From the Linewaiter's Gazette: "The Five Freedoms for Animals—Plus One for Coop Members"

[From the December 25, 2014 edition of the Linewaiter's Gazette]

By Kama Einhorn, Animal Welfare Committee

The welfare of animals involved in food production has been a major concern for many since the beginning of our industrialized food system. Coop members are, of course, no exception. The Coop’s Animal Welfare Committee seeks to address these concerns by educating and providing facts to our fellow Coop members about what’s happening on the farms from which our animal products originate.

In the 1960s, as factory farming became increasingly standard practice in the UK, the British government commissioned an investigation into the welfare of “intensively farmed animals.” Soon after, they created the Farm Animal Welfare Council, which developed a set of guidelines now known in the animal welfare movement as the Five Freedoms:

Freedom from thirst and hunger: by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigor.

Freedom from discomfort: by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area.

Freedom from pain, injury, and disease: by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment.

Freedom to express normal behavior: by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal’s own kind.

Freedom from fear and distress: by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering.

It seems quite simple and reasonable. The Five Freedoms describe the world that all animals (including humans) should live in—and you can even count them on one hand.

If Old MacDonald really did have a farm once, surely that’s how he would have organized things. And yet, 98% of the animals most Americans eat won’t see any of these freedoms. What’s happening in modern industrial farming is something Old MacDonald would never recognize.

While the Coop’s meat, dairy, and eggs generally come from animals more well-treated than most in intensive factory farming settings, the animal welfare practices of the Coop’s vendors vary significantly. So an important task of the Animal Welfare Committee is to leverage another precious and fragile freedom—the freedom of information.

Check out the Animal Welfare Committee’s blog at psfcanimals.blogspot.com for buyers’ guides to eggs and milk (and soon, chicken and beef). Each comprehensively researched guide details the practices of each of our vendors.

And write to us with your thoughts at psfcanimals@gmail.com or visit our Facebook page (Park Slope Food Coop Animal Welfare Committee). ■