Call for Good Food Nation to broaden farm animal welfare KPIs

The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission (SAWC) says the current approach under the Scottish Government’s flagship Good Food Nation plan is too limited and risks overlooking key aspects of animals’ day-to-day lives.

At present, the national framework tracks just four indicators: public concern about farm animal welfare, the proportion of laying hens kept in free-range or organic systems, the number of livestock inspected annually by local authorities, and herd prevalence of bovine TB - which stood at 0.1% in 2024.

SAWC argues that such measures rely too heavily on production system labels and perception data, rather than direct evidence of how animals fare on farm. In its February 2026 report, the Commission sets out proposals for a three-tiered system designed to provide a more rounded and transparent baseline.

The report recommends that ministers move quickly to adopt so-called Level 1 indicators, drawing on data already held by government agencies, assurance schemes and industry bodies. These would include numbers of animals kept in specific systems - such as cage-free hens, free-farrowing sows, group-housed calves and lower-density broilers - alongside relevant abattoir and farm assurance data.

However, SAWC makes clear that this should be only a starting point. Level 2 indicators would look more closely at on-farm outcomes, including access to pasture, provision of enrichment such as brushes or perches, and animal-based measures such as lameness, mortality, body condition and disease prevalence. Although some of this data is already gathered through inspections or assurance schemes, it is not currently brought together at a national level.

Level 3 indicators would take a longer-term view, incorporating approaches such as Qualitative Behaviour Assessment (QBA), assessment of stockperson training and skills, and the use of automated monitoring technologies. The Commission suggests that such measures could help capture not only the absence of suffering but the presence of positive welfare states.

Responding to the report, a spokesperson for Quality Meat Scotland emphasised the role of existing assurance schemes.

"Quality assurance is at the heart of how we promote and differentiate Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb, and Specially Selected Pork. Our assurance scheme standards are independently assessed and evidence-based, ensuring that claims about animal welfare and sustainability are measurable, transparent, and credible.

"Our assurance schemes cover a wide range of animal welfare elements through the assessments, such as animal health and welfare, veterinary and medicine use, housing and management conditions, feeding practices, handling and transport.

"Animal-based indicators can be useful in understanding management and behaviours on-farm and some levels of data are already recorded as part of statutory and legislative functions. However, many are only recorded by some businesses and may be challenging where information is business sensitive."

NFU Scotland also stressed the need for proportionality. David Michie, the union’s senior policy manager, said: “NFU Scotland recognises the importance of robust, evidence-based animal welfare indicators as part of Scotland’s Good Food Nation ambitions. However, Scotland already operates under some of the highest animal health and welfare standards in the world, supported by cross-compliance requirements, statutory controls and comprehensive farm assurance schemes.

“While we support continuous improvement, any additional on-farm welfare indicators must be practical, proportionate and developed in close consultation with industry. The National Plan must not introduce standards that go beyond existing cross-compliance or statutory requirements without clear evidence and a full assessment of the impact on producers.

“Avoiding duplication will be critical. Livestock producers already collect significant data through assurance schemes and regulatory systems. The government should look first at how existing data can be better used, rather than creating additional administrative burden.

“Transparency is important, but it must be balanced with workability. Farmers and crofters are committed to high welfare standards, and any new framework must be evidence-led, proportionate and deliver real value without adding unnecessary bureaucracy.”

The Commission also points to developments elsewhere in Europe, including the EU Knowledge Platform for Animal Welfare and Italy’s ClassyFarm digital portal, as examples of how scientific, health and slaughterhouse data can be integrated into a single system.

If ministers accept the recommendations, it would signal a shift towards a framework aimed more squarely at the lived experience of Scotland’s farm animals and could reshape how welfare is monitored across the country’s livestock sectors.