Initiative Tierwohl

Initiative Tierwohl (ITW) is a German partnership bringing together agriculture, the meat industry and food retailers to promote improved animal welfare in livestock farming. Founded in 2015, it sets participation criteria that go beyond legal requirements, supports farmers in meeting them and checks compliance. Farms can choose among programs with different levels of requirements, covering species and operations such as poultry, cattle, pig farming, sow housing and piglet rearing.

Consumers can identify participating products through the Initiative Tierwohl seals. These labels indicate that products come from farms implementing the relevant animal-welfare criteria. The “Stall plus Platz” program includes more space and baseline requirements, while labels such as “Frischluftstall” and “Außenklima” represent more extensive standards. The initiative also publishes information for farmers, consumers and industry partners, including criteria, guidance on using its seals, participant information and educational material.

Participating farmers receive financial compensation for the additional effort involved. Since 2021, payments have generally come through participating slaughter companies, with partial fund financing retained to support continuity across stages of pig production.