Evaluation of animal welfare in on-farm self-assessments - development of a reference framework with target and alarm values based on a Delphi survey

To assist livestock farmers in the evaluation of their livestock’s welfare based on results from on-farm self-assessments, a reference framework with target and alarm values for animal welfare indicators was developed. The first step in this development process was a two-stage Delphi survey in 2018. The survey involved experts from science, consultancies, administrations, farms, producer associations, animal welfare organisations, competent veterinary authorities and processors from the beef, pork and poultry sectors. The response rates varied depending on the animal species, ranging between 19% and 36%. For each animal welfare indicator surveyed, the experts submitted up to 60 suggestions for reference values for cattle, up to 69 for pigs and up to 21 for poultry. In a multi-stage process, the results of the Delphi survey were compared with results reported in the literature and with data from field studies. Based on discussions in panels, the experts proposed values for a reference framework based on these results, in some cases in modified form. Some examples of these modifications are given in the paper.