University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) - Research portal
Gewählte Master / Diploma Thesis:
Marie Louise Schneider
(2018):
Tierwohl bei Milchkühen:
Analyse von Tierwohl-Initiativen verschiedener Akteure aus der Wertschöpfungskette Milch und empirische Untersuchung zur Umsetzung eines Tierwohl-Labels.
Master / Diploma Thesis - Institut für Nutztierwissenschaften (NUWI),
BOKU-Universität für Bodenkultur,
pp 150 .
UB BOKU
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- Abstract:
- In recent years, costumers have taken a more critical view on food of animal origin and its production procedures. Therefore distributors, dairy industry, the agricultural sector and NGOs have come up with their own requirements and standards to ensure animal welfare on their production sites. To find out, to what extent the requirements of such welfare standards bring a potential for improvement of the welfare of dairy cows, twelve standards from food retailers, the dairy industry, the agricultural sector and NGOs were compared to two scientific assessment tools for dairy cows: the Welfare Quality® Protocol and Cows and More. The results show, that the majority of the stakeholders’ standards use to a lesser extent animal-based indicators than the scientific assessment tools. Instead they rely on resource-based measures that neither of the assessment tools use. Also the objective of the welfare standard had an impact on the selection of used measures. In the second part of the present thesis the practical implementation as well as the factors influencing the decision to participate in a welfare programme were examined. The survey comprised interviews with ten farmers who have already implemented the standards and ten farmers in the same region, who do not take part in the programme. The perception of the implementation expenses varied amongst the farmers and was mainly influenced by their personal conviction. As a common hurdle, mistrust towards the contract partners was stated. The survey showed that the efforts for implementing the requirements of the standards are relevant for the farmers but not necessarily the decisive factor for a participation in a welfare programme. The relationship towards their contract partners as well as the mutual trust, seem to influence their decision to a large extent. Therefore, not only feasible standards are necessary to successfully implement an animal welfare standard but also a trustworthy relationship towards the partners.
- Beurteilende(r): Winckler Christoph