Farm Animal Welfare

Livestock Biosecurity and Animal Welfare

Good biosecurity on farms prevents disease outbreaks that cause significant animal suffering, highlighting the overlap between disease prevention and welfare improvement.

Key Facts

Avian influenza, foot-and-mouth disease and African swine fever cause millions of animal deaths annually
Mass culling during disease outbreaks is a major welfare event affecting millions of animals
Biosecurity measures including clean footwear, controlled access and pest control reduce outbreak risk
The link between good biosecurity and animal welfare is underappreciated by the public
Farm assurance schemes increasingly integrate biosecurity into welfare assessment

Welfare Considerations

Disease outbreaks cause profound suffering: fever, respiratory distress, neurological symptoms, and often death. Mass culling by gassing, shooting or injection during outbreaks, while intended to control spread, causes suffering in healthy animals as well as diseased ones. Investing in biosecurity prevents both disease suffering and culling events. The welfare benefit of disease prevention is enormous relative to its cost.

What You Can Do

Support farm biosecurity investment through food purchasing choices
Advocate for public funding of disease surveillance and rapid response systems
Do not visit farms without following biosecurity instructions
Support vaccination programmes for livestock where available
Learn about the welfare impacts of major livestock diseases and prevention