Who are the key stakeholders in livestock apart from the farmers?
The Foot and Mouth disease demonstrates the breadth of stakeholders in animal health – consumers, meat processors, distribution industries, retail outlets, the tourist industry, etc. Question 4.89 – How should the cost of disease control be met? Insurance would be effective but control of imports must be vigorously improved or the premiums would be excessive. As bio-security is often beyond the farmer’s control there should be an element of public funding for bio-security measures. Question 4.90 – How can farmers be persuaded to improve bio-security and standard of animal welfare? The Head of Science and Food Standards in the County Council says that his experience has shown that assurance schemes have improved bio-security and animal welfare standards on farms, especially in the pig industry. Assurance schemes are driven by the buyers of the product and producers see a market advantage. For those not wanting to join such schemes they must accept that regulations will target enforcemen
