Consumer Protest: Animal Welfare

Animal welfare, meaning a human concern for the physical and psychological state of nonhuman animals, remains one of the most controversial moral, political, and cultural issues in contemporary consumption. Animal welfare illustrates that consumer mobilization is not only about rights, but also about social responsibility. This seems to represent a widening and generalization of issues that have been raised under the headings of “political” and “ethical consumerism.”

Theoretically and empirically, animal welfare connotes a variety of core debates within the study of consumption as it draws attention to the political foundations of consumer mobilization, challenges the conventional idea of consumer rights and responsibility, and constitutes a marker for the evolvement of alternative consumer identities.

Although consumer concerns for animal welfare are associated with a number of issues, ...