STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. — On Dec. 14, the International Poultry Council announced that it has formalized its Animal Welfare position. This result was achieved thanks to the commitment and collaboration of the IPC members active in the Working Group on Animal Health and Welfare and represents another important step at a global level, the council noted.
The Animal Welfare Position Statement follows the Position Statement and Principles on Food Safety, the Position Statement on Antimicrobial Use and Antimicrobial Stewardship Principles and the Best Practice Guidance to reduce the need for antibiotics in poultry production, the latter in collaboration with the OIE.
IPC’s position on this complex and multifactorial issue recognizes the five freedoms as a dominant element, the need to train staff who work directly with animals, the development of production systems that improve the Animal Welfare and the integration of animal welfare principles into the culture of the poultry sector, the council said.
Great attention was paid to the standards on animal welfare, as well as to the link between the Animal Welfare position and the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN, which in turn are the subject of the San Paolo Declaration, signed by IPC and FAO, the group said, adding that, with the release of this Animal Welfare Position statement, IPC continues to promote the importance of bird health and welfare as an essential part of sustainable global poultry production and a proactive poultry supply chain.
The IPC currently has 31 country members and more than 53 associate members, representing 88 percent of the global poultry meat production and almost 95 percent of the global poultry meat trade. International Organizations such as OIE, FAO and Codex Alimentarius Commission officially recognize IPC as the global association representing the poultry sector.
For more information, visit https://internationalpoultrycouncil.org/.
