Forum :: 10th Expert Forum on Farm Animal Well-being
10th Expert Forum on Farm Animal Well-being, Rome (Italy), 2017
At the 10th anniversary Boehringer Ingelheim Expert Forum on Farm Animal Well-Being in Rome on June 8 and 9, the company has invited a multinational, multidisciplinary group to share ideas on promoting better standards of welfare for livestock all around the world. Over the past decade, this series of conferences has repeatedly shown that paying attention to animal welfare is the right thing to do - and that it can also offer significant economic benefits. This 10th annual meeting offers a timely opportunity to review the progress made over the past decade in our understanding of how to improve the lives of farm livestock - and look forward to where these scientific advances will take us next.
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LECTURES
Assessing pain now and then
Prof. Suzanne MillmanIowa State University, USA
Initial studies on animal pain tried to find objective pain markers, such as cortisol and heart rate. We’ve come a long way since then and learned about behaviors and how they are more sensitive to qualify pain. What will the measures be that will dominate the future research on pain in cattle?
From pain to suffering
Prof. Dan WearyUniversity of British Columbia, Canada
The more we can identify pain in animals, the more important becomes the question how it influences the quality of life. When does pain cause suffering and how does that relate to other sources of suffering in an animal’s life?
Adapting to the customer of the future
Duncan SinclairWaitrose, UK
Waitrose is very proud on its Tier one position in the Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare list. The “willingness to pay” for more animal well-being is a conundrum yet to be solved by many producers and retailers. How was this retailer successful in building up a marketing strategy based on a life worth living for the animal?
Well-being meats the foodies
Daniel NowlandJamie Oliver Group, UK
The relationship between people and their food is continually evolving, and meat can be a bone of contention. With Jamie Oliver as an example, Daniel will explain how commercial organisations can drive the change and bring people towards responsible consumption.
Animal welfare: the all-important human dimension
Prof. David FraserUniversity of British Columbia, Canada
The “demand” on more animal welfare friendly production is mostly raised by consumers of developed countries, yet a large part of the world’s meat is produced in less industrialised countries, where the regulations designed to safeguard animal welfare don’t necessarily apply. What are the implications of a globalised market on animal well-being?
Building up an open dialogue between industry stakeholders
Dr. Mike SiemensArrowsight Global Agribusiness, USA
End of life issues, transportation and painful procedures have so far dominated the efforts of the industry to improve welfare standards. Dr. Mike Siemens tells us the story from the perspective of one of the largest providers of food worldwide.