The province is poised to assume responsibility for farmed animal welfare in BC, establishing a new division within the BC Ministry of Agriculture and Food to take over from the BC Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Policing of animal welfare, including that of farmed animals, has been the statutory responsibility of the BC SPCA since its founding in 1896, but the report says the time has come for a change.
“The majority of the SPCA’s enforcement activities are associated with companion animals, and there is an absence of capacity for proactive inspection of farms with livestock or poultry,” the report states.
It notes this compromises public trust, especially in small-scale farms not subject to third-party inspections by the big commercial livestock organizations.
“These farms are not inspected at all,” the report states. “Some of them may have become livestock or poultry farms without having in place the experience and training needed to ensure the welfare of the animals they own.”
The report recommends “creating a new inspection and enforcement function within the Ministry of Agriculture and Food to assume responsibility for implementation of the [Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] Act with respect to farmed animals.”
BC SPCA’s mandate would be redefined in legislation to limit its focus to “companion animals, wildlife in captivity and exotics.” However, it could also assist the new provincial “function” in investigations related to farmed animals.
“The BC SPCA is a valued partner and they have done good, important work with respect to the inspection and subsequent enforcement of on-farm animal welfare complaints and issues,” the province says in a statement. “We will continue to work with the BC SCPA and the farming community to ensure the welfare of farmed animals.”
Plans for the new inspection regime yet to be unveiled, but the report’s second recommendation makes clear that unaffiliated farms will be a priority for inspection.
“The Ministry of Agriculture and Food should work collaboratively with other government agencies and relevant stakeholders to identify unaffiliated livestock and poultry farms and commence 15.1 inspections of them,” it states. “Once identified, these unaffiliated farmers can be informed of the minimum standards of care and regulations to which they must adhere.”
The report was prepared by a 15-member volunteer committee struck in early 2023 that included representation from the enforcement, agriculture and processing sectors. It met 10 times between April and December 2023, and delivered its report in January. The province posted the report online on March 27.
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