TO BE PUBLISHED July 2025
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This conference will discuss next steps for animal health, welfare and standards in England.
Taking place following the UK-EU Summit, the conference will be an opportunity for key stakeholders and policymakers to discuss alignment of regulatory standards with the EU as the UK Government seeks to negotiate a new veterinary agreement with Europe, and address barriers to trade.
Discussion will look at the future for the UK’s animal and plant biosecurity as the EFRA Committee conducts its Animal and plant health inquiry. Delegates will consider priorities for UK surveillance and its workforce going forward, as well as the future role and remit of the Animal and Plant Health Agency following £200m investment aiming to increase UK capacity for detecting and responding to outbreaks of disease.
Delegates will discuss next steps for developing disease control to improve health and standards on farms, including tackling Bovine TB as the Government commits to end the badger cull with a new TB eradication strategy. Areas for discussion include progress and priorities for the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway to deliver enhanced standards on UK farms and across livestock sectors, opportunities for utilising innovation, as well as options for consumer transparency and labelling. Delegates will also consider strategies for supporting animal health and welfare on farms as part of wider agriculture policy development, including a new National Food Strategy and 25-year farming roadmap.
With the agenda currently in the drafting stage, overall areas for discussion include:
- policy and strategic priorities:
- assessing the way forward for the improvement of animal health and welfare through the delivery of the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway
- strategic considerations for funding and incentivising farmers to improve animal welfare
- priorities for regulatory bodies, manufacturers and government to ensure delivery and safeguarding of animal health, welfare and standards
- tackling infection, biosecurity risks and disease control on farms:
- scaling up health reviews and vaccination programmes for disease control
- increasing resources to mitigate potential risks, including vets, pharmaceutical products and vaccines, and implementing surveillance measures
- options for long-term strategic planning to address biosecurity risks and concerns from the agri-food sector
- utilising innovation and technology such as data and AI to monitor and tackle risks to the food supply chain
- evaluating priorities for trade and protecting welfare standards:
- approaches for ensuring regulatory standards compliance with the EU and rest of the world moving forward
- priorities for veterinary agreements, including considerations for tackling delivery barriers and improving the wider agri-food system
- mitigating potential issues for imports and risks to domestic welfare standards
- consumer confidence and transparency:
- approaches for the Government to boost market demand for higher animal welfare standards
- communication, engagement and improving public information on animal welfare standards to ensure consumer values align with purchases
- assessing options for mandatory animal welfare labelling, including how labels will appear on packaging, and assessing added costs and complexities
- best practice for improving transparency and traceability
