“The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study
ABSTRACT: Citizens are becoming increasingly disconnected from food production. Despite this, many people still hold strong values about how food is produced. The aim of this study was to attain an in-depth understanding of Australian public attitudes toward sustainability and animal welfare in dair...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Journal of Dairy Science |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030224012645 |
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| author | Sarah E. Bolton Bianca Vandresen Marina A.G. von Keyserlingk |
| author_facet | Sarah E. Bolton Bianca Vandresen Marina A.G. von Keyserlingk |
| author_sort | Sarah E. Bolton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT: Citizens are becoming increasingly disconnected from food production. Despite this, many people still hold strong values about how food is produced. The aim of this study was to attain an in-depth understanding of Australian public attitudes toward sustainability and animal welfare in dairy production, as well as early-life killing of surplus dairy calves and cow-calf separation, issues commonly identified as being out of step with public values. We conducted 3 focus group sessions, each with 8 Australians who varied in age, gender identity, income, and frequency of consumption of dairy products. Thematic analysis of the semistructured discussions resulted in 2 key themes, each with underlying subthemes: (1) animal agriculture as an industry, including sustainability, farmers as people, and farming practices; and (2) personal impacts and reflections as citizens, including ethical considerations, and consumer behaviors. Participants varied in their attitudes toward sustainability and the consumption of animal products. This variation was influenced by the different ethical lenses through which they viewed the topics and alignment or otherwise with their personal values. Many participants acknowledged that farmers have a hard life and care about their animals but must also prioritize economics when making management decisions. Most participants were unaware of the common dairy industry practices of early-life killing of surplus calves and cow-calf separation, but once made aware, there was widespread rejection of the practices. Understanding and correcting where food animal production practices fail to align with the evolving values of the public provides opportunities to preserve the social sustainability of animal agriculture into the future. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-44917f3eb38f46629677f480af777628 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0022-0302 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Dairy Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-44917f3eb38f46629677f480af7776282025-01-23T05:25:11ZengElsevierJournal of Dairy Science0022-03022025-02-01108218551868“The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group studySarah E. Bolton0Bianca Vandresen1Marina A.G. von Keyserlingk2Animal Welfare Program, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z6, Canada; Faculty of Science, Melbourne Veterinary School, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, AustraliaAnimal Welfare Program, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z6, CanadaAnimal Welfare Program, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z6, Canada; Corresponding authorABSTRACT: Citizens are becoming increasingly disconnected from food production. Despite this, many people still hold strong values about how food is produced. The aim of this study was to attain an in-depth understanding of Australian public attitudes toward sustainability and animal welfare in dairy production, as well as early-life killing of surplus dairy calves and cow-calf separation, issues commonly identified as being out of step with public values. We conducted 3 focus group sessions, each with 8 Australians who varied in age, gender identity, income, and frequency of consumption of dairy products. Thematic analysis of the semistructured discussions resulted in 2 key themes, each with underlying subthemes: (1) animal agriculture as an industry, including sustainability, farmers as people, and farming practices; and (2) personal impacts and reflections as citizens, including ethical considerations, and consumer behaviors. Participants varied in their attitudes toward sustainability and the consumption of animal products. This variation was influenced by the different ethical lenses through which they viewed the topics and alignment or otherwise with their personal values. Many participants acknowledged that farmers have a hard life and care about their animals but must also prioritize economics when making management decisions. Most participants were unaware of the common dairy industry practices of early-life killing of surplus calves and cow-calf separation, but once made aware, there was widespread rejection of the practices. Understanding and correcting where food animal production practices fail to align with the evolving values of the public provides opportunities to preserve the social sustainability of animal agriculture into the future.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030224012645public attitudescow-calf separationsocial licensebobby calvesbeef |
| spellingShingle | Sarah E. Bolton Bianca Vandresen Marina A.G. von Keyserlingk “The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study Journal of Dairy Science public attitudes cow-calf separation social license bobby calves beef |
| title | “The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study |
| title_full | “The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study |
| title_fullStr | “The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study |
| title_full_unstemmed | “The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study |
| title_short | “The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves—An Australian focus group study |
| title_sort | the advice think bigger community perspectives on dairy farming including surplus calves an australian focus group study |
| topic | public attitudes cow-calf separation social license bobby calves beef |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030224012645 |
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