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2023-01-04
Tiny Beam Fund;
Clive Phillips was Australia's first Professor of Animal Welfare, at the University of Queensland, and has written widely on the welfare of farm, zoo and companion animals. In 2022 he conducted a series of recorded dialogues (Conversations With Clive) with senior animal welfare scientists and academic experts, including cattle welfare expert Temple Grandin - a faculty member with Animal Sciences in the College of Agricultural Sciences at Colorado State University.These dialogues are aimed at upskilling organizations concerned with farm animal welfare, helping them gain a more nuanced understanding of welfare issues from academics with deep knowledge of animal agriculture systems and direct experience of practices. Relevant academic publications and references are included at the end of the recording.Key topics of the 45-minutes conversation from November 2022: 1) What's important for cattle. 2) Feedlots. 3) Rangeland and pasture systems. 4) Semi-intensive systems. 5) Transport. 6) Slaughter. 7) Calving. 8) Pain relief. 9) Stewardship of the land. 10) The future.
2023-01-04
Tiny Beam Fund;
Clive Phillips was Australia's first Professor of Animal Welfare, at the University of Queensland, and has written widely on the welfare of farm, zoo and companion animals. In 2022 he conducted a series of recorded dialogues (Conversations With Clive) with senior animal welfare scientists and academic experts, including pig welfare expert Donald Broom - Colleen Macleod Professor of Animal Welfare (Emeritus) in the Centre for Animal Welfare and Anthrozoology within the Department of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Cambridge.These dialogues are aimed at upskilling organizations concerned with farm animal welfare, helping them gain a more nuanced understanding of welfare issues from academics with deep knowledge of animal agriculture systems and direct experience of practices. Relevant academic publications and references are included at the end of the recording.Key topics of the 38-minutes conversation from April 2022: 1) Pigs are bright, social animals. 2) Pigs' living condition and confinement is currently the worst pig welfare problem. 3) Changes in pig rearing practices. 4) Farrowing crates and alternatives. 5) Free range outdoor pigs. 6) Slaughtering many animals during disease outbreaks. 7) Problems with rearing piglets (castrations, tail-docking, etc.) 8) Consumers want pigs to be less confined. 9) Transporting pigs. 10) The future.
2023-02-01
Council of Development Finance Agencies;
CDFA worked with Southeast Nebraska Development District (SENDD) to establish a set of recommendations that position SENDD to be the leader in supporting the further restoration of the regional food system. The Strategic Food Systems Financing Plan focuses on how SENDD can use development finance tools to unlock capital for food and agriculture-related businesses, projects, and infrastructure to generate economic prosperity while advancing racial and social equity.
2023-03-06
American Enterprise Institute;
Key PointsThe federal government mostly leaves policy about the housing and treatment of farm animals to the states, but there is increasing interest in a more active federal role, perhaps through the next farm bill.Many states regulate in-state farm animal housing and treatment, and some regulate interstate marketing of animal products based on farm animal treatment elsewhere.One argument for federal legislation is to preempt state-by-state rules to help assure national consistency. Another is to impose federal regulations that would raise standards in laggard jurisdictions and perhaps set more restrictive regulations for animal agriculture generally.This report argues for more recognition of buyers' willingness to pay to satisfy their individual preferences, more transparency about public policy goals, and better clarity about the nature of the public good related to on-farm treatment of farm animals.
2023-03-13
Urban Institute;
Obesity has increased rapidly during the last few decades and is a significant risk factor for many chronic diseases, often resulting in higher rates of morbidity and mortality. The role of eating behaviors and individual food choices, as well as the growing array of clinical tools to reduce obesity at the individual level, has received extensive attention as public health researchers seek to understand why the rate of obesity in the US has escalated so rapidly in a relatively short period. But the focus on individual actions and tailored clinical management can obscure how the larger environment shapes the available choices and opportunities, particularly for those in communities where obesity is common. A central feature of that environment is the quality of food access.We explore how access to different types of retail food stores—which may in turn shape the foods that consumers choose—varies widely across the US, with particular attention to areas with higher rates of obesity.
2023-03-08
Tiny Beam Fund;
TOPIC ONE: Dairy consumption in India. Key points: 1) India is the world's largest dairy consumer. 2) Fluid milk and ghee makes up 3/4 of all dairy products consumed. 3) India's growing population, affluence, demographic changes, and liberalized trade policies are expected to contribute to increased dairy demand.TOPIC TWO: Dairy production in India. Key points: 1) Launched in 1970, Operation Flood spread the cooperative dairy model throughout India and vastly increased dairy production. 2) Today, India is world's largest milk producer with more than 80 million farmers and 500 million cattle. 3) Both cattle and buffalo are raised for milk production but productivity per animal is very low. 4) Most dairy farms are very small, but large commercial dairies are increasing. 5) Most dairy goes through unorganized markets; organized sector consist of cooperatives and private companies.TOPIC THREE: How animal welfare is assessed on dairy farms, and the major dairy animal welfare challenges in India. Key points: 1) Size of a farm is not associated with welfare status of the animals on that farm. 2) Most animal welfare challenges faced by dairy animals in India relate to lack of basic animal care, poor/uncomfortable housing, tethering and abandonment. 3) As dairy production in India intensifies, animal welfare will likely improve, but new animal welfare issues will emerge.TOPIC FOUR: India's unique socio-cultural context and how this shapes public debate about dairy cattle welfare. Key points: 1) Cattle has sacred status. 2) India is home to the D'harmic religions which place high value on the principle of non-harm to animals (Ahimsa). 3) Cattle slaughter is banned or restricted in many states, leading farmers to abandon unproductive cattle. 4) Indians appear divided on the implications of intensified dairy farming for animal welfare.TOPIC FIVE: Recommendations for front-line persons interested in the animal welfare implications of the Indian dairy sector. 1) Prioritize public outreach to most receptive demographic (younger, educated, affluent, females, pet owners). 2) Conduct pilot studies to benchmark dairy animal welfare and actual consumer demand for animal-friendly products. 3) Organize symposia where farmers, dairy scientists, animal ethicists and religious authorities can discuss relationship between dairy farming, animal welfare, and religion in India. 4) Focus on animal welfare issues, not farm size/type.
2023-01-06
Tiny Beam Fund;
With the rise of a corporate agri-food system in Egypt since the 1980s, the country's industrial poultry production has increased dramatically. This report focuses on two main concerns with Egypt's corporate poultry industry.First issue: Endemic avian flu virus. It recurs in the country every flu season, killing millions upon millions of birds and some humans too. One of the authorities' key containment measures had been mass cullings of "household"/"cottage" chickens which were assumed to have spread the virus. But the assumption is false. The virus had actually moved from industrial facilities to households. Industrial firms not only were saved, they further consolidated as smaller farms were decimated by the mass cullings.Second issue: Government food subsidies. The poultry industry and red meat producers/importers have benefited from the food (non-bread) subsidy system. And a growing percentage of imported grains and other foods are used to feed animals and for food processing (i.e. industrial uses) rather than for direct human consumption only.To deal with these issues: 1. Take action to weaken the corporate poultry industry and its ability to pass on infected birds (and the virus) to other poultry operators through its value chain. Advocate for government restrictions on sale of birds from large-scale breeding facilities. 2. Do not end food subsidies (in spite of calls to do so). But instead replace the subsidy on poultry with a producer and consumer subsidy on fava beans - an indigenous, protein-rich plant food. This would diversify protein sources in Egyptian diets.
2023-01-30
Tiny Beam Fund;
ارتفع إنتاج واستهلاك الدواجن الصناعية بشكل كبير في مصر حيث نما نظام الأغذية الزراعية للشركات في البلاد منذ ثمانينيات القرن المنصرم. يتناول هذا التقرير قضيتين رئيسيتين تتعلقان بصناعة الدواجن.القضية الاولى: فيروس إنفلونزا الطيور المتوطن والذي يتكرر في البلاد مع كل موسم إنفلونزا ويقتل الملايين والملايين من الطيور وبعض البشر أيضا. وقد كانت أحد تدابير الاحتواء الرئيسية التي اتخذتها السلطات هو عمليات الإعدام الجماعي للدجاج "المنزلي" الذي يشيع الافتراض أنه ينشر الفيروس. لكن هذه الافتراض خاطئ لان الفيروس قد انتقل بالفعل من المنشآت الصناعية إلى المنازل. القضية الثانية: الدعم الحكومي للغذاء. استفادت صناعة الدواجن ومنتجو ومستوردو اللحوم الحمراء من نظام دعم الأغذية (غير الخبز).للتعامل مع هذه القضايا: 1. يجب اتخاذ إجراءات لإضعاف صناعة الدواجن الصناعية وقدرتها على نقل الطيور المصابة (والفيروس) إلى مشغلي الدواجن الآخرين من خلال سلسلة القيمة الخاصة بها. كما يجب فرض قيود حكومية على بيع الطيور من مرافق التربية الكبرى. 2. عدم إنهاء دعم المواد الغذائية (على الرغم من الدعوات للقيام بذلك). ولكن بدلا من ذلك، يجب استبدل الدعم المقدم لقطاع صناعة الدواجن بدعم المنتج والمستهلك للفول - وهو غذاء نباتي أصيل غني بالبروتين. وهذا من شأنه تنويع مصادر البروتين في الوجبات الغذائية المصرية.
2023-05-17
Aspen Institute Community Strategies Group;
Local food systems are widely regarded as go-to examples for fostering rural-urban and farmer-consumer connections, but they require significant investments in stakeholder networks and the institutional infrastructure necessary to sustain and expand them. In our latest research brief, authors Rich Pirog and Marcus A. Coleman focus on local food systems as vehicles for collaboration and racial equity among multiple stakeholders and networks. They highlight examples of statewide, regional, and national initiatives to illustrate the power of networks to foster deeper levels of collaboration and reciprocity. They also explore the vital roles of Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) and Cooperative Extension.
2023-06-06
Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT);
Three years since the formation of the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, our organization is emerging from a period of global and institutional change. The seeds that we sowed in 2019 – a fresh and ambitious set of Strategic Objectives to transform people's lives during a climate crisis – are now bearing fruit.What do establishing urban gardens (in Kenya), 'mining' cassava alleles (in Colombia), and delivering climate information services (in the Philippines) have in common? The answer is simple: communities, institutions, and people. Urban gardens empower vulnerable consumers to feed their families. Superior cassava traits guarantee farmers sufficient yield so they profit from each harvest. Climate information services provide farmers with forecasts while informing government policies and investments in disaster risk reduction.
2023-05-15
California Immigrant Policy Center;
California has the world's fourth largest economy -- and is home to millions of people affected by food insecurity, including more than 1.6 million immigrants. Undocumented Californians face xenophobic policies, structural racism, and unjust exclusion from safety net programs, all of which limit access to the food they need.
2023-09-06
Tiny Beam Fund;
Gene editing's successful application to benefit farm animals' welfare is unlikely in the short to medium term, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), given the high costs and low rates of success to date in research settings.Reasons: 1. Gene editing is biased toward outcomes that can be easily measured and assessed. More complex traits associated with animal welfare such as behavior or condition are less likely to be targeted using gene editing. 2. Gene editing has been designed for use in vertically integrated production systems as livestock breeding is centralized and breeds themselves are highly standardised in these systems. Many LMICs lack vertically integrated production systems, have higher numbers of smallholder farmers, lack investment by companies and NGOs to promote these technologies, lack gene editing researchers, and have limited local support for biotechnology research and training.Potential downsides of gene editing: 1. Where the intensification of livestock production is growing, gene editing is likely to further accelerate intensification and disadvantage farmers relying on less intensive production systems. 2. Genetic diversity across traditional breeds is valuable and should be maintained. It is not clear how gene editing could affect this diversity.There may be specific applications that could lead to improvements in animal welfare in certain LMICs, for example: 1. Using gene editing to bias sex ratios could be particularly valuable in India, given the country's extensive dairy industry. 2. Sex selection in layer hens in Egypt, given hens there are raised in an increasingly vertically integrated production system. 3. Producing polled cattle and eliminating the need for mechanical dehorning as currently occurs in many locales.Many farm animal welfare issues in LMICs are less likely to be addressed through applications of gene editing as opposed to lower technological measures such as better access to veterinary services, better management practices, improved biosecurity, and poverty reduction.