We all know the welfare of animals is a growing concern for the general public and certainly an interest to producers. I recently heard an interesting philosophy which helped me gain a better understanding of the origin of varying viewpoints of welfare and how today’s farmers might be able to address them.

The first-ever Dairy Cattle Welfare Symposium was hosted last month by the University of Guelph and The Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare in Guelph, Ontario. The event attracted 300 participants from around the world and served as a forum between dairy producers, researchers and allied industry.

Today’s dairy industry faces a number of challenges, a few of which can be addressed through animal welfare.

Jeffrey Rushen of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said in his keynote address that by acknowledging animal welfare standards, dairy producers will likely see continued acceptance by consumers and the public of dairy farming, as well as increased profitability as a result of reducing economic losses due to poor animal welfare.

Having dairy producers spearhead the development of animal welfare standards is good, he added; however, it does risk the potential of eliminating consumer concerns.