Environmental enrichment for farmed animals improves welfare significantly and often improves production metrics simultaneously. The science of farmed animal enrichment is more advanced than its implementation in commercial agriculture.
The evidence base for farmed animal enrichment is strong and growing. Simple, low-cost interventions like providing rooting material for pigs, perches and litter for poultry, and flow enrichment for farmed fish produce measurable welfare improvements. The business case is often positive because enrichment reduces aggression, injury, and antibiotic use while improving production efficiency. Despite this, implementation in commercial agriculture lags far behind the science, representing a major advocacy opportunity.