Farm subsidies shape what farmers produce and how. Reforming subsidy systems to reward welfare alongside environmental outcomes is one of the most powerful policy levers for improving farm animal welfare.
Agricultural subsidy policy is one of the most powerful but least-discussed levers for farm animal welfare improvement. When subsidies reward land area regardless of how that land is used, intensive farming with poor welfare has no financial disadvantage. When subsidies reward welfare outcomes — outdoor access, enrichment provision, lower stocking densities — farmers have economic incentive to improve conditions. The post-Brexit ELM scheme in England represents the most ambitious attempt in any major farming nation to embed welfare into subsidy payments. Early evidence suggests it is shifting farmer behaviour, but the payment rates must be sufficient to make welfare improvements economically viable relative to the revenue foregone by lower-intensity production.