Foodlaw-Reading
Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK
|
|
Commission consultation, 15 October 2021
 |
Commission consultation: Inception Impact Assessment - Revision of the EU legislation on animal welfare A copy of this document is available on this site (click on image). |
Note: This site does not normally cover 'animal welfare' issues but as this document considers labelling options, it has been included.
Summary
This initiative aims to update EU animal welfare rules to increase the role of recent science-based analysis, broaden their scope and make them easier to enforce – generally increasing the level of animal welfare in the EU.
The following is the initial section from the publication:
Context
EU animal welfare policy scope and principles derive from Article 13 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, which recognises animals as sentient beings. Article 13 also recognises the need to respect the legislative or administrative provisions and customs of the Member States relating in particular to religious rites, cultural traditions and regional heritage.
The EU legislation on the welfare of farmed animals consists of a Directive concerning the protection of animals kept for farming purposes and four Directives laying down minimum standards for the protection of laying hens, broilers, pigs and calves; one Regulation on animal transport and one Regulation on the protection of animals at the time of killing. In other words, it regulates animal welfare at farm level, during transport and at slaughter.
The objectives of the EU legislation on animal welfare are to ensure by uniform application and enforcement the welfare of farmed animals, while at the same time allowing rational production and fair competition for EU business operators within the single market, and addressing expectations among citizens and consumers. Under the Farm to Fork Strategy (F2F), the Commission committed to revise this legislation and consider options for animal welfare labelling. The purpose of the revision is to ensure a higher level of animal welfare, broaden the scope of the EU animal welfare legislation, align it with the latest scientific evidence and current political priorities as well as citizen’s expectations and make it easier to enforce. Animal welfare is a key component of sustainability in our food chain.
On 30 June 2021, the Commission announced in its reply to the “End of Cages” citizens’ initiative that it will put forward a legislative proposal to phase out and finally prohibit the use of cages for certain species in the EU. The revision of the EU animal welfare legislation covers animals – including fish and fur animals – bred and kept for farming purposes, as well as cats and dogs insofar as transport for commercial purposes is concerned. It does not cover wild animals, experimental or laboratory animals (with exception for their welfare during transport) or any invertebrate animals.
To gather evidence to feed into such revision, the Commission initiated in 2020 a fitness check of the current rules on the welfare of animals at farm, during transport and at slaughter, to be concluded in 2022. While the fitness check is still ongoing, available information points to weaknesses in the design, implementation, compliance and enforcement of the EU animal welfare legislation. Among others, the current rules seem to be outdated in light of new science and technology, and the lack of clarity of certain provisions results in divergent transposition and implementation across the EU Member States. In turn, this creates an uneven playing field for EU business operators and poses additional challenges to a proper, effective and uniform enforcement by the competent authorities.
In addition, consumers are not properly and clearly informed about the conditions under which animals are kept, and are thus prevented from making informed purchase choices of “animal welfare friendly products”. Several different animal welfare labelling schemes have emerged, providing unequal guarantees, confusing consumers and leading to unfair market conditions for businesses operating in different EU Member States.
Furthermore, as regards cats and dogs, the illegal trade of pets (companion animals) has been added to the list of environmental crimes the EU should tackle as part of its action against organised crime groups.
Possible solutions to the shortcomings (to be further) identified in the fitness check, and better synergies with other policy areas, such as the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), climate policy and animal health policy will be analysed in an Impact Assessment. The different approaches proposed below consider also the role that animal welfare and subsequently animal health play in contributing to preserve biodiversity and food safety. They further take into account the extent to which animal welfare requirements impact market competition aspects and therefore influence the economic and social sustainability of farming and food production.
The role of external factors (such as international trade patterns and the EU framework legislation for official controls along the farming and food production chain) will be taken into account when refining and assessing the impacts of the different policy options.
