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K-State ag economist on animal welfare issues

Although beef and dairy producers have not been put under the animal welfare/animal rights microscope to the same extent as the swine and egg industries, Kansas State University ag economist Dr.Glynn Tonsor says it’s dangerous for them to assume that they are immune from it all.

Tonsor says it’s likely that, at some point, beef and dairy will have the spotlight directed at them.

To help the those industries get a better handle on the “knowledge gap” between what they think, and what consumers think, about beef and dairy animal welfare issues, Tonsor and his colleagues have launched a study that will look at the different perceptions that each group have of each other.  He says the results will establish a benchmark as the beef and dairy industries begin looking at changes they want to make—or may be forced to make—in the way they care for their animals.

AUDIO: Glynn Tonsor (9:52 MP3)