ABSTRACT
The production system in which animals are kept is an important determinant of the delivery of farm animal welfare. Animal welfare refers to the quality of life experienced by the individual animal and encompasses physical and mental wellbeing, as well as the ability to express natural behaviour. The welfare of an animal can be described as good or high if the animal is healthy and has a good quality of life, which encompasses both freedom from suffering and opportunities to experience positive feelings of wellbeing. For farm animals to have a life worth living, positive experiences must outweigh negative ones over the lifetime of the animal.
