Ensuring the wellbeing of farm animals across the globe requires a common understanding of what wellbeing actually means, a realistic assessment of practices in different geographical areas, and the application of objective measures. This is what the audience heard at the 11th annual Expert Forum on Farm Animal Well-Being, organised by Boehringer Ingelheim in Sydney, Australia last June. Dr Laurent Goby of Boehringer Ingelheim looks at key takeaways of the panel discussion.