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Biotechnology and reproductive technology

Epidemiology

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Poultry

    • A report by Andrew Sheppard of Exeter University has stated that people must be prepared to pay more for chicken if �higher welfare standards proposed by the European Union come into force�. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4604918.stm

Transport/markets/slaughter

 

EU Study: "Attitudes of Consumers Towards the Welfare of Farmed Animals"

In the most recent "Eurobarometer" survey conducted by the European Commission, nearly 25,000 people were asked about their opinions regarding farmed animal welfare in the European Union. The results, summarized below, seem quite positive for farmed animal protection. The detailed analysis includes comparisons of 25 EU member countries as well as aggregate, weighted results for all respondents. Because of the scope and sophistication of this study, we are presenting most of the EU's summary verbatim, below. Our thanks to Mary Finelli for highlighting the summary's most interesting findings. Note also that the full text of the results is available online (see link below).

http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/animal/welfare/euro_barometer25_en.pdf

Factors influencing attitudes to animal welfare

Visits to farms appear to heighten awareness of and concern for animal welfare. The majority of those surveyed had visited a farm that rears animals at least once, with the highest proportion being in Scandinavia (90%) and the lowest in Portugal (29%) and Greece (34%).

There is a strong link between the frequency of farm visits and acceptance of price increases due to improved animal welfare. Of the respondents who said they were willing to accept a price increase of at least 25% for animal welfare reasons, 54% had visited a farm at least 3 times.

Views on the protection of farmed animals, by species

Laying hens: On average, 58% of respondents rated the welfare of laying hens as "fairly bad" or "very bad". The Dutch and Danish (77%) surveyed were the most critical, followed by the Germans and Belgians (73%). At the other end of the scale, over 2/3 of Maltese questioned had a positive view of the protection of laying hens.

Dairy Cows: In 21 out of 25 Member States, the majority of respondents had a positive view of the welfare and protection of dairy cows. Optimism was highest in Finland (85%), the Netherlands (83%) and Sweden (82%) and lowest in Greece (42%), Latvia (43%), Portugal (46%) and Slovakia (48%).

Pigs: Views on the level of welfare and protection for pigs were mixed. In 10 Member States, pigs were generally thought to be well protected, with the most positive responses in Malta (62%) and Finland (61%). On the other hand, over 60% of those surveyed in Denmark and Slovakia had a negative view of the welfare of pigs.

Species to be protected as a priority

When asked which animals should be given priority in improving welfare conditions, respondents gave a clear first place to laying hens (44%), followed by broiler chickens (42%). Respondents from Sweden (73%), the Netherlands (66%), Germany (65%) and Belgium (62%) were most vocal on the need to improve the welfare conditions of laying hens.

Pigs (28%) were also highly ranked as animals that need further protection. Respondents from Denmark (60%) were the strongest advocates for more protection for pigs.

Dairy cows (17%) were in fifth place, and calves (14%) in sixth place, which confirmed that bovine animals are perceived to have better rearing conditions, as was found earlier in the survey.

Purchasing behaviour and the welfare of farmed animals

A slight majority of EU citizens (52%) said that they did not take animal welfare considerations into account when buying meat. However, there were large disparities between Member States on this issue. In all of the new Member States, except for Cyprus (38%), the majority said that animal welfare did not influence their purchasing behaviour. The figure was more than two thirds in the Czech Republic (74%), Slovakia (73%), Estonia (69%) and Poland (68%). At the other end of the scale, 67% of Swedes, 66% of Greeks and 64% of Luxembourgers surveyed said that they did take animal welfare into account when buying meat.

With regard to eggs , almost 4 in 10 respondents said that they buy eggs from free range or outdoor reared hens. Swedish (63%), Luxembourg (61%) and UK (61%) consumers surveyed expressed the strongest preference for purchasing free range eggs. Respondents in Spain and Slovakia (12%) expressed the lowest propensity to buy free range eggs.

Over three quarters of those surveyed believe that they can influence animal welfare conditions by their purchasing behaviour (i.e. by buying animal welfare friendly products). This opinion was strongest in Sweden (94%) and Cyprus (90%), whereas it is less certain in Lithuania (56%), Estonia (57%) and Portugal (62%).

However, 51% said that they could never or very rarely identify products sourced from animal welfare friendly production systems. This figure was higher in the new Member States, exceeding 80% in Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland.

 

 

News update, 11/2005

Transport/markets/slaughter

Animal cruelty charges have been laid against a leading West Australian live export company, centreing on a 2003 shipment of 100,000 sheep from Fremantle to Kuwait.  An industry spokesman warns that it could decimate sheep farmers across the state.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Business/Cruelty-charges-threaten-live-exports/2005/11/10/1131578153158.html?oneclick=true

Cattle

Brazil's agriculture minister has publicly admitted that he expected a resurgence of foot and mouth disease in the country because measures to combat the disease had �softened.�

http://www.irishexaminer.com/pport/web/supplements/Full_Story/did-sggAUwAeTL-wAsgTbBP-2fa91M.asp

Epidemiology

State media has said the practice of using chicken excrement to feed fish in southern Vietnam is threatening millions of people with bird flu in Ho Chi Minh City.

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33362/story.htm

The discovery of chickens in Hong Kong infected but showing no symptoms of the disease has triggered concern over consumption of eggs.

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33363/story.htm

The Thai government is mobilising local farmers and villagers to help catch and kill  potentially infected poultry.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southeastasia/view/177371/1/.html

China has culled 6 million birds in a northeastern region hit by the fourth outbreak in a month.

http://www.magentanews.com/rrr.asp?url=http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp

?xfile=data/theworld/2005/November/theworld_November176.xml&section=theworld

Beijing has ordered the shutdown of all live poultry and pet-bird markets.

http://www.magentanews.com/rrr.asp?url=http://www.chinanews.cn/news/2005/2005-11-08/13823.html

Vietnam, the country worst hit by bird flu, will send soldiers and police to help contain the spread as more outbreaks erupt and the sudden death of ducks in two provinces hints at a more virulent strain.

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33417/story.htm

Health experts have unveiled a $1 billion plan (on Wednesday November 9 in Geneva) that is aimed at rooting out bird flu among poultry and stopping it from spawning a flu pandemic.

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33395/story.htm

EU poultry flocks remain bird flu free after confirmation that the suspected case in Greece was not the deadly strain.

http://www.first4farming.com/F4F/news/index.jhtml?article_id=fwi90633

The FAO, the WHO and the OIE are pushing for the establishment of a U.S. $102 million fund to bankroll a proposed three year global strategy to eliminate bird flu.  Poultry International, vol.44, no.12, November 2005, p.4

Policy/legislation

A group of farmers has mounted a demonstration outside the British Embassy in Dublin to protest against the actions of Tony Blair and EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson.   They claim he's set to allow increased imports of meat from countries like Brazil and New Zealand, a movethat would harm the Irish food and farming sectors.  Farmers Weekly, 11.11.05, p.9

http://www.irishexaminer.com/breaking/story.asp?j=3436410&p=34364z5&n=3436502

The EU has lost its battle at the WTO to restrict the import of cheap, frozen, salted chicken cuts from Thailand and Brazil. Poultry International, vol.44, no.12, p.4

Poultry

Article on faster rearing of broiler breeder males. Poultry International, vol.44, no.12, p.28

A new non-cage system for layers developed by Vencomatic needs just one person to run a 30,000 bird unit. Poultry International , vol.44, no.12, p.30

 

 

News update, week ending 24/06/05

Biotechnology and reproductive technology

  • Meat and milk from cloned farm animals is about to be declared safe for human consumption by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Daily Mail, 24.06.05, p.17
    Read Article
  • The WHO has said that GMO foods can bring benefits both to farmers and consumers, but safety checks will always be needed before they are marketed. 
    Read Article
  • "I, chimera." Article on the moral minefield of human-animal chimeras. New Scientist, 25.06.05, p.39

Epidemiology

  • Bird flu has become resistant to one of the most effective antiviral drugs against it and Chinese farmers� use of the compound in chickens is to blame. Nature, 23.06.05, vol.435, p.1009
  • A test that can detect any of the 15 known strains of bird flu in just 24 hours will make it easier to screen wild birds for the virus without harming them. New Scientist, 25.06.05,p.22
  • A Vietnamese doctor who treated bird flu patients has contracted the disease.
    Read Article
  • Two more Vietnamese have contracted bird flu in the country�s north as more than 6,000 chickens were slaughtered in the southern Mekong Delta following a fresh outbreak.
    Read Article
  • The WHO is seeking clarification from China about reports it urged farmers to use a human anti-viral drug to treat birds infected with bird flu, breaking international guidelines.
    Read Article
  • China�s government said it was dispatching experts to stop the misuse of an antiviral drug on poultry and denied a report that officials encouraged farmers to use it, possibly making it ineffective for treating deadly bird flu in humans.
    Read Article
  • A case of mad cow disease has been found in Austria, the second in that country�s history.
    Read Article
  • DNA from the brain of an aged beef animal could show why there were conflicting results from U.S. mad cow tests and if the disease arose spontaneously.
    Read Article
  • The EU�s food safety chief has said that Europe�s fight against mad cow disease will be reviewed this year, focusing on whether the 12-month age limit for removing high-risk material from cattle should be relaxed.
    Read Article
  • Britons are at risk of food poisoning from cheap imported eggs despite the success of British producers in curbing the threat from salmonella.
    Read Article
  • �45 cases of human trichinosis in Latvia.� The disease originates in wild boars, parts of which are used by farmers to feed pigs. EU Food Law, 17.06.05, p.9

Fish

  • Scientists and activists have criticized proposed legislation that would push U.S. fish farms into deep waters, beyond the reach of states� environmental controls.  The bill would allow aquaculture pens between 5.5 and 370 kilometres off the U.S. coast.  Nature, 23.06.05, vol.435, p.1014
  • Anglers chasing big fish and leaving the small fry might be doing far more harm than good.  Big fish are vital to maintaining populations and taking them does crucial damage.  New Scientist, 25.06.05, p.11
    Read Article
  • �Disease threat to European fish�.  Nature, 23.06.05, vol.435, p.1046

Food Industry

  • Article on McDonald�s free range egg supplier.  Farmers Guardian, 24.06.05, p.27

Cattle

  • The National Beef Association has issued a warning that angry farmers will start taking matters into their own hands if badger culls are not ordered soon. This amid claims that spending on bovine TB in Wales was spiralling out of control.
    Read Article
  • The Ministry of Agriculture in Beijing has told FAO that a national laboratory had confirmed that 40 cattle in the western region of Xinjiang were infected with foot and mouth disease. 
    Read Article

Miscellaneous

  • U.S. fashion giant American Eagle Outfitters has become the latest big retailer to ban Australian merino wool after pressure from PETA.
    Read Article
  • International and local animal welfare activists have gathered in Singapore for the Asia for Animals Conference.  The conference aims to be a platform for participants to network, exchange expertise and develop new strategies to address animal-related concerns. 
    Read Article
  • Canaccord Capital has quit as broker to Phytopharm Plc after a senior manager was attacked by animal rights activists because of the Canadian financial services group�s links to the British biotech firm.
    Read Article
  • Article on animal welfare education for undergraduate veterinary students.  The Veterinary Record, 25.06.05, vol.156, no.26, p.822
  • The BBC has received 63 complaints about a scene in the film Martha and Me, in which a chicken was beheaded.
    Read Article

Poultry

  • In a summary of State Veterinary assessments of animal welfare over 95% of visits to broiler farms identified compliance with the legislation when complaint or target visits were undertaken.  Similar figures for other species were layers (84%), beef (81%), calves (78%), dairy cows (85%), pigs (84%) and sheep (87%).  When random elective visits occurred the broiler figure was almost 99%.  International Poultry Production, 2005, vol.13, no.4, p.5
  • The EU ban on battery cages, scheduled for 2012, could cost European egg producers up to 354 million euros per year.
    Read Article
  • Article on initial BPC (British Poultry Council) comments on EU proposal on welfare of chicken kept for meat.
    Read Article
  • Article on the grim reality of chicken production.
    Read Article
  • A system to allow touching and feeling of animals or other humans in real time is being tested on chickens."a hollow, chicken-shaped doll sits on a mechanical positioning table close to your computer. The doll whirs to life as soon as you switch on the system, duplicating the motion of a real chicken in the backyard whose movements are being captured by a webcam. Fondling the doll translates into touching the real fowl. Touch sensors attached to the doll convey tactile information to a nearby PC through radio signals. The data is sent over the internet to a remote computer near the chicken; the remote computer triggers tiny vibration motors in a lightweight haptic jacket worn by the fowl."
    Read Article
  • �Digestive aids: A brave new world of nutrition.�  Poultry International, June 2005, vol.44, no.7, p.26

Transport/markets/slaughter

  • Australia�s chief commodities forecaster has said that the opening of a key Middle East market would push up the export of live sheep by almost a quarter this coming financial year.  Live sheep exports plummeted after the Cormo Express affair and Australia has signed a string of memorandums of understanding with key Middle East nations, including Saudi Arabia, to avoid a repeat of the Cormo incident.
    Read Article
  • Meat trade agreement that could ease the way for Moscow to join the WTO.
    Read Article

June 2005

Cattle

  • Brazil has one thousand cattle for every ten in Wales.  A 1% increase in output by Brazil would have catastrophic consequences for local producers if the supply ended up in Wales.
    Read Article
  • Milk consumption per head in China is currently among the lowest in the world, at most 10.5-11 litres per head per year, and they are less than keen on cheese.  Farmers Guardian, 03.06.05, p.77 
  • The Agriculture Ministry confirmed reports that hundreds of cattle with foot and mouth disease had been slaughtered near Beijing since early May.
    Read Article

Epidemiology

  • Keep up to date with the latest avian influenza news.
    Read Article
  • The EC is to implement new rules on tackling bird flu in early 2007 with a greater focus on low pathogenic strains. Poultry World, June 2005, p.1
  • New genetic analyses of samples from recent human bird flu patients reinforce epidemiological evidence suggesting that new strains of the virus may be emerging in northern Vietnam. Science, 27.05.05, vol.308, no.5726, p.1233 .
    Read Article
  • A mysterious respiratory disease has prompted Brazilian authorities to cull 17,000 birds on a poultry farm in Brazil. The authorities have ruled out bird flu.
    Read Article
  • According to an agriculture official in Beijing, a deadly strain of bird flu has killed five times the number of migratory birds in China then was initially reported. They are also grappling with foot and mouth disease outbreaks in cattle in three new areas.
    Read Article
  • The deaths in China of more than 1,000 migratory birds from bird flu has left experts struggling to square the outbreak with their knowledge of the virus. Rumours are also beginning to circulate that humans in the region have also fallen victim to the disease. Nature, 02.06.05, vol.435, no.7042, p.542

Food

  • Sales of organic food are now worth more than L1.12bn to U.K. retailers and the market is growing at twice the rate of the general grocery market. Soil Association figures show that organic food sales increased by more than 10% last year.
    Read Article
  • The technical manager of the Livestock and Meat Commission has challenged the validity of quality assurance schemes that are substantially inferior to the Northern Ireland Beef & Lamb Farm Quality Assurance Scheme.
    Read Article
  • Peter Mandelson, the EU Trade Commissioner, has claimed that if developing countries, which under WTO rules include Brazil, have lower animal welfare standards than Europe it's not a reason to exclude them from the market. Farmers Guardian, 03.06.05, p.7
  • The UK supermarket, Budgens, is to be the first UK retailer to adopt the NFU's Red Tractor "promise" campaign.
    Read Article

Other Farmed Animals

  • The EU may ban imports of dog and cat fur used in fluffy toys, especially from Asian countries where producers are accused of mistreating the animals. Read Article

Pigs

  • According to Dutch scientists, stress levels in pigs increase in temperatures of 19C or above, resulting in them eating and growing less. Meat Trades Journal, 02.06.05, p.15
  • Article about Danish pig processing and how Danish pig farms will have to double in size over the next eight years to survive. Farmers Weekly, 03.06.05, p.20
  • The Danish pigmeat industry, with the backing of the government, are trying to educate the public about the realities of food production. Farmers Weekly, 03.06.05, p.11

Poultry

  • Two more of the country's top multiples (Asda and Sainsbury's) have dropped cage eggs from their private label ranges, while a third (Waitrose) has removed them from all its products containing eggs. Poultry World, June 2005, p.13
  • Free range egg producers must maintain their good consumer image by restricting the size of free range units. The chairman of the recent BOCM PAULS alternative production systems conference highlighted that the delay in the EU Welfare of Laying Hens Directive was of great concern. He believed the industry needed cage eggs and a total ban in 2012 would only fuel imports to fill the gap, as seen in Switzerland. Other issues he believed require attention were multi-tier systems, bird handling/transport and stocking density, both in house and on rage. Poultry World, June 2005, p.24
  • According to the RSPCA, the proposed new EU broiler legislation misses an opportunity for real welfare improvements.
    Read Article
  • "Bangladesh Grand parent poultry farm starts operation in June". The Technical Advisor of Dutch company Hybro, supporting the new farm, said: "Hybro species of birds will be produced in this farm in a totally controlled environment. They will be provided controlled food so they can grow 10 times faster than normal ones and lay eggs in time."
    Read Article

Sentience/Behaviour

  • Interesting article on animals, our relationship to them and their impact on the world.
    Read Article

Transport/Markets/Slaughter

  • "Transporting livestock correctly pays off"- long article from U.S. with some statistics (Mar 04).
    Read Article

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