Living environments and animal welfare in aviary systems (Phase 1: Mitigation)

Description

In the first phase of the project, researchers identified and documented practices, techniques, and technologies that can be used to improve overall environmental performance, animal welfare, and the quality of the animals’ living environment.

The second phase is focused on comparing the effectiveness of the most promising practices, techniques, and technologies.

The tests are being carried out at the BABE laboratory at IRDA. A battery of statistical analyses are being used to extract as much information as possible. A feasibility study will look at implementation issues and confirm the lab results.

An economic analysis will be conducted based on the data. The information will be disseminated through additions to the documents already available on the website of the Québec egg producer federation.

Objective(s)

• Document practices that improve the quality of the production environment from an animal and human health and nitrogen balance perspective
• Measure the impact of new practices on nitrogen balance, air quality, and microbial populations in the air and on surfaces
• Study the technical and economic feasibility of implementing these practices on farms