The study

There is much interest in animal welfare both amongst farmers and other members of the food chain and consumers. However, it is not clear what benefits accrue to both farmers and consumers when beef cattle and sheep are kept to a ‘high’ welfare standard significantly above the legal minimum. If the market in ‘high welfare’ beef and lamb is to be sustainable, then a systematic study is needed of the potential marketing advantages to both farmers and consumers. In order to address this topic, the following questions need to be answered:

What is the understanding and recognition of ‘high’ animal welfare within the food chain from the primary producer to the consumer?
What are the added costs, if any, of higher welfare?
Is higher animal welfare rewarded within the market place?
Are higher welfare standards more prevalent within recognised home brands such as Welsh Lamb or Scotch beef compared to imported New Zealand lamb, or Irish and South American beef?
Does collaborative marketing and premier production instil an aspiration to raise welfare standards?
What role does Government have in encouraging high welfare production systems?
Do current support payments have a positive or negative effect on high animal welfare?

These are some of the questions that I wish to investigate on my study tour this Autumn to New Zealand and Australia.