NAWAC Guideline 02: Dealing with practices which might be inconsistent with the spirit of the Animal Welfare Act

1. Introduction

The Animal Welfare Act places the obligation or onus of a duty of care on owners and persons in charge of animals. Duty of care is defined by a number of positive core obligations whereby an owner or a person in charge is required to meet an animal’s physical, health and behavioural needs. Some practices may not fully meet all of the obligations of the Act (for example, some sporting activities or physical confinement).

There may appear, then, to be a tension between some of the objectives of the Act. This is reflected in different values in society. Some people value animals having the freedom to behave normally, while others value their own livelihoods founded on systems confining those animals, which arguably further some of the animals’ other needs (for example, shelter).

2. How NAWAC might address this situation

NAWAC could deal with this tension by:

  1. doing nothing;
  2. assisting others (for example, consumers, farmers, industries) to determine the appropriate action; or
  3. working to change specific practices or systems.

3. Considerations in making balanced assessments of welfare

In determining how NAWAC might deal with these issues, NAWAC believes that its role is to make balanced assessments of welfare by considering the following:

  1. distinguish between animal welfare and animal rights by acknowledging that animal use is acceptable, provided that:
    • harms of a certain degree and kind are under no circumstances to be inflicted upon an animal;
    • any harm to an animal is justified by ensuring that the benefit from treating it in that way outweighs the harm; and
    • the harm is minimised and the benefit is maximised from treating an animal in that way;
  2. accept that NAWAC needs to acknowledge society’s differing values and these may need to be reflected in separate minimum standards and recommendations (or even codes) for different activities or systems (for example, indoor and outdoor broiler chicken management);
  3. accept that dispensations to minimum standards are acceptable in some circumstances, under section 73(4) of the Act. NAWAC may, in exceptional circumstances, propose minimum standards and recommendations for best practice that do not fully meet the obligations of the Act. In doing so, it must have regard to the feasibility and practicality of effecting a transition from current practices to new practices and any adverse effects that may result, the economic effects of any transition and effects, and the requirements of religious or cultural practices or both;
  4. make any changes only in accordance with both good practice and scientific knowledge (section 10);
  5. decide how and if NAWAC should be proactive on particular issues, and, if so, write into the codes the future requirements and implementation time frames;
  6. have regard to economic aspects when deciding on time frames for change; and
  7. support product labelling so that consumers may make informed choices.

4. Other important considerations

In making these decisions, NAWAC will also have regard to a number of other important matters, including:

  1. any change must represent an improvement in animal welfare;
  2. any economic analysis must include the consumer as well as the producer;
  3. along with economics, factors such as food safety, the environment and aesthetics must be considered;
  4. being prepared to balance the different needs of animals (that is, the relative importance of, for example, adequate nutrition and behavioural freedom);
  5. acknowledgement of the importance of the skill of animal handlers and farm managers;
  6. acknowledgement of the evolving demands of society on animals, be they for food, companionship, sport, entertainment, medicines, etc;
  7. continual monitoring of the developing trends in agriculture, the food supply chain, food safety and consumer demands for high-quality products; and
  8. acknowledgement of changing public perceptions and attitudes towards animals and the environment.

This guideline was originally approved by NAWAC on 15 May 2002, and has since been updated. This guideline is not a legal interpretation of the Animal Welfare Act 1999. It is anticipated that this guideline will be updated from time to time in light of experience gained by NAWAC during its deliberations.

Page last updated: 30 April 2008