Nexus between animal welfare in livestock and climate change, in the context of the IPCC

Abstract

Improving the understanding of the nexus between animal welfare and climate change can help to formulate more inclusive and ethical policies and actions in livestock. In the literature, there are hundreds of scientific articles indexed with the terms “animal welfare” and “climate change”. In reviewing the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports, we found that while historically evidence of these nexus was reported, direct citations of the term “animal welfare” were rare. We conclude that more livestock research is needed to assess animal welfare in field situations involving extreme weather events attributed to climate change. The voluntary participation of animal welfare experts in the IPCC working groups is necessary to fill the gaps observed in their assessment reports.