At the invitation of the China Association for Promotion of International Cooperation (CAPIC), DCZ expert Eva Sternfeld participated in the fifth session of the World Conference on Animal Welfare in Sustainable Agri-Food Systems, held on October 29 and 30 in Beijing’s Pinggu District. This district aims to become Beijing’s version of Zhongguancun (often referred to as the Silicon Valley of Agriculture).
Since 2011, the conference has been co-hosted by the FAO and international organizations such as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) and Compassion in World Farming. It focuses on improving farm animal welfare in China. The event attracted around 500 participants, including agricultural counselors from Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Canada, and Brazil, as well as representatives from the FAO and other international organizations.
Prior to the conference, on October 28, invited guests attended a ceremony to lay the foundation stone for a demonstration farm focused on cage-free chicken farming in Pinggu District.
In his keynote address during the opening session, former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) and current Counselor of the State Council, YU Kangzhen, discussed China’s challenges in balancing sustainable development with food security in a nation with limited natural resources. He highlighted China’s achievements over the past 70 years in ensuring food security and improving nutrition but also acknowledged significant challenges, including a heavy dependence on imports for edible oil, animal feed, and meat and dairy products. Yu elaborated on China’s Greater Food Concept (大食物观), which aims not only to ensure stable food grain security but also to promote a diversified food supply. (For more details on the Greater Food Concept, see the DCZ Terminology Paper here.)
While Yu did not extensively explain how animal welfare could be integrated into the Greater Food Concept, he indicated that alternatives to intensive animal farming, such as plant-based and in-vitro meat production, would be explored.
In her keynote address, Daniela Battaglia, Animal Production Officer at the FAO, introduced the FAO initiative aimed at reducing the need for antimicrobials on farms, known as Reno-Farms. She discussed how implementing animal welfare standards could help contain the use of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In China, the FAO, in cooperation with Nanjing Agricultural University, provides training workshops for the Reno-Farm initiative. Battaglia encouraged participants to share success stories regarding the reduction of AMR for knowledge dissemination.
Philipp Lymbery, CEO of Compassion in World Farming, addressed new challenges and opportunities in international agri-food trade under the EU Supply Chain Act. He explained that the EU Due Diligence Directive aims to promote sustainable agricultural production. Requirements for animal welfare standards in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), including the phase-out of cage systems by 2026, are expected to be integrated into EU import regulations.
The final speaker in the opening session, Hans Spoolder, a senior researcher from Wageningen University, shared fascinating insights into the sentience of farm animals. Trials demonstrated that pigs are not only capable of making decisions using a joystick but that their choices are influenced by prior emotional experiences.
A highlight of the opening session was the launch ceremony for the Consensus on Animal Welfare in Agri-Food Systems. Initiated by 16 international and Chinese organizations, the consensus is based on the One Welfare framework, which recognizes the interconnections between animal welfare, sustainable agri-food systems, and the environment.
During the afternoon session on Animal Welfare and Sustainability, JIN Weidong, CEO of Wellhope Foods Co. (未丰) and a trained zoologist, explained that feed prices and access to modern facilities significantly impact farm animal welfare. He shared that, based on Wellhope’s experience, animal welfare and efficiency are not mutually exclusive. The aforementioned demonstration farm in Pinggu will be operated by Wellhope.
Rebecca Garcia Pinillos, director of the NGO One Welfare, elaborated on the One Welfare concept, a holistic approach that encompasses not only animal welfare but also the interrelations among human well-being and a healthy environment. This approach aligns with the previously mentioned consensus on animal welfare.
The presentations concluded with a panel discussion moderated by ZHAO Zhonghua, China Country Director of World Animal Protection. Panelists included Katja Goodhew (Agricultural Counselor, Danish Embassy), Benjamin Roffey (Counselor for Food Safety and Animal Health, Canadian Embassy), Friederike Dörfler (Counselor for Food and Agriculture, German Embassy), ZHANG Jiawang (President, China Shengmu Organic Dairy Co.), GAO Jiwei (Chairman, Beijing Huanyu Animal Husbandry Technology), Ina Enting (Netherlands Agri-Food and Technology Center, NAFTAC), and LIU Xuelian (Director, State Key Laboratory of Feeding Microbiology Engineering). They shared insights on their respective countries’ policies related to animal welfare and sustainability.
