Animal Welfare in Middle East Farming 2025

Farmed animal welfare across Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, and Jordan

Overview: The Middle East presents a unique animal welfare landscape shaped by extreme climate, food security imperatives, Islamic dietary traditions, and significant variation in governance capacity and economic development. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have invested heavily in food security through domestic intensive livestock production, while countries like Egypt and Jordan have large traditional farming sectors. Animal welfare legislation is nascent across most of the region, but momentum is building.

Agricultural Context

Middle Eastern countries face fundamental agricultural constraints — extreme heat, water scarcity, and limited arable land. Most countries are heavily dependent on food imports, making domestic livestock production a food security priority. This has driven investment in highly intensive indoor production systems for poultry, eggs, and dairy, operating in air-conditioned facilities to manage climate challenges.

Key Agricultural Facts (2025):
• Saudi Arabia: Major poultry producer; 500+ million broilers annually; significant dairy sector
• Egypt: Largest poultry producer in the region; 1+ billion broilers annually
• UAE: High-technology dairy and poultry; significant aquaculture development
• Qatar: Post-blockade food security investment created rapid livestock expansion
• Jordan: Significant poultry sector; sheep and goat farming traditional
• Gulf states: Major live animal importers for Eid Al-Adha and daily consumption

Heat Stress: The Defining Welfare Challenge

With summer temperatures regularly exceeding 45°C across the Gulf and 40°C+ in Egypt and Jordan, heat stress is the most pervasive animal welfare challenge in the region. Strategies include:

Concern: Traditional outdoor small-ruminant keeping (sheep, goats) during summer months in Egypt, Jordan, and rural Gulf areas exposes millions of animals to severe heat stress without adequate shade, water, or cooling. Heat-related mortality and chronic welfare compromise is significant.

Live Animal Import and Eid Al-Adha

The Eid Al-Adha festival requires the sacrifice of sheep, goats, cattle, and camels across the Muslim world. The Middle East imports millions of live animals annually for this purpose, predominantly from Australia, Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Romania. Welfare concerns include:

Major Concern: Unregulated Eid slaughter in public spaces, streets, and homes occurs across much of the region without veterinary oversight, stunning, or basic welfare provisions. Millions of animals are killed annually in conditions causing significant suffering.
Progress: Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Qatar have developed centralized Eid slaughter facilities with trained personnel. UAE has prohibited public slaughter and requires use of licensed facilities. Egypt has expanded licensed abattoir capacity for Eid.

Poultry Welfare

Intensive poultry production dominates the region's farmed animal sector. Welfare concerns largely mirror global intensive poultry issues:

Gulf state facilities are often technologically advanced with good biosecurity and climate control, but welfare standards focusing on positive behavior expression are generally absent.

Camel Welfare

Camels hold deep cultural significance across the Middle East and are used for racing, milk production, meat, and traditional transport. Camel racing — particularly popular in UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain — has undergone significant welfare reforms following international scrutiny over the use of child jockeys (replaced by robot jockeys). Welfare concerns now focus on training methods, racing intensity, and handling practices.

Progress: UAE's replacement of child jockeys with robot jockeys is a notable welfare reform. UAE and Qatar have developed veterinary support structures for racing camels. Camel welfare science is advancing with research programs at UAE and Qatar universities.

Legislative Landscape

Companion Animal Welfare

Attitudes toward companion animals are evolving rapidly in Gulf cities. Dog ownership, historically uncommon, is growing among younger urban populations and expatriate communities. Cat welfare — feral cat management, TNR programs — is increasingly addressed by municipal governments in UAE, Qatar, and Jordan. Animal welfare NGOs are more active and visible than in previous decades.

2025 Priorities