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5.3.2.1.5 Animal welfare payments

ANIMAL HEALTH AND WELFARE MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME (Tier 2)

Article 36 (a)(v)

Measure Code: (215)

Rationale for Intervention

The creation of an Animal Health and Welfare Management Programme was a priority identified by stakeholders during the development of the Animal Health and Welfare Strategy for Great Britain ( http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/ahws/strategy/ahws.pdf). This interest reflects not only the on-farm benefits, but outcomes beneficial to the wider public and livestock industry. Farmers choosing the option will be required to keep their animals to a standard significantly beyond that standard required by law. The Animal Health and Welfare Management Programme measure is specifically designed to help farmers prevent pathologies mainly determined by farming practices and/or keeping conditions and both the annual Animal Health and Welfare Management Plan and the suite of voluntary options will contribute to this. The measure will also help farmers to provide water and feed closer to the natural needs of their livestock via the Animal Health and Welfare Management Plan and the Forage Analysis voluntary option. The support reflects the initial investment, which can be a barrier to taking such an initiative forward for many primary producers.

In the longer term, farmers will also benefit from reduced inputs and increased productivity. Consumers will benefit from higher product quality and greater food safety. The wider Scottish livestock industry will benefit from an improved reputation for high quality products arising from farming systems with high health, welfare and environmental standards, as well as reduced disease-related constraints on export and a reduced likelihood of an exotic disease outbreak. This will also have significant knock-on benefits to the wider rural community and rural visitors.

Objectives

The aims of this measure are to:

• make significant improvements to the health and welfare of Scottish livestock;
• contribute to farm business profitability and product quality; and,
• promote the social, economic and environmental sustainability of the Scottish livestock industry and the wider rural community.

Eligibility

Farm businesses with a minimum of 4 livestock units (as entered on the Single Application Form ( IACS)) will be eligible to apply to carry out all of the options. Pigs, poultry and horses are excluded from participation of the scheme. . Whilst there is a minimum number of livestock for eligibility, this is not a livestock head-age or land-area-based measure. The intended impact is the promotion of animal welfare standards on a farm enterprise basis.

Scope and actions

Financial support will be provided towards the cost of producing and implementing a farm-specific 5-year animal health and welfare management programme which will reflect particular farm management structures.

Beneficiaries must have an annual discussion (assessment) with their vet. This will include a review of the current health and welfare of their stock. From this starting point beneficiaries will, with their vet, develop, agree and document a programme of actions to be taken as part of their personalised Animal Health and Welfare Management Programme. This will comprise of specific actions that they will undertake to actively manage animal health and welfare issues, either directly or by buying in services.

Discussions with the veterinary surgeon regarding the Animal Health and Welfare Management Programme may also prompt consideration and improvement of housing conditions and outdoor access and the removal of e.g. mutilations, isolation and tethering where appropriate. Such additional improvements in health and welfare could potentially be funded through competitive Tier 3 improvements to holdings measures.

The types of agreed actions likely to be specified in the Animal Health and Welfare Management Programme are outlined below. Action 1 is compulsory in each of the 5 years, actions 2 to 5 are additional voluntary actions that may help to address some of the issues identified during discussions with the vet, and for which extra funding is available. A different selection from these options may be required each year according to conditions on the farm.

1. Animal Health and Welfare Management Plan

Plan and implement a proactive scheme for treating diseases, including guidance on following a vet's advice and treatment. The Plan will detail the agreed first and second lines of treatment, individual dosage instructions and the withdrawal periods for each treatment.

Plan and implement a scheme for using vaccines and preventative medicines. The Plan will detail the vaccines or preventative medicines to be used, and individual dosage instructions and withdrawal periods for each vaccine or preventative medicine.

The Plan should also outline the agreed activities under any voluntary options taken, although the detail may be given in other documents. This Animal Health and Welfare Management Plan must be agreed, implemented and re-assessed with a vet on an annual basis.

2. Benchmarking

Undertake additional inspection and monitoring to collate performance indicators, analyse all significant animal health and welfare related observations arising from inspections and implement an action plan to measure performance. Record, on an agreed regular basis, specified production and disease measures according to the type of enterprise, for entry and analysis in a national central database.

3. Biosecurity

Produce a biosecurity plan to ensure the safe integration of new stock on farm and to minimise the risk of spreading disease. This can include maintaining fences around isolation areas to enhance biosecurity levels and to prevent diseases from entering the herd/flock. Prepare and implement a biosecurity plan which identifies where at least one isolation area is to be maintained. If claiming annual payment for maintenance of fencing around a field-based isolation area the field identification number(s) ( FID) must be given in the plan, which must also detail staff and visitor awareness and disinfection procedures.

4. Sampling

On the advice of your veterinary surgeon undertake sampling to identify diseases/conditions that may be present on farm and having a negative impact on animal health and welfare, such as twin lamb disease or copper deficiency, and take informed control measures to address identified conditions. Arrange for sampling to be undertaken and for laboratory analysis of the samples. The results to be discussed with the vet and agreed control measures undertake in line with the wider Animal Health and Welfare Programme.

5. Forage Analysis

Analyse forages and obtain and implement professional nutritional advice. Send forage samples for laboratory analysis, discuss the results with a professional nutritionist and implement the advice given.

Description of the methodology and of the agrinomic/zoo-technical assumptions and parameters (including the description of the baseline requirements as stated in article 40.2 of Regulation 1698/2005 which are relevant for each particular type of commitment) used as reference point for the calculations justifying: (a) additional costs and income foregone resulting from the commitment made; (b) level of the transaction costs

Managerial Farm labour costed at £9.18/hour
Skilled farm labour costed at £7.82/hour (per enterprise, where more than 1)
Veterinary rate costed at £61.58/hour
Based on average livestock figures from June 2003 Census of 74 cattle and 299 sheep equivalent to 120 Livestock Units ( LU). One cow is 1 LU, one sheep is 0.15 LU.
Fence Cost: based on non -woodland stock fence at the agreed standard rate.
Confirmation that the cross-compliance requirements are identical to those provided for by Regulation ( EC) num. 1782/2003

Other relevant mandatory requirements established by national legislation:

Animal owners and keepers must ensure good welfare of their animals in accordance with the Welfare of Farmed Animals (Scotland) Regulations 2000 and subsequent amendments.

Verifiable standards must be maintained of care, handling, diet and movement, and records kept of the medicinal treatment given to animals and of the number of mortalities.

Amounts of support

FinancingTotal Public Support for Measure 215: 46 M EuroTotal EU Support for Measure 214: 13.4 M Euro

Transition arrangements (including estimated amount)No new entrants will be allowed in 2007, however, those who committed to the Animal Health and Welfare Management Programme in 2005 or 2006 will continue their activities as normal and will be paid on submission of a claim by August 2007.The estimated amount is therefore roughly the same amount as paid out in 2006 Quantified targets for EU common indicators

N/A = Not applicable for this measure

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