If British legislation on farm animal welfare is considered world class, why are citizens concerned? Do assurance schemes guarantee that animal welfare principles are implemented on farms? 

As it stands today, the ability to perform normal behaviours is considered a luxury for farm animals, featuring only in systems certified by premium schemes. Is this in line with our understanding of animal welfare science, and emerging citizen expectations? 

FAI’s veterinary consultant Laura Higham recently presented at the 12th Boehringer Ingelheim Expert Forum on Farm Animal Well-being in Prague and made the case for phasing-out all confinement systems in laying hen production to enable species-specific behavioural opportunities as a necessity, not a luxury.