The Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries has appointed a citizen panel consisting of 36 representative Danes to make recommendations for better animal welfare for the country’s pigs as part of the agreement ‘Together for the Animals’. The citizens’ panel will comply with the OECD’s deliberative principles for good citizen engagement and will be conducted by an independent third-party secretariat consisting of We Do Democracy and Fonden Democracy x
Denmark is the world’s largest producer of pork per capita and pig production is a central pillar of the Danish food industry. Better animal welfare in future pig production must be found by letting representative citizens identify the balances between rural and urban areas, between consumer expectations and producer conditions in a global market, and between economic sustainability and ethical responsibility.
New team collaboration will strengthen Danish deliberative democracy
We Do Democracy and the Democracy x Foundation have joined forces in a joint third-party secretariat to lead the new Citizens’ Panel on Animal Welfare. The ambition of the two leading Danish advisors in deliberative democracy is to set common high standards for how the citizens’ panel can live up to the OECD principles in Denmark and unite common experiences to strengthen citizen participation in today’s difficult national policy decisions.
“Normally we are competitors, but in this case it has been important to stand together to ensure a high professional level. Together we will show how the state can live up to the OECD principles and avoid diluting the deliberative method in an immature market. With this small, but strongly anchored citizen panel, we give Danes the opportunity to engage meaningfully in the difficult dilemmas in society and at the same time live up to international principles” says Johan Galster, We Do Democracy
Bjørn Bedsted, Fonden Democracy x continues: “We have many years of experience in Denmark with citizen participation in policy development, but we still need to make it a regular routine and are being overtaken by other countries where many are further ahead in their democratic development than Denmark. We hope that with this citizen panel, we can help accelerate the development in Denmark as well, so that different methods of citizen participation become a permanent fixture in the political toolbox.”
A citizens’ panel is a little sister to a citizens’ assembly
A deliberative citizen panel draws on the same methodology and principles as a citizens’ assembly. The citizen panel differs in that there are fewer members, less time to complete the task and a focus on producing recommendations for a defined challenge. The process is based on a focused core question that is determined in collaboration with the client.
The process is also based on the same principles as a citizens’ panel according to international practice, with a focus on arm’s length to the client and adherence to the OECD principles of mandate, transparency, use of independent experts, protection of citizens, facilitation by an independent third-party secretariat and a clear commitment from the client on how to respond and act on the panel’s recommendations.
Facts:
- Statistics Denmark is responsible for recruiting the 36 members across the country so that the panel reflects the Danish demographics
- The Citizen Panel launches on January 15, 2026, with the 36 members meeting over two weekend sessions and three online sessions.
- The final recommendations to the minister and the parliamentary committee are expected to be handed over in June 2026
- The citizen panel has an independent professional advisory group consisting of Peter Sandøe (UCPH), Mickey Gjerris (UCPH) and Lene Juul Pedersen (AU)
- A third-party agreement is in place to ensure the independence of the citizen panel and a mandate committing the ministry to respond to the recommendations of the citizen panel within 6 months and again 24 months after the completion of the citizen panel
Read more here on the ministry’s website