The Codes are developed nationally as guidelines for the care and handling of the different species of farm animals. They are intended to promote sound management and welfare practices through recommendations and requirements for housing, management, transportation, processing and other animal husbandry practices. Requirements refer to either a regulatory requirement, or an industry imposed expectation outlining acceptable and unacceptable practices. Recommended best practices strive for continuous improvement and encourage a higher level of care.

Codes represent a national understanding of animal care requirements and recommended best practices. They have been prepared by consensus amongst diverse groups interested or involved in farm animal care, welfare or research. Some Canadian provinces reference the Codes of Practice within their provincial animal welfare legislation.

Currently Available Codes of Practice

New Code of Practice Development Process Finalized in 2009

NFACC has finalized a new development process for Codes of Practice for the care and handling of farm animals. Click here to download the document that describes the newly adopted process.

The NFACC Code of Practice development process aims to:

• link Code recommendations with science
• ensure transparency in the process
• include broad representation from stakeholders
• contribute to improvements in farm animal care
• identify topics for research and encourage projects
• write clearly to ensure ease of reading, understanding and implementation
• provide a document that is useful for all stakeholders.

Role of the Scientists’ Committee in Code Development

A key feature of NFACC's Code development process is the inclusion of a Scientists Committee. It is widely accepted that animal welfare codes, guidelines, standards or legislation should take advantage of the best available knowledge. This knowledge is often generated from the scientific literature, hence the term “science-based”.

In re-establishing a Code of Practice development process, NFACC recognized the need for a more formal means of integrating scientific input into the Code of Practice process. A Scientists' Committee review of priority animal welfare issues for the species being addressed provides valuable information to the Code Development Committee in developing or revising a Code of Practice. As the Scientists' Committee report is publicly available and peer reviewed, the transparency and credibility of the Code process and the recommendations within are enhanced. The terms of reference for the Scientists’ Committee can be found in the Development Process for Codes of Practice for the care and handling of farm animals as Appendix C.

The following Scientists’ Committee reports are now available:

• Code of Practice for the care and handling of dairy cattle: review of scientific research on priority issues

Comments or questions can be directed to codes@nfacc.ca.

Funding Acknowledgement

Funding was received through the Advancing Canadian Agriculture and Agri-Food (ACAAF) program to test pilot, fine-tune and finalize the new NFACC Code process in conjunction with revising the Code of Practice for the care and handling of dairy cattle.