European Commission Issues Animal Welfare Strategy

The European Commission recently released a new animal welfare strategy designed to close gaps in the current laws and remedy a lack of uniform enforcement. According to a January 20, 2012, press release, the strategy ultimately aims to (i) provide consumers with more information about “what animal-welfare claims made on product labels really mean,” (ii) ensure that existing rules “really do benefit animals,” and (iii) improve training for animal handlers. In addition, the Commission has pledged to address the transportation of animals to slaughter, as well as introduce a general animal welfare bill and bills pertaining specifically to pig welfare over the next four years.

The announcement apparently followed a citizen petition covered in Issue 422 of this Update and initiated by World Horse Welfare (WHW), which called for an eight-hour limit on the transportation of livestock to slaughter. Nevertheless, the group has since criticized the new strategy’s failure to recommend maximum journey limits and tackle horsemeat labeling. “This is the second time in two months that the European Commission has chosen to ignore the calls of its citizens and MEPs to rectify the terrible conditions and needlessly long journeys of horses transported to slaughter across Europe,” said WHW Chief Executive Roly Owers. “In November the Commission had the opportunity to improve animal welfare by proposing changes to existing legislation; however, despite acknowledging that ‘severe animal welfare problems persist’ and that the long journey times endured by horses do not conform to the recommendations of their own scientific advisors, they proposed no changes.” See WHW Press Release, January 27, 2012.