Anilmal welfare campaign groups have welcomed Defra's anouncement that the the government has backed down on its plan to hand responsibility for regulating the poultry industry over to the industry itself.
The switch to 'industry-led guidance', which was to be written and supervised by the British Poultry Council, was part of a deregulatory programme that could also see the cattle, sheep and pig-farming industries handed control of monitoring their own sectors.
The proposal provoked outcry from campaigners and Opposition MPs, who feared that welfare standards could be weakened.
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Sustain: Sustain The alliance for better food and farming advocates food and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, enrich society and culture and promote equity.
