People are increasingly talking about animal welfare. A theme that up until a few years ago was declined almost exclusively in its ethical dimension, and as such it involved, more than anything else, a small circle of people sensitive to animal rights issues. Little by little, things are changing and attention for at least a couple of years is increasingly focused on this problem. That interests everyone
The reason is simple: scientific studies have shown that, for example, meat from farms where the livestock "lives well" is better and healthier. If the anomalous suffers, the quality of the meat suffers, and in any case these concepts have already been partly incorporated into some health regulations.
The fact remains that confusion reigns over the concept of animal welfare. To begin with: when can an animal be considered in a state of well-being? A mistake that many people make, even among those involved in information work, is to use the "human" categories a priori. So, for example, we tend to think that "freedom" is a value regardless, and maybe a sheep or a chicken live better in the wild rather than in the herd. In reality it is not so: often the animals - in particular those that have evolved in this way, as for example the pigs - need the man, and to free them in wild environment would provoke in them a condition of stress.
One of the roots of the misunderstandings is that the animal's ethological needs are not known and tend to be homologated to human ones. At the 2019 Food Journalism Festival there will be a panel dedicated to the theme, which will be held on Friday 22 February.
