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Productivity – intensification – animal welfare: Synergies or trade-offs?
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Presentation d by Rebecca E. Doyle, Cecile Godde, Barbara Wieland, Cathy M. Dwyer, Kristina Roesel, Johanna F. Lindahl, Silvia Alonso and Delia Grace at the International Tropical Agriculture Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 11−13 November 2019
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Productivity – intensification – animal welfare: Synergies or trade-offs?
- Productivity – intensification – animal welfare Synergies or trade-offs? International Tropical Agriculture Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 11-13 November 2019 Rebecca E Doyle, Cecile Godde, Barbara Wieland, Cathy M Dwyer, Kristina Rosel, Johanna F Lindahl, Silvia Alonso and Delia Grace
- “completely replacing the use of animals as a food production technology” Impossible Foods mission statement
- Growing, growing and growing Reducing animal agriculture Demand for animal products is increasing Animal welfare is growing in importance Having high animal welfare standards can be a major contributor to improved animal production and contribute to the ongoing acceptability of meat consumption Photo Credit: Vera&Jean-Christophe
- good management towards confinement and production on fewer units smart application of tomorrow’s livestock science
- Welfare sensitive approach • Build the evidence base: scientific welfare assessment • Connect with farmers: foster positive attitudes • Understand and invest in positive welfare systems
- Scientific focus: Welfare assessment • Identify losses/target areas • Measure improvements • Increase opportunities for product differentiation, meeting expectations • Common indicators • Promote transparency ETH – on farm ETH – slaughterhouse AUS – on farm UK – on farm Thin BCS 1.2% 15.8% 10.6% 18% Dirty wool/hair 15.8% 54.9% 9% poor fleece condition 18% Lame 2.9% 4% 4.7% 14.8% Ullman et al. 2019; Bekele et al. 2019; Munoz et al. 2019; AWIN project Welfare assessment of sheep and goats
- Foster positive attitudes • Attitudes towards animal care is more important than many other factors when determining welfare • Farmers with a more active management style had fewer lame ewes and fewer ewes needing further care • Positive attitudes to actions and belief in perceived control over the outcome Photo Credit: Elsa GlanvilleMunoz et al 2019
- ‘Humans are the God for animals’ ‘If it is not for not speaking, animals have similar needs and feelings like humans’ Photo credit: ILRI/ Camille Hanotte
- Invest in positive welfare systems • Empirical knowledge • Agro-forestry & agro-pastoral systems • Potential to be animal welfare, livelihoods and climate friendly Photo Credit: Neil Palmer (CIAT)
- Taking a welfare sensitive approach to animal production will help meet the demands of this changing sector and foster good opportunities for producers and their animals Rebecca Doyle rebecca.doyle@unimelb.edu.au Photo Credit: ILRI Livestock CRP/ Kabir Dhanji
Editor's Notes
- Who’s heard of the impossible burger? Who’s tried an impossible burger? Impossible burgers: multibillion dollar company; with that and ‘beyond meat’ alone being valued at >6 billion dollars Meat alternatives/substitutes: people eat meat in spite of the connection to animals, not because of the connection to animals. Now that there’s a credible alternative, will/how will it change animal consumption? In this talk I want to describe how in the face of this type of competition, and the growing global demand for meat, focusing on animal welfare will be important. FROM THE SYMPOSIUM Indeed, planetary, environmental and human health could all benefit if there were a reduction in consumption of milk, meat and eggs by the over 30% of the global population who consume too much. But for the most vulnerable 35% of the population, most of whom live in tropical environments, a healthy diet can only be achieved by increasing their intake of such foods – and that means increasing sustainable livestock productivity across much of the world. Smart application of tomorrow’s livestock science can deliver healthy, equitable, sustainable diets that include sensible amounts of safe livestock-derived foods for every citizen
- Three areas of growth I am describing here are: anti animal ag, global demand for meat, and animal welfare concerns. Globally, demand for meat is increasing dramatically. With the general thought that much of this demand cannot be met without intensification of production. At the same time, animal welfare is growing in importance: The FAO’s vision for sustainable livestock production treats animal welfare as a priority All continents now have regional strategies for animal welfare Consumer behaviour, governmental processes and international expectations include animal welfare Conscious/conscientious omnivore, a flexitarian is building in awareness too.
- Intensification = Moving towards confinement and production on fewer units - Fraser 2005, FAO [The EAT Lancet report does not specifically mention sustainable intensification of livestock, but by default, the recommendations it makes are promoting the more intensive animal industries and those are accompanied with greater production pressures and welfare risks to animals. Considering animal welfare in the proposed reformation of global diets is critical, but has been poorly integrated to date [2]. Including animal welfare in the formation of sustainable agricultural practices will enable the reduction of wastage, a shift away from feed-food competition, and the exploitation of animals. -- global consumption of poultry & dairy to increase] Intensification can deliver important welfare improvements: this can be the case for extensive management systems where providing health interventions/monitoring anials can be difficult, or in resource poor settings [LHS of diagram]; however this reaches a tipping point, where welfare is compromised. Left side = inefficient; right side = bad welfare, socially unacceptable. Green zone is the sweet spot. Getting to this optimal level requires smart application of tomorrow’s livestock science, and to foster good management. strong potential for smallscale/producers in LMICs to enter From EAT lancet: Furthermore, we acknowledge that food systems also affect society, culture, economy, and animal welfare. However, given the breadth and depth of the topics discussed, many important issues could not be discussed. These and other issues should be considered to achieve healthy diets from sustainable food systems.
- Talk about some approaches that we – as people in a position to connected with farmers, research and industry – can connect with that will contribute to welfare improvements
- ADD REFERENCES TO TABLE: Ullman, Bekele, Munoz, missing! [transparency point] Including animal welfare indicators as both a tool for and evidence of improvement can have wide ranging benefits To make welfare and/or intensification improvements, we need to have evidence. Insight into past & current welfare, and risk for future challenge Baseline and benchmarking Target interventions Change over time Common indicators that are reliable, feasible and meaningful – embedded into projects/outcomes/reports
- We’re not talking about operating successfully without resources, but that resources are alone are not enough for good welfare/productivity Farmers with a more active management style had fewer lame ewes (mid-pregnancy: r = -0.38 P = 0.04), Fewer ewes needing further care at mid-pregnancy and weaning respectively (mid pregnancy: r = -0.47, P = 0.01; weaning: r = -0.50, P = 0.01) Driver of these more active management styles were more positive attitudes to their actions and belief in perceived control over the outcome Start the conversation on animal welfare and bridge the intention-action gap with applying science
- Results and plans from the community conversations on animal welfare we’re doing in ETH at the moment. All participants, including children, described welfare to include - Affective states - Biological functioning - Natural behaviour All participants, including children, readily described situations when animals were happy or sad, reflecting a belief that animals could experience affective states. Interviewees recognised that providing adequate feed and water and good health were critical for happy animals, which matches a definition of welfare based on biological functioning, and a number also described behavioural requirements too. Farmers described feed as their greatest production limitation Free access to water was not common practice Injuries and castration are common practice, but wound caring is not ‘humans are the God for animals’ demonstrating understanding and moral value to give care for animals in their capacity ‘If it is not for not speaking, animals have similar needs and feelings like humans’ (Menz Gera, Ethiopia. Lemma et al. community conversation report) Farmers described feed as their greatest production limitation Free access to water was not common practice Injuries and castration are common practice, but wound caring is not
- Opportunities for higher value social entrepreunreship pro mixed farming systems that dominate smallholder landscapes in many tropical regions may also offer the greatest opportunity for transformational – rather than incremental – changes that simultaneously promote livestock’s important societal and nutritional contributions, whilst mitigating some of the negative impacts of intensification described elsewhere in the world More intensive grazing systems and feeding novel forages while providing opportunities for shade and shelter
- Including animal welfare indicators as both a tool for and evidence of improvement can have wide ranging benefits. Positive attitudes = positive outcomes, so encouraging farmers to focus on animal welfare is key. Systems showing promise, that would benefit from addition of tomorrow’s livestock science. Having high animal welfare standards can be a major contributor to improved animal production and contribute to the ongoing acceptability of meat consumption
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