Voluntary testing procedure of farm animal housing equipment according to the Animal Welfare Act as of 1998.

Before its broad application in practice, housing equipment should be teste d, in particular with regard to animal welfare. The differing positions of the German Federal Council (Bundesrat) and the German Federal Parliament (B undestag), whether such testing should be mandatory or voluntary, have been conciliated in the amended animal welfare act by empowering the Federal Mi nistry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries (BML) to fix official standards f or voluntary testing procedures by regulation. On request of the BML, a rep ort as scientific basis for a draft regulation is currently prepared by the scientific animal welfare committee of the German Agricultural Society (DL G). The scientific animal welfare committee has been appointed by the DLG i n order to provide support in the effort to strengthen animal welfare aspec ts in the DLG-utility testing procedure of housing equipment, which is in p lace since 1953. The committee elaborates standards concerning testing meth ods, assessment criteria and the necessary size of investigations. As requi red, the scientific animal welfare committee may support the DLG-testing bo dies in the implementation of the animal welfare part of the testing proced ure. It will, moreover, be involved in the welfare assessment based on the testing results. The amendments of the already established testing procedur e will help to fulfill the general requirements on an acceptable animal wel fare testing procedure. While keeping in mind that there are certain limits in what can be achieved by a voluntary testing procedure, the enhanced con sideration of animal welfare aspects within the DLG-utility testing procedu re has the advantage to be relatively unbureaucratic and in line with EU le gislation, and is, therefore, an appropriate tool for a contibrution to imp roved animal welfare in livestock housing.