2710: Dairy farms: constraints and recommendations for enhancing health, welfare and food saftey (Workshop results)

Smolders, G.; Walkenhorst, Michael and Padel, S. (2003) Dairy farms: constraints and recommendations for enhancing health, welfare and food saftey (Workshop results), in Hovi, M.; Martini, A. and Padel, S., Eds. Socio-economic aspects of animal health and food safety in organic farming systems. Proceedings of the 1st SAFO Workshop. 5.-7. September 2003, Florence, Italy, page pp. 91-93. SAFO Sustaining Animal Health and Food Safety in Organic Farming. A European Commission funded Concerted Action Project.

Summary

Results
- It is necessary to improve the information to the public (who are the taxpayer and pay the subsidies) about organic farming as a system, that improves animal health and welfare.
- Consumers must get accurate information about the organic products they buy.
- Producers should be informed about organic farming before they convert (so they know what to expect): they should be told about the regluations and pointed to the available information about organic farming.
- Veterinarians should be informed (part of the teaching curriculum in vet schools) about the holistic system, the importance of preventive health management on organic farms and about alternative treatments.
- In communication to the policy makers (the government), organic farming should be presented as a different farming system and not as a conventional system with some alteration.

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