Abstract
The present chapter aims to describe and discuss the socio-economic developments and the related scientific advancements that formed the background and context of the Welfare Quality project. This project was clearly a ‘child of its time’. In the last decades animal welfare issues have attracted growing public attention and research in this area has grown to become a mature scientific discipline that is capable of addressing the new societal, political and market demands for more animal friendly types of production. This chapter specifically addresses the changes in animal farming that have occurred in the last fifty years as well as the emergence of animal welfare science. It then examines EU policy and legislation on the protection of farm animal welfare and changes in farmers’ attitudes and stakeholders’ concerns regarding animal welfare in Europe. The final section is dedicated to the analysis of the rise of public concern for farm animal welfare as well as the conditions for the emergence of consumer demand for animal friendly products.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Improving farm animal welfare. Science and society working together: the Welfare Quality approach |
| Editors | H. Blokhuis, M. Miele, I. Veissier, B. Jones |
| Place of Publication | Wageningen |
| Publisher | Wageningen Academic Publishers |
| Pages | 19-47 |
| Number of pages | 235 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9789086867707 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2013 |