What did July’s DSF Webinar cover?

At the July webinar American Humane’s Haley Grimes, also a valued member of the DSF Advisory Council, discussed Animal Welfare’s place in the sustainability puzzle. American Humane has been promoting the welfare and safety of animals for over 145 years and whilst it was founded on farm animal welfare, it now works with many other species and operates across the globe.

Consumer perceptions of animal welfare are changing. In a recent survey of consumers purchasing eggs and dairy products,

• 71% said they were concerned about the welfare of farm animals today.
• Looking specifically at the responses of Gen Z and Millennials, this percentage was higher at 79%.
• Consumer demand for animal welfare has shifted from an interest to an expectation.

Haley outlined a number of key points for continuous improvement when considering animal welfare including the need to:

• bridge the divide between academia and the farm,
• be sure the livestock industry takes concerns for animal welfare seriously,
• communicate animal welfare efforts and successes.

Furthermore, open communication across the supply chain, connecting and engaging across species groups and industries and ensuring farms are kept updated on new and emerging science can all help lead to continuous improvement for the entire livestock industry. For more details, a recording of the webinar is available in English or Spanish in the DSF Members Area.

Make sure you mark the September 18 webinar in your diary when we will hear from Ernesto Reyes, GDP Sector Lead for Dairy Development and representative of the International Farm Comparison Network and also a DSF Advisory Council member. Ernesto will be sharing some extremely exciting research outcomes talking about Evaluating the social impact of dairy. Please be sure to register if you wish to attend.