Animal welfare is a relatively new concept in Japan, and one restaurant in Sendai that opened last month is determined to raise awareness of it by using animal products sourced from cruelty-free environments.

¡°I hope to make the restaurant a place to connect producers who value animal welfare with consumers, and I want to spread animal welfare from Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture,¡± said Mika Abe, the 38-year-old operator of Muku, which opened on Nov. 11.

Animal welfare refers to the idea of improving an animal¡¯s quality of life so that it may live comfortably, free from factors that cause stress, including hunger, pain and fear.