Farm Animal Welfare and Food Security

Improving farm animal welfare is sometimes seen as conflicting with food security, but evidence increasingly shows that welfare improvements can be compatible with sustainable food production.

Key Facts

Higher-welfare systems often require more land per animal but produce higher-quality products
Welfare improvements in laying hens transitioning to cage-free have been achieved without major price increases
Reduced antibiotic use through welfare improvement enhances long-term food security by preserving drug efficacy
Plant-based protein production uses substantially fewer resources than animal production at comparable protein output
Food security and animal welfare are both dimensions of a sustainable food system

Welfare Considerations

The framing of animal welfare as incompatible with food security deserves scrutiny. Intensive systems that compromise welfare do produce food at low cost, but externalize costs including antibiotic resistance, environmental damage, and public health risks. Higher-welfare systems can achieve comparable outputs with better environmental footprints. The most important food security gain would come from reducing food waste and redistributing protein consumption, which would create space to improve welfare without reducing total food availability.

What You Can Do

Reduce food waste as a high-impact action that creates space for welfare improvements
Shift dietary protein partly toward plant sources to reduce demand pressure on intensive animal systems
Support policy frameworks that incentivize welfare improvements through sustainable food system transitions
Engage with the food security debate around animal welfare as an informed citizen