Day: July 27, 2023

Farm Animals, General News

England: 1/3 of TV Funds For New Advert Raised In Just 4 Days. Can You Give ?

Above – the last advert.

Wow, what a start! We’re just four days into our crowdfunder and we are already at £13,000, meaning we are nearly a third of the way to reaching our target of £40,000.

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far – our advert will have a huge impact in changing people’s minds and we appreciate your support.

If you haven’t yet, will you donate today to help us keep the momentum and reach our next goal of £20,000?

If you can’t donate right now, we completely understand. You can still help by sharing our page with friends, family and colleagues so we can reach as many people as possible.

Also, take a look at a behind the scenes interview with actor, Antonia, who starred in our advert, below.

Thanks again for your support. We wouldn’t be able to do this without you.

Yours for the animals

Juliet Gellatley
Founder & Director

Donate to the tv campaign –

Vegan TV Ad – Takeaway the Meat Crowdfunder | Viva! The Vegan Charity

Regards Mark

General News, Uncategorized

Malta: ‘Enforcement is very weak on all animal welfare legislation’ – Commissioner Alison Bezzina – But, Changes to Come ?

Malta – ‘Enforcement is very weak on all animal welfare legislation’ – Commissioner Alison Bezzina

The Ministry for Animal Rights recently unveiled its three-year plan for animal welfare reforms, which has brought the issue back into the public eye and revived discussions on related matters.

In an interview with The Malta Independent on Sunday, Commissioner for Animal Welfare, Alisson Bezzina, reflected that she is extremely happy that the ministry has taken on her recommendations for legislative changes that would benefit animals, saying that a lot of the suggestions that she made over the years have been included as part of the planned reforms.

‘Enforcement is very weak on all animal welfare legislation’ – Commissioner Alison Bezzina – The Malta Independent

Regards Mark

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Want to know more about our past Serbian stray dog and cat campaigning ?

Click here to view:  Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) | a voice for the voiceless

Want to know a bit more about all our past work ?

Click here to view:  About Us. | Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

(hope you are a bit of a fast jet head)

Regards Mark

General News, Uncategorized

World Federation for Animals champions animal welfare for sustainable development.

World Federation for Animals champions animal welfare for sustainable development

26 July 2023

At the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), the World Federation for Animals (WFA) and its members advocated for recognising animal welfare’s pivotal role in achieving sustainable development. The HLPF was held at the United Nations Headquarters from 10 to 20 July 2023.

A key focus for the WFA was the UN Member States’ negotiations of the forthcoming Political Declaration. In response to the WFA’s calls and persistent advocacy, the most recent draft of the Declaration includes a commitment to protecting wildlife. WFA will continue to advocate for further broadening this commitment to safeguard other living species as well.

Protecting wildlife and other living species is not just an environmental imperative; it is a moral responsibility and a key pillar of sustainable development. Each species plays a unique role in our delicate ecosystem. Preserving these diverse forms of life ensures a resilient planet.

Jessica Bridgers, Deputy CEO of WFA

In a significant step backwards, the HLPF removed an explicit reference to the One Health approach for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response strategies, which had been included in an earlier draft. The One Health approach recognises the interconnectedness of the health and well-being of people, animals, plants, and ecosystems. Previous Ministerial Declarations in 2021 and 2022 have acknowledged the interdependencies between human, animal, and environmental health.

Omitting the promotion of One Health in the Political Declaration signifies a concerning decision by UN Member States to overlook a science-based approach to sustainable development that increases the resilience of communities vulnerable to zoonotic outbreaks worldwide.

Dr. James Yeates, CEO of WFA

WFA and its members will continue to engage UN Member States to further support the adoption of an ambitious and impactful Political Declaration at the SDG Summit in September 2023. At the Summit, heads of state and government will conduct a comprehensive review of the state of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and endorse the Declaration, providing political guidance to accelerate their delivery.

This is a critical year for protecting human rights and animal welfare during the mid-term review at the United Nations. The upcoming UNFSS Stocktaking 2+ in Rome this month, the SDG summit in September, and UNFCCC CoP 28 will be very important to continue to recognise the linkages between the rights and well-being of people and animals. After last year’s landmark UN Environment Assembly resolution on the relationship between animal welfare, sustainable development, and the environment was adopted, the 2023 HLPF Political Declaration must also fully recognise the key principles of the Resolution, which includes recognising the importance to One Health.

Jackson Zee, Co-Leader of the Animal Issues Thematic Cluster

Regards Mark

Environmental, General News

EU: Beware of “sustainable aquaculture” labels.

Beware of “sustainable aquaculture” labels

26 July 2023

Essere Animali

When consumers look to purchase more animal and planet-friendy products, many turn to labelling schemes for guidance. Little do they realise, the majority of sustainable aquaculture certification schemes fail to consider animal welfare at all. Essere Animali has launched a new campaign against misleading labelling in aquaculture.

According to the EU’s Common market for fisheries & aquaculture Regulation, sustainable aquaculture activities include environmental protection, animal health and animal welfare. Similarly, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) recognised fish as sentient beings capable of experiencing feelings such as fear and pain, and their welfare is explicitly mentioned in all official documents dealing with sustainability in aquaculture, from the European Commission’s Strategic Aquaculture Guidelines to the guidelines for companies developed by the Global Reporting Initiative. In other words, animal welfare is intrinsic to sustainability. 

Certification schemes that fail to protect fish welfare will do nothing to relieve the unnecessary pain and suffering that farmed fish undergo in aquaculture. Practices such as high stocking densities, lack of environmental enrichment, poor water quality, painful procedures (egg/semen collection, vaccinations, catching for transport) and unstunned slaughter are highly stressful and lead to poor welfare outcomes for fish. 

A poll carried out by Compassion in World Farming and YouGov in May 2020 found that 63% of participants were not clear on whether existing certification schemes protect fish welfare, but that 78% think that they should. Indeed, a recent study found that fish welfare is an important factor for consumers, and they were more likely to pay for an organic label if they knew that it addressed fish welfare. 

With Essere Animali’s new campaign, UNsustainable aquaculture, the organisation is calling out an Italian certification scheme developed by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture together with the Italian fish producer association API for failing to address welfare. The scheme allows fish products to be labelled as “sustainable aquaculture”, without any specific animal welfare improvement, which Essere Animali claims misleads consumers. Essere Animali have four main requests for the scheme: to include a clear definition of animal welfare, an effective stunning requirement, and maximum densities and water quality requirements. Citizens are invited to participate in an email campaign to join the call for improved welfare standards.

Well-known global fish certification schemes also fall short on welfare. The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) is currently developing new fish welfare indicators that include stunning requirements, but ignore welfare standards during the farming phase. A public consultation of these indicators is foreseen by the end of the year.

Read more at source

UNsustainable Aquaculture

Regards Mark