Marian Stamp Dawkins & Roland Bonney 
The Future of Animal Farming 
Renewing the Ancient Contract

Does animal welfare have a place in sustainable farming, or do the
demands of a rising human population and the threat of climate
change mean that the interests of animals must be put aside? Can we
improve the way we keep animals and still feed the world – or
is it a choice between ethics and economics?

The aim of this book is to challenge the ‘them-and-us’ thinking
that sets the interests of humans and farm animals against each
other and to show that to be really ‘sustainable, ‘ farming needs to
include, not ignore, animal welfare. The authors of this remarkable
book come from a diversity of backgrounds: industry, animal welfare
organizations, academic institutions, and practical farming. They
are united in arguing that farm animals matter and that sustainable
farming must have animal welfare at its ethical core, along with
the production of healthy, affordable food and care for the
environment.

Table of Content

Foreword: Peter Singer.

1. The Future of Animal Farming: Roland Bonney and Marian Stamp
Dawkins.

Part I: Voices for Change.

2. The Ethics of Agriculture: The End of True Husbandry: Bernie
Rollin.

3. Why Farm Animals Matter: Mary Midgley.

4. The Urgency of Change: A View From a Campaigning
Organization: Joyce D’Silva.

5. Environmental Ethics and Animal Welfare: Re-Forging a
Necessary Alliance: Kate Rawles.

Part II: Bringing About Change.

6. The Business of Farm Animal Welfare: Roland Bonney.

7. What is Good Welfare and How Can We Achieve It?: Marian Stamp
Dawkins.

8. Animal Needs and Commercial Needs: Ruth Layton.

9. Hard Work and Sustained Effort Required to Improve Livestock
Handling and Change Industry Practice: Temple Grandin.

10. Bringing About Change: A Retailer’s View: Michelle
Waterman.

11. Animal Welfare as a Business Priority: Keith Kenny.

12. Providing Assurance on Welfare: David C.J. Main.

13. The Role of Assurance Schemes and Public Pressure: Colin
Spedding.

14. Improving the Welfare of Cattle: Practical Experience in
Brazil: Mateus J.R. Paranhos da Costa.

15. Organic Farming and Animal Welfare: Helen Browning.

16. Enlightened Agriculture and the New Agrarianism: Colin
Tudge.

17. Conclusions: Marian Stamp Dawkins and Roland Bonney.

References.

Index

About the author

Marian Stamp Dawkins is Professor of Animal Behaviour in the
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford and Vice-Principal of
Somerville College, Oxford. As a graduate student, she was
supervised by Niko Tinbergen, the Nobel Prize winning pioneer of
the study of animal behaviour. She has a long-standing interest in
the study of animal welfare and the practical application of
research to commercial farming.

Roland Bonney is a Director of the Food Animal Initiative
and a main board Director of the Benchmark Holdings group. He has
more than twenty years of professional farming experience, from New
Zealand, Australia and the UK, and set up his own agricultural
business based on arable, sheep and cattle production in Wiltshire,
UK. He is committed to driving progress towards sustainable
agriculture that delivers good animal welfare and conserves the
environment, while feeding people and providing farmers with a
viable income.