by Margaret B. Adam
Why should Christians care about farmed animal welfare? What exactly is improved farmed animal welfare? Who can improve it and how?
These are some of the questions addressed by the 3-year research project, Christian Ethics of Farmed Animal Welfare (CEFAW) in the UK. The project is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council of the UK, and the Principal Investigator is Professor David Clough, of Chester University and co-founder of CreatureKind.
CEFAW demonstrates a new approach to research. It is a project funded by a major academic research grant, conducted by scholars, but—unlike most academic research—CEFAW works in partnership with denominational representatives to produce accessible material to help Christian churches, schools, and charities make changes to improve the welfare of farmed animals.
The research team includes a professor, a senior lecturer, and a post-doctoral researcher all in Christian theology and ethics; a senior research fellow in veterinary science, specializing in farmed animals; and an interdisciplinary researcher, artist, and facilitator, to help communities engage with CEFAW’s message and recommendations. The project’s partners represent The Church of England, The Church of Scotland, The Church in Wales, The Methodist Church, The Roman Catholic Church for England and Wales, and the United Reformed Church, as well as The Anglican Society for the Welfare of Animals, Catholic Concern for Animals, Church Investors Group, Catholic Concern for Animals, Compassion in World Farming, Pan-Orthodox Concern for Animals, Pasture-Fed Livestock Association, Quaker Concern for Animals, and Veterinary Christian Fellowship.
In the early stages of the project, research team members and partners visited a variety of farms and abattoirs, in order to consider Christian engagement with farmed animal welfare while in the presence of farmed animals. Then the research team drafted and redrafted versions of a Policy Framework, with feedback from the partners and their networks. In November 2020, CEFAW launched the Policy Framework, which you can now view and download for free. On that page, you will also find a video of the launch event, and a short, animated video presenting the CEFAW project. The Policy Framework presents 1) Christian theological basis for attending to farmed animal welfare: 2) a Christian ethics account of farmed animal welfare; 3) species-specific farmed animal needs and normative treatment; 4) and recommendations for steps that individuals and groups can take to improve farmed animal welfare. And it is full of gorgeous photos of farmed animals: chickens, fish, pigs, sheep, cows and cattle.
The Policy Framework presents farmed animal welfare in the Christian terms of flourishing, and it shows which aspects of flourishing are addressed (or not) by the current UK assessment and certification programs. Some particulars of UK farming practice and certifications are specific to the UK, but the needs of farmed animals, the account of creaturely flourishing, and the recommendations for improvement are all relevant and timely in the US, as well.
Plans are developing for a somewhat comparable US project. In the meantime, you can use the CEFAW Policy Framework starting today. Download a free copy, watch the video, check out the webinars, and talk with your church community, school, college, university, and Christian charity about how you can use CEFAW’s material in ways best suited to your contexts.
Dr. Margaret B. Adam’s is a Visiting Lecturer in Christian Moral Theology at St Stephen’s House, a Church of England seminary in Oxford. She belongs to, and frequently gives papers at, the Society of Christian Ethics, the Society for the Study of Christian Ethics, the Society for the Study of Theology, and the American Academy of Religion. Her ongoing interests in Feminist Critical Theory, Christian pacifism, nature and grace, and popular end-of-the-world imaginations fuel her work on Christian responses to COVID-19 and farmed animal welfare.
