Organic and conventional agriculture : A comparative study for cattle, pigs and poultry

Consumers concern about the environment, health and animal welfare have increased as the agriculture intensifies. Leading to increased purchase of organic products in hope that it will give animals better welfare. There are doubts from scientists how efficient organic agriculture is compared to conventional agriculture in the term of animal welfare, as there are few comparative studies for cattle, pigs and poultry. The aim of this study was to investigate the differences in animal welfare between organic and conventional agriculture for cattle, pigs and poultry. The study also investigates whether consumers choice of organic products controls the production and what impact it may have on animal welfare. This study was conducted using scientific articles and a web survey that was uploaded and shared online. The result of this study showed that the organic animals experience better animal welfare than conventional animals. Since organic animals are allowed to live a life allowing natural behaviors such as greater opportunities for outdoor living, pigs are allowed to roam in the soil, cattle should not be tied up and poultry must not be kept in cages. The results of this study also showed that the highest purchased organic product were eggs and the second highest purchased organic product was dairy. The study also indicated that consumers can increase the production of organic animals by increasing their purchases of organic products, leading to increased animal welfare and lower prices on organic products. Key words: Organic and conventional agriculture, pig production, cattle production, poultry production, Organic and conventional farming