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The Animal-Welfare Levy

Author

Listed:
  • Romain Espinosa

    (CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Nicolas Treich

    (TSE-R - Toulouse School of Economics - UT Capitole - Université Toulouse Capitole - Comue de Toulouse - Communauté d'universités et établissements de Toulouse - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement, INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement)

Abstract

We provide a non-anthropocentric rationale for implementing a levy on meat consumption due to animal-welfare considerations. It operates as a Pigouvian tax and addresses externalities on farmed animals. Under total utilitarianism, the levy is a subsidy when an animal's life is worth living, and a tax when it is not. Under average utilitarianism, it is always a tax when human welfare exceeds animal welfare. Even under conservative assumptions, calibrated tax levels are substantial and would make most-intensive animal farms unprofitable. Taxes are significantly higher for chickens and pigs than for cows, in contrast to the taxation of other meat externalities.

Suggested Citation

  • Romain Espinosa & Nicolas Treich, 2025. "The Animal-Welfare Levy," Working Papers hal-05400906, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-05400906
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-05400906v1
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    File URL: https://hal.science/hal-05400906v1/document
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