In a paper in Journal of Applied Poultry Research, Tomislav Vukina and colleagues at North Carolina State University report their estimate the costs and benefits of implementing the proposed rule for changes in living conditions for organic broilers in the US.

In contrast to the effects of the proposed rule for changes in living conditions for laying hens, the effects of the rule on organic broilers is anticipated to be relatively limited.

All producers are already in compliance with option 2 of the rule, and changes required under option 3 are minimal for most producers.

Using the per-farm estimated regulatory costs and the estimates of production volumes and actual prices, the total estimated annual industry cost under option 3 is $2.4 million, which represents 0.1 per cent of total industry revenue.

The estimated benefits associated with this type of perceived animal welfare improvement are high enough to cover the anticipated cost, and the proposed option easily passes the benefit-to-cost ratio test, concluded the Raleigh-based group.

Reference

Vukina T., K. Anderson and M.K. Muth. 2014. Proposed changes in living conditions for broilers under the National Organic Program will have limited economic effects. J. Appl. Poult. Res. 23(2): 233-243. doi: 10.3382/japr.2013-00896.

August 2014