On Tuesday 17 December in Strasbourg, MEPs condemned the events that led to the sinking of a cargo ship in Romania carrying 14,600 sheep and asked to shed light on the case.
Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, Italy) said that the transport of live animals “is not always avoidable”, but supported the European Parliament's request to give priority, “as much as possible”, to the transport of carcasses rather than live animals (see EUROPE 12194/13).
For Paolo de Castro (S&D, Italy), EU farmers, by complying with European standards, “incur much higher production costs than their competitors outside the EU and are victims of unfair competition”.
The transport of live animals must be the last possible solution, according to Elsi Katainen (Renew Europe, Finland). She also called for a reduction in the maximum transport time for animals.
Francisco Guerreiro (Greens/EFA, Portugal) denounced Member States' failure to comply with the rules.
“Religious slaughter is the reason why animals are transported alive for thousands of kilometres”, criticised Julie Lechanteux (ID, France).
Anja Hazekamp (GUE/NGL, Netherlands) asked the Commission to launch an infringement proceeding against Romania.
From farm to table. The European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, said the Commission “is working with Member States to improve the conditions of animals during transport”. In recent years, measures have been taken to improve the situation, particularly on the Bulgarian-Turkish border, a well-known “hot spot” for animal welfare issues, she continued.
Actions on sea transport have also been taken. The Commission has audited the official control arrangements for sea transport of livestock in four Member States, including Romania. “We saw that the situation is quite worrying”, she admitted.
A further initiative taken consists of engaging with the countries receiving live animals in order to get information on each consignment. This will provide feedback on the condition of the animals upon arrival and “promote improvements” in this area.
Stella Kyriakides said animal welfare, including livestock transport, will be an important element of the future ‘farm to table’ strategy to be presented in spring 2020.
On behalf of the Finnish Presidency of the EU Council, Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen recalled that the EU Council, in conclusions adopted on 16 December, “acknowledges the need to continue improving the welfare of animals, including during transport over long distances”. In addition, the EU Council invites the Commission to review and update existing transport legislation in order to take into account current practical problems and scientific knowledge (see EUROPE 12391/31). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)