At the meeting of European Parliament’s Sustainable Livestock Intergroup on Thursday 10 July, MEP Benoît Cassart (Renew Europe, Belgian) promoted a specific European approach for this sector, based on the EU’s own sustainability, animal welfare and social justice criteria.
He pointed out that the European livestock model is unique and that the standards applied to it are among the strictest in the world. But these requirements come at a cost. “If we don’t have a coherent policy to protect and reward these efforts, European livestock farmers will be the first to suffer. And there will be no generational renewal”, he said.
He advocated a specific approach, sector by sector, based on three pillars: recognising livestock farming’s multifunctional role in our territories, protecting against distortions of competition, promoting European standards in trade and supporting the transition to sustainable, profitable livestock farming that respects people, animals and ecosystems.
At the meeting, farmers presented their vision for the future of their industry: milk, pigs, cattle, sheep and poultry. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)