The Council on Animal Affairs (Raad voor Dierenaangelegenheden RDA) is an independent Dutch council of experts that gives the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature solicited and unsolicited advice on multidisciplinary issues in the field of animal welfare and health. The Council on Animal Affairs currently comprises around 40 members with very different backgrounds and expertise, whose membership is in a personal capacity and not bound by any instructions or binding mandate.
Public policy on animals
The Council on Animal Affairs deals with issues across the spectrum of public policy on animals: about farmed and non-farmed, in other words animals that are ‘living in the wild,’ about hobby farm animals, about companion animals and about production and laboratory animals.
Advisory report
The Council documents the outcome of its considerations in an advisory report. This gives details of the scientific and social background of an issue and gives advice on policy directions and solution directions for dilemmas. Consensus is not necessary: a Council advisory report can contain minority opinions.