognize that livestock farmers are constantly striving to find and apply the best available technology (BAT) to ensure the best living conditions for their animals.

Consumers need to become aware that a quality product, from a transparent and guaranteed supply chain, costs more because to balance profit, environmental protection and animal welfare, farmers invest great resources in advanced technologies and state-of-the-art machinery.

How can we make the daily work of farmers easier?

Our?patented technology?answers this question.

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