Welfare of farm animals, studying it to improve it

At the end of the 80's, there was little consideration of animal welfare both on farms and in research, at least in France, which was late, compared to other European countries and had little influence in this field at international level.

Progressively, researchers deployed extensive studies on animal welfare considering both animal performance and societal concerns, often-facing doubts from stakeholders about the relevance of their work.

They contributed to design methods to assess welfare on farms or at slaughter and new practices to improve animal welfare. This research raised awareness of numerous actors on the necessity and the potential benefits of considering animal welfare in livestock farming.