Luxembourg, 20/06/2006 (Agence Europe) - Agriculture ministers of EU Member States set out their differences in Luxembourg on 19 June regarding the need to strengthen animal welfare rules. A majority of delegations supported the Austrian Presidency's guidelines on the proposal for a directive laying down minimum rules for chickens kept for meat production (broiler chickens).
During a public debate, some ten EU countries (France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary) criticised the ambitious action plan of Commissioner Markos Kyprianou on improving animal welfare. These countries felt that increased use of the new standards would have heavy economic consequences on European companies and that the extra cost could cause competitiveness of the European sector to be lost compared to third country products that are not subject to such strict animal welfare requirements. Some such countries, including France, recommended an approach that is more in line with subsidiarity based on minimum common rules that are economically viable. Given the costs engendered by new standards, there is a great risk of seeing EU citizens consume imported animals that have suffered albeit far from the eyes of Europeans. “This will not have served employment, or farming or animal welfare”, the French minister, Dominique Bussereau, said. Luxembourg also urged for a more pragmatic approach, taking into account the economic effects of the new rules introduced into the animal welfare field.
In the opposite camp, which supports the intention s of the Commission, Sweden, Denmark and, to a lesser extent, the Netherlands, stressed that the setting in place of strict animal welfare rules is more of an advantage than a disadvantage for EU companies. The United Kingdom supports the Commission's objectives while giving preference to the use, for example, of “best practices” rather than the adoption of new legislation. Most ministers stressed the importance of keeping consumers better informed through precise product labelling.
The Commission seemed to be turning a blind eye to the arguments put forward by countries that criticised its action plan. Some Member States reproach the Commissioner for having extended an enhanced animal welfare legislation to new livestock farms, mainly for turkeys and dairy cattle, and for wanting to return to the fray in order to limit the duration of animal transport. We recall that the EU agriculture ministers had, in December 2004, adopted a new regulation on improving livestock transport conditions for animals intended for slaughter. The text sets aside till 2011 the most controversial issues such as maximum duration of transport and loading density of vehicles (EUROPE 8861).
Agreement possible by end of year on broiler chickens
Furthermore, the new Presidency guidelines on minimum rules for broiler chickens were backed by a majority of delegations (EUROPE 9212). The proposal broadly relaxed in this way will be examined under Finnish EU Presidency as of July this year, with a view to a Council agreement on the text by the end of the year. The Presidency guidelines provide for legislation in three stages: - as soon as the legislation takes effect (probably in 2008), the fixing of minimum standards for farms with a livestock intensity below or equal to 30 kg/m2 and additional requirements for those whose density is above 30 kg/m2, without imposing a maximum density limit; - the collection and transmission to the Commission of data on a series of welfare indicators (mortality rate, stocking density, pododermatitis or footpad lesions); - and the analysis of data for verifying how appropriate it is to foresee, by about 2012, a system of sanctions (reduction of livestock intensity in the case of violation of health standards) and the introduction of a maximum stock density (38 kg/m2 in the initial proposal) beyond which the farmer would not be allowed to market his products. Some Member States (Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom, Estonia and Germany) do not agree with this timetable. They call for the establishment of a maximum livestock density as soon as the text takes effect.