Document type: announcement published on theIfip website
Authors: Valérie Courboulay and Patrick Chevillon
Preview:The WelFarmers project brings together networks of producers and applied research institutions from 8 countries that together represent over 50% of European pig production: Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Romania, Denmark, Ireland and Finland. The aim is to identify farmers or organizations in each of these countries who have implemented practices that go beyond European regulations in terms of pig welfare within 4 Subjects:
1. Cage-free housing for lactating sows
2. Production of pigs with undocked tails
3. Castration methods
4. Flooring type and space allowance for pigs from weaning to slaughter.
In each country, a regional network of farmers and their organizations will be created to select the most innovative good practices for the 4 Subjects. The good practices selected in the 8 participating countries will be evaluated by 4 thematic groups consisting of pig producers,policy makers and competent authorities, advisors, scientists and members of the industry. good practices will be shared so that they can be implemented on a larger number of pig farms in Europe, thereby improving pig welfare. Over the course of the project, a total of 192 good practices will be identified. Of these, 40 good practices will be selected, with 24 winners. The top practices will not only be described in relation to pig welfare but also the environmental and economic impact will be evaluated to ensure that there is a balance between pig welfare, environmental and climate impact, and farm economy.
All the information about the project will be available on the project website hosted by project partner Pig333.com.
