Is animal welfare better on small farms? Evidence from veterinary inspections on Swedish farms

Structural change towards more ‘industrialised’ pig farming is widely criticised for having adverse effects on farm animal welfare (FAW). This criticism implies that larger farms might be less concerned with animal welfare than smaller, more diversified farms, e.g. since small farmers would value FAW more. Based on data from veterinary pig farm inspections, various aspects of this standard criticism were empirically tested. The results showed that FAW violations were less frequent on larger farms and more frequent on pig farms with dairy cows. Violations were no less frequent in areas with more organic production, but on average less severe.