A RAFT of new international guidelines to improve animal welfare could backfire, some experts are warning. They fear the rules could legitimise the lowest standards used around the world, rather than the best.
The European Union has its own animal welfare standards, but the World Trade Organization only has rules designed for trade disputes relating to animal health. In a bid to reconcile these differences, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), which is recognised by the WTO, is drafting guidelines with the initial aim of standardising how animals are transported, slaughtered and culled to control disease. Eventually guidelines will…
