Ethical aspects of biotechnology in farm animal production

The aim of the paper is to provide an ethical analysis of the development and use of biotechnology for animal production. The analysis comprises the following six steps: (i) The role of moral reflection. (ii) A brief presentation of the types of animal biotechnology giving rise to ethical issues. (iii) A distinction between two stages of ethical reflection which biotechnology requires us to go through. (iv) Four fundamental moral concerns which may be relevant for assessing animal biotechnology. (v) A critical discussion of these concerns. (vi) Weighing conflicting concerns against each other. Broadly speaking, the paper concludes that the principal determinant of the ethical status of any variety of biotechnology is welfare-by which is meant both, as a positive factor, the expected gain in our (human) well-being as the beneficiaries of the technology, and, as a negative factor, any welfare-losses incurred by the animals it affects. The paper also urges that scientists are in a position to make a significant contribution to the ethical assessment of biotechnology and have, in any case, a responsibility to examine their own activity.