Farm animal welfare is improving in many areas but major challenges remain, with emerging opportunities from alternative proteins, monitoring technology, and changing consumer values.
Farm animal welfare improvements from regulatory reform, voluntary commitments, and technological innovation are reducing suffering for many animals. However, the global scale of farm animal production means aggregate suffering remains enormous even as per-animal welfare improves. Alternative proteins that reduce or eliminate farm animal use offer the potential for massive welfare improvement if they achieve cost parity and consumer acceptance. The shift to outcome-based welfare assessment that measures actual welfare rather than just housing inputs represents an important methodological improvement for welfare assurance. Consumer choices that support higher-welfare products create market incentives for producers to invest in welfare improvements.