Broadening the ethical debate on breeding innovations, public engagement and the role of the Democs Game

Franck Meijboom, Donald Bruce, Koen Kramer, Ann Bruce

Research output: Contribution to conferencePaperAcademic

Abstract

As genomic selection becomes increasingly important in livestock breeding, it also entails ethical and societal issues, and we are examining these as part of the BovReg project, funded by the Horizon 2020 programme of the European Union, on advanced cattle genomics. We argue that discussion of these issues must have broad scope, in at least three respects. Firstly, it should go beyond risk and animal welfare. Secondly, it should consider not only what is novel but assess also existing ethical issues in the light of genomic innovations. Lastly, because issues of animal production are of interest to European society, public engagement is an essential element for responsible innovation. To stimulate debate on genomic selection, we have created a Democs card game to engage with general publics and stakeholders. The game
explains the context of current production and selection in cattle, examines ethical and social issues raised by breeding techniques, and invites players to form their own views.
Original languageEnglish
Pages1-5
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2022
EventWCGALP - Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Duration: 3 Jul 20228 Jul 2022

Conference

ConferenceWCGALP
Country/TerritoryNetherlands
CityRotterdam
Period3/07/228/07/22

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