Page 261 - The Welfare of Cattle

238 the WeLfare of CattLe

contrast to many forms of conventional livestock production that will typically optimize the use of
all space available, and in some species may lead to overcrowding and subsequent deterioration of
animal welfare that accompanies not having appropriate space for normal growth and behaviors.
These space issues seem to be most prevalent in the poultry and swine industries, which have the
greatest extent of business vertical integration and emphasis on improving efficiency of produc-
tion, thus limiting environmental impacts. While having too many animals in too small a space
may compromise the health of individual animals and would not be tolerable to most individual’s
morality, providing additional space will not necessarily alleviate these issues in and of itself. In
fact, if animals are given appropriate amount of space to avoid overcrowding and allow for natural
behaviors, it is arguable that it may be in their best interest to remain indoors for the majority of
the production cycle. This would allow for the reduction of certain vectors that may introduce dis-
ease, predation or potential loss or injury of animals which may escape from more extensive, less
intensive confinements. By keeping animals in enclosures for longer periods of the year (if they are
appropriately built to provide adequate space) we would allow animals to be produced in a wider
variety of climates and locales. With the wider distribution of production, animals would not have
to be transported as far to reach intended markets, which may also reduce impacts on animal wel-
fare that inevitably arise when they are transported. Also, just because space is provided does not
mean that the animals will use that additional space if there are factors that may inhibit them from
using the space.
While there are many examples of how this may manifest, a few examples may be that animals
are fed high-quality feed in an environmentally controlled enclosure with access to the outdoors
that has a less appetizing array of feed and environment for the animal. This would preclude it
from typically using the outdoors that it has access too. Additionally, if the livestock perceive a
threat in the outdoor environment (i.e., raptors roosting near the outdoor areas of a poultry facility),
they would tend to remain within the enclosure, which may lead to overcrowding and a subsequent
decrease in animal welfare. While the intent of this regulation may hold true, the issue of space is
not as simple as the standard attempts to make it and in fact does not guarantee an improved aspect
of animal welfare, but it may provide the perception of such to the consuming public. As with
most issues regarding the production of livestock under any labeling standard, while the regulations
may be well intended, it is ultimately up to the husbandry of the livestock producer to provide
proper animal welfare and animal welfare may thrive or fail under any livestock production system,
Organic, conventional or otherwise.
In addition to concerns over the housing of livestock production, the Organic standard clearly
limits the use of many pharmaceutical agents and states that “the producer of an organic livestock
operation must not:

1. Sell, label, or represent as organic any animal or edible product derived from any animal treated
with antibiotics.
2. Administer any animal drug, other than vaccinations, in the absence of illness;
3. Administer hormones for growth promotion;
4. Administer synthetic parasiticides on a routine basis;
5. Administer synthetic parasiticides to slaughter stock;
6. Administer animal drugs in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; or
7. Withhold medical treatment from a sick animal in an effort to preserve its organic status. All appro-
priate medications must be used to restore an animal to health when methods acceptable to organic
production fail. Livestock treated with a prohibited substance must be clearly identified and shall not
be sold, labeled, or represented as organically produced. (CFR, 2018).”

While all of these practices have been clearly shown to have dramatic impacts on the treatment of
disease in livestock, they are banned from being used in Organic production for perceived benefits
that are then marketed to consumer desires. However, this raises a particularly poignant concern