Zdravstveni problemi i dobrobit životinja u organskoj proizvodnji

Abstract

The demand for organically grown, animal derived produce is increasing due to a growing desire for consumer products that have minimal chemical inputs and high animal welfare standards. The main challenge facing organic production systems is animal management and health. The occurrence of clinical and subclinical diseases that have been recorded in conventional animal husbandry systems also occur in organic systems and the main problems are mastitis, lameness and infertility. However, the magnitude of disease occurrence may be lower or higher in organic farming systems due to different management and standards defined for organic production, which for example prohibit the routine use of conventional drugs and require a diet with high forage content. Organic farms use a combination of management practices, alternative and complementary remedies and conventional medicines to manage the health of their animals and in many cases these are at least as effective as management practices employed by non-organic producers. However, in contrast to nonorganic farming systems, there is still a lack of scientific evaluation of organically acceptable therapies that organic animal producers can use when current treatment practices are insufficient to maintain animal health.