Annen, Dominic Norbert: Farm Animal Welfare: Measurement and Compliance. - Bonn, 2012. - Dissertation, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn.
Online-Ausgabe in bonndoc: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:5n-29134
@phdthesis{handle:20.500.11811/5114,
urn: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:5n-29134,
author = {{Dominic Norbert Annen}},
title = {Farm Animal Welfare: Measurement and Compliance},
school = {Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn},
year = 2012,
month = jul,

note = {The present study is divided into two main parts. The first main part aims at evaluating the conception of and compliance with legal and voluntary husbandry standards on Austrian and German pig fattening and cattle farms with respect to their relevance for animal welfare. The second main part is focussed on testing hypotheses concerning the joint decision situation of farmers choosing to participate in certification standards and/or the European Single Payment Scheme (“cross compliance” (CC)) on the basis of behavioural models and survey data.
In the course of the first main part, an inventory of applicable legal and farm certification standards is done. The standards are clustered into groups with identical minimum provisions. By means of the Austrian “Animal Needs Index” (ANI), a field-proven assessment framework for farm animal welfare, for each group an ANI profile is calculated. The latter are then compared with on-farm measured ANI profiles of similar farm types. For pig fattening farms, the calculated ANI profiles are extrapolated to estimate the minimum animal welfare level in the full farm or herd size population of conventional and organic farm types in Austria and Germany. This is done by weighting the ANI scores of standards in accordance to their national participation rate. For cattle farms, both calculated and on-farm measured ANI profiles are compared with weightings of animal welfare aspects provided by overlapping overall animal welfare and risk assessment systems. In this way, conclusions are drawn to what extent animal welfare conditions considered by science to be more or less relevant are imposed by standards and reflected by on-farm compliance. The results of the study show that obligations given by legal and farm certification standards in Austria and Germany are on a similar animal welfare level, depending on the livestock species. This can be largely ascribed to already harmonised European law for conventional as well as organic farm types. A closer look reveals that Austrian pig fattening standards indicate more diversification in animal welfare levels than those identified for Germany, where the labels show a greater overlap with legal standards sets. Although both calculated and on-farm measured ANI profiles show similar value patterns, the on-farm measured results disclose in nearly all ANI assessment criteria higher animal welfare levels. Especially for requirements concerning herd structure and stockman care substantial voluntary compliance is measured. However, the adherence to animal welfare aspects with regard to floor conditions, stable climate and space allowance is mainly based on the prescribed minimum obligations. Overall animal welfare and risk assessment systems for cattle farming strongly emphasise space allowance, floor, free range and technical conditions provided by the housing system.
In the course of the second main part, behavioural models are developed reflecting the farmer’s options in the joint decision situation. The models are used to derive, on the one hand, determinants of participation in CC and/or farm certification standards and, on the other hand, hypotheses with regard to the farmer’s participation choice and compliance behaviour. In order to assess the importance of the determinants, the outcomes of Austrian farm interviews are analysed. Furthermore, a formal relation between willingness to participate and the derived determinants is investigated using a probit model. The analysis of the survey together with the results of the probit model serves as a basis for verifying or rejecting the formulated hypotheses. The research findings show that for the farmer’s choice to participate in CC and farm certification standards, an underlying rational decision dependent on the amount of premia and the costs of compliance can be confirmed. The results suggest that the decision to participate is independent of the expected sanctioning and detection probability of breaches. For the degree of compliance, however, dependencies on the expected sanctions and detection probabilities of breaches can be attested. Production standards close to the legal minimum seem to prevail on the farmer to participate in CC or farm certification schemes. It can be assumed that personal motives have an appreciable influence on the compliance with requirements.},

url = {https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11811/5114}
}

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