4th Animal Welfare Forum – Animal Welfare Economics

Theme

Economics of Animal Welfare

Incorporating social sciences, particularly economics, in adopting best animal welfare practices is crucial. These play a vital role in better recognizing the impact which implementing animal welfare measures could have on production costs, hidden costs, and benefits, particularly for farm animals. Poor animal welfare can impact animal health which would have a detrimental effect on livestock productivity and impose costs on animal welfare.

The fourth Animal Welfare Forum, centered on the topic of Animal Welfare Economics, opened the discussion on the concept of an economic analysis in the context of animal welfare. The forum provided a platform to initiate a discussion regarding how to identify, measure the costs and benefits of implementing (or not) animal welfare policies, and to assess how these can affect animals and their productivity.

The annual Animal Welfare Global Forum, a key activity of the Global Animal Welfare Strategy, is organised for members of the animal welfare research community, the global animal welfare movement, and the global animal-source food sector to debate openly on animal welfare related topics.