In an ever-evolving world where consumer opinion is at the forefront of the animal agriculture industry’s mind, one of the sensitive topics most producers and industry leaders face is animal health and well-being. The beef, poultry and swine industries all have a common goal of promoting current practices and sharing those with consumers.
Each industry has faced their own challenges over the past five to ten years, with consumers shifting their mindsets. The beef industry has worked to maintain cattle health and handling, while the poultry and pork industries have moved their animals inside and focused on nutrition and health.
Dr. Dan Thomson, past chair of the beef cattle welfare committee for the World Organization for Animal Health, member of McDonald’s YUM! brands animal welfare advisory council, and faculty at Iowa State University, has worked in various capacities in cattle feedlots with a mission to bridge the gap between consumers and producers. He divides animal welfare into four buckets: health, nutrition, environment as well as behavior and handling. To him, animal welfare means a safer and more wholesome product that grows efficiently.
“Consumers will give you all sorts of different answers in surveys,” said Thomson. “But the two things that become clear are that people feel a safe food product comes from a healthy animal, and a healthy animal is one that’s had good welfare.”
Over the past five to ten years, he’s seen an increase in audits and assessments on farms to verify that producers are doing their best to provide the best care possible. Organizations such as the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) have developed tools, such as Beef Quality Assurance (BQA), for cow/calf producers and feedlot managers to raise consumer confidence through management techniques and a commitment to quality within each segment of the beef industry.
Thomson works mainly with beef feedlots and producers, looking at small problems and finding solutions that will be both economically and environmentally friendly. He knows the next challenge is looking towards housing and transportation for cattle, decreasing heat stress and mitigating mud (or tag) on cattle.
“We have to find the next simple solution,” Thomson said. “It’s important that everyone in the industry is at the table to make suggestions and lay a plan.”
The beef industry isn’t the only one working towards an animal welfare-centered future. Amelia Woods, poultry welfare manager for the Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization (PAACO), has begun her career working in animal welfare with experience in poultry welfare auditing. PAACO is taking a proactive approach by backing producer practices by science and more organizations.
“We’ve always taken care of the birds, but now we’ve gone public,” Woods said. “There have been many changes within the past five to ten years. We’ve seen no antibiotics in birds, vegetable-fed birds, and breed changes in the barns.”
She’s also looked to their counterparts “across the pond” in Europe as they adapt to their new and changing requirements in bird housing. Even though the same requirements are not currently in the US, PAACO is always researching and looking for the best outcome economically for the consumer and what is best for the birds. The mindset at PAACO is always forward-thinking in ways to advance animal welfare on the global stage.
“Producers are at the table alongside the company [owner of the bird] and the customer [processor],” Woods said. “It’s a lot of future talk – issues of today and talking the future. We’ve planned for this year, and so the mindset is next year and strategically moving forward.”
The common theme between all industries is when decisions are being made, the consumer is at the forefront.
“This isn’t a situation of us telling the consumer what they want,” said Thomson. “We need to build a conversation to where they understand what we are doing and listen more to what they want.”
ALWAYS REMEMBER TO EAT BEEF.
Lauren