A European Commission impact assessment, obtained on Thursday 20 April by the media outlet Agra Facts, lists 18 measures to improve the welfare of kept animals.
The NGO Eurogroup for Animals states that this document is a good starting point for the ambitious legislative proposals that the Commission is due to submit by the end of September.
According to the impact assessment, the Commission envisages phasing out cages for all species and increasing the space available for all species of animals destined for slaughter.
One measure is inspired by what already exists in France and Germany, namely the ban on the systematic culling of male chicks.
There would also be requirements for the stunning of farmed fish and a ban on cruel slaughter practices such as water baths and CO2 for poultry and pigs. There would also be a ban on mutilations, like beak trimming, tail docking, dehorning or surgical castration of pigs. An important part of the proposal will be measures to limit journey times for the transport of animals destined for slaughter, an issue on which EU countries are divided. The EU Court of Auditors had recently presented ideas for improving animal welfare (see EUROPE 13163/14).
Finally, the Commission provides for rules to apply EU standards to imported animal products in a way that is compatible with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.
On Thursday 20 April, the NGO Welfarm broadcast, on its website, a documentary on the transport of live animals in Europe.
Caroline Roose MEP (Green/EFA, French) carried out an investigation into the transport of unweaned calves between the Czech Republic and Spain. She says she had witnessed “violations of EU legislation on the transport of live animals”. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)