Category: Environmental

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

EU Policies Need To Support Dietary Shifts, Sustainable Farming To Tackle Climate Change.

13 March 2024

Press Release

As a new report stresses that Europe is not prepared for rapidly growing risks related to climate change, the EU action plan should include concrete policies that reduce the number of animals farmed for food, prioritising resilient farming practices with higher animal welfare and supporting a shift to plant-based diets.

In response to the publication of the first-ever European Climate Risk Assessment by the European Environment Agency (EEA), which analysed the risks of climate change in the EU and the areas which need to be imminently addressed, the European Commission (EC) has issued a Communication putting forward suggestions for actions in six impact clusters, among which are ecosystems and food.

Among the most severe risks that Europe is facing are the ones related to crop production: two-thirds of the EU’s agricultural land is used for animal production, of which most is for the production of crops for intensively farmed animals. Future-proof and nature based solutions can only be achieved by raising fewer animals with higher welfare conditions. This is supported by a Harvard Law School study, published today, that clearly states that emissions from livestock production should fall rapidly as of 2025. 

While the EEA report clearly highlights that current EU policies fail to address climate risks effectively, the future of important EU legislative commitments that would improve resilience, such as the revision of the animal welfare legislation and the sustainable food systems framework, remain uncertain. 

The EC Communication recognises that actions towards sustainable agriculture and fishing will not be enough to address climate risks, and there is a need for long-term policies that support dietary shifts, making healthy and sustainable food affordable and accessible. It is therefore disappointing that the recently published 2040 climate target does not sufficiently recognise the role of shifting diets, or the significant impact of agricultural emissions from animal farming. 

With growing evidence that systematic shifts are required to address climate risks to food production, ecosystems and health, increased EU efforts and binding policies that can support this transition are imperative.

Repeatedly, science shows us that maintaining the status quo is not an option. Only by raising fewer animals with higher welfare conditions and creating food environments that support dietary shifts can the EU truly address imminent climate risks. Unfortunately the proposed derogations in the CAP’s environmental measures will lead us further away from climate change adaptation and resilience. To support the transition and investments in future-proof solutions, the EC must come forward with the promised legislative proposals on animal welfare and the framework for sustainable food systems, without further delays.
 

Camilla Björkbom, Food Policy Political Adviser, Eurogroup for Animals.

Regards Mark

Environmental, General News

USA: Persistent Animal Welfare Violations’: Aquarium That Housed Lolita The Orca Faces Eviction.

‘Persistent animal welfare violations’: Aquarium that housed Lolita the orca faces eviction (yahoo.com)

‘Persistent animal welfare violations’: Aquarium that housed Lolita the orca faces eviction

Freida Frisaro And David Fischer

Fri, 8 March 2024

The Miami Seaquarium, an old-Florida style tourist attraction that was home to Lolita, the beloved Orca that died last year, is being evicted from the waterfront property it leases from Miami-Dade County.

County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava cited a “long and troubling history of violations” in a lease termination notice sent on Thursday to the chief executive officer of The Dolphin Company, which owns the Seaquarium. The company was told to vacate the property by 21 April, according to the letter from the mayor’s office.

“They have been the subject of continuous violations, including decaying animal habitats, lack of veterinary staff and a lack of other experienced staff,” Levine Cava said during a news conference Thursday.

“Our number one priority continues to be the safety and wellbeing of the animals,” the mayor said.

Seaquarium deemed ‘unsustainable and unsafe’

Seaquarium officials sent a letter last month to Levine Cava, inviting her to visit the park so she could witness the animals’ wellbeing for herself. The county had advised the park in January that they were looking to terminate the park’s lease following a review from the US Department of Agriculture, which regulates the treatment and care of captive animals.

Eduardo Albor, CEO of The Dolphin Company, showed up at the news conference and told reporters he doesn’t understand why the mayor has refused invitations to the Seaquarium.

“How can she say that she’s concerned about the animals when she has never come to the Miami Seaquarium in two years?” he asked.

Levine Cava said during the news conference that representatives of the county’s parks department have made regular visits to the park over the past year and a half.

“The current state of the Miami Seaquarium is unsustainable and unsafe,” Levine Cava said.

The Seaquarium could fight the eviction

The Seaquarium could still fight the eviction. A judge would need to declare the park in compliance with their lease.

Albor said on Thursday that he plans to let his lawyers respond to the eviction notice.

“I will just let our lawyers defend our rights because it is offensive to speak about my people,” Albor said.

The action follows a series of federal inspections that found multiple problems at the Seaquarium, including unsafe and structurally deficient buildings.

“The US Department of Agriculture’s reports since 2022 also consistently identified that several structures have not been maintained properly, and that creates dangerous conditions and in many cases have resulted in injury,” the mayor said.

The Seaquarium was home to Lolita the orca

The Dolphin Company, based in Mexico, had agreed to help move Lolita to a natural sea pen in the Pacific Northwest when it took over ownership of the Seaquarium in 2022. Lolita, also known as Tokitae, or Toki, died on 18 August at age 57.

Animal rights activists had sought Lolita’s freedom for years. The orca spent much of her life in tank a that measures 24 meters by 11 meters and is six meters deep, and stopped performing in shows at the Seaquarium in 2022.

A coalition that included Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay worked on the plan to move Lolita back to the Pacific Northwest.

A necropsy cited kidney failure as the cause of Lolita’s death. The necropsy also found Lolita suffered from acute and chronic bronchointerstitial pneumonia and renal degeneration, as well a chronic condition of the heart implying the degeneration of the cardiac valves.

At long last, authorities are taking action against the persistent animal welfare violations at Miami Seaquarium.

“At long last, authorities are taking action against the persistent animal welfare violations at Miami Seaquarium,” says Dr Naomi Rose, senior scientist in marine mammal biology for the Animal Welfare Institute’s Marine Life Program.

“This run-down facility has been a blight on Miami for too long. We hope the zoo and aquarium community steps up to the plate to ensure all of the animals – the mammals, birds, fish – find acceptable homes in US facilities.”

The Seaquarium opened in 1955 overlooking Biscayne Bay and was among the first theme parks devoted to marine life. It garnered international attention in the 1960s when the television series ‘Flipper’ was filmed there.

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, Fur and Fur Farming, General News

EU: European Commission To Visit Fur Farms In Finland.

8 March 2024

As part of the evaluation for a ban on fur farming following the successful European Citizens’ Initiative Fur Free Europe, representatives of the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety will visit Finnish fur farms between 8 – 15 March.

The visits are part of a wider fact-finding mission on pandemic preparedness and control, with a focus on non-foodborne zoonotic disease agents.

Photo – Jo-Anne McArthur / Djurrattsallianses / We Animals Media

They aim to collect and assess information on the level of surveillance in mink farms for zoonotic infections with zoonotic agents such as SARS-CoV2 and avian influenza. The visits may also include a review of the animal welfare conditions. 

These assessments of public health and animal welfare are part of the follow up on the European Citizens’ Initiative Fur Free Europe, where over 1.5 million European citizens called for a EU wide ban on fur farming and the sale of farmed fur products due to animal cruelty and public safety risks. 

Finland is one of the EU’s biggest fur producing countries, and avian influenza spread widely in the country in 2023, on 71 of 400 farms.

Some organisations have criticised the timing of the visits during breeding season, where the farms will be void of young animals being reared for the next season, as breeding animals will typically give birth from May. 

The visits are also pre-announced, giving farmers the opportunity to present the best possible conditions to inspectors. 

Even when visiting these farms under the best possible conditions, inspectors will be able to see how standard housing on fur farms fails to meet the behavioural needs of wild animals such as mink and foxes.

A typical mink cage on European fur farms has a floor area of only 4 sheets of A4 paper, and denies the animals the opportunity to perform natural behaviours such as swimming, climbing and jumping.

Mink and foxes are also solitary animals who would choose to live alone in their natural habitats, whereas fur farms see them housed in rows of cages in extremely close proximity. 

The Fur Free Europe network awaits news on the outcomes of these visits, which we expect to support the need to move ahead with an outright ban on farming animals for their fur in the European Union.

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News, Uncategorized

Victoria Beckham’s Show At Paris Fashion Week Disrupted By Activists Against Leather.

Thanks to everyone who is supporting our Petitions (to English and German Ambassadors) re cat torture in China.  You can see both of these directly below this post. Please sign if you have not done so yet, and pass on to all your contacts. Thanks M.

Thank you – this issue is really getting a voice now; and as we say the Chinese government needs to step up to the plate and take action.

England: Chinese Cat Torture Petition – Please Support Thank You. – World Animals Voice

German Version of Petition “China: Katzen-Folter-Ring (Cat Torture Ring)” – World Animals Voice

Moving on:

Victoria Beckham’s show at Paris Fashion Week has been disrupted by activists from animal rights group Peta. The 49-year-old designer, who found fame in pop group the Spice Girls, showcased her autumn/winter 2024 collection on Friday. The campaigners got up during the show and walked the runway alongside the models while holding up signs saying “viva vegan leather”. Their T-shirts read: “Animals aren’t fabric. Turn your back on animals skins.”

Animal rights activists crash the catwalk at Victoria Beckham’s Paris Fashion Week show | Independent.ie

Animal rights activists disrupt Victoria Beckham show in Paris (msn.com)

Victoria Beckham’s Paris fashion show disrupted by animal rights protesters (msn.com)

Regards Mark

Time Out Chill I think after lots of bad things recently – Enjoy;

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

EU: Animal Welfare Standards To Be Considered In EU Investments In Ukraine.

1 March 2024

Eurogroup for Animals welcomes the explicit recognition of animal welfare in the scope of the financial aid and calls on the EU to ensure that the Facility will indeed foster improved animal welfare standards in all grants and loans given to the Ukrainian beneficiaries.

On 27 February the European Parliament approved the revision of the EU’s long term budget, which includes the so-called Ukraine Facility mechanism. The Facility mechanism – powered with 50 billion EUR – will be the EU’s main instrument providing financial support to Ukraine until 2027. Importantly, animal welfare is recognised as an objective of the Facility mechanism.  

Fostering investments in line with EU animal welfare standards is becoming critical in light of the unconditional and full trade liberalisation between the EU and Ukraine in place since 30 May 2022. This full liberalisation is for now further fuelling intensive animal agriculture in Ukraine with a significant increase of poultry meat and egg imports. Conditioning investments to animal welfare standards has the potential to improve the welfare of millions of animals in Ukraine, ensuring EU citizens’ wishes to protect animals are respected. This will also send the right message to EU producers to accelerate the transition to sustainable methods of production.  

Prioritising animal welfare through the Facility will also ease Ukraine’s accession negotiations to the EU by stimulating a sustainable reconstruction of its agricultural system aiming at an alignment with the EU acquis. Ukraine is a big agricultural producer with a large share of it relating to animal products. Using the financial support of the Facility to help Ukraine transition towards more sustainable agricultural methods of production is the only way forward in order to advance Ukraine’s green recovery.  

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

EU / Chile: EU-Chile Trade Agreement Falls Short On Animal Welfare.

29 February 2024

Press Release

The modernised EU-Chile Free Trade Agreement, approved by the European Parliament today, includes commitments to animal welfare such as the recognition of animal sentience, the phase-out of antibiotics used as growth promoters, and language on animal welfare cooperation.

While these provisions are welcomed, the negative impacts of unconditional trade liberalisation should not be ignored: The EU and Chile should maximise the language on animal welfare cooperation within the agreement to ensure significant progress for the well-being of animals.

In 2002, when the EU and Chile concluded their first trade agreement, they added, for the first time ever, provisions on animal welfare cooperation. Yet, it was followed by increased intensification in the Chilean livestock and aquaculture sectors due to increased trade opportunities. There is a high risk that this modernised deal will fuel this trend as it grants further market access for Chilean animal products by increasing quotas for poultry, pork, sheep and beef without any animal welfare condition. Such a condition could have contributed to enhancing animal welfare standards in Chile, especially considering that Chilean producers believe that the trade deal would generate greater certainty for investments aimed at exports to the EU.

The FTA does include a chapter on sustainable food systems with provisions on animal welfare cooperation, despite being non-commital. Future EU-Chile cooperation on animal welfare, as like-minded partners, must focus on concrete initiatives such as the phase-out of cages for pigs and poultry, along with lower stocking densities for poultry. Other areas include animal transport, the use of anaesthesia for mutilations and joint action plans to phase out antibiotic use in animal production.

It is disappointing that the new EU approach to Trade and Sustainable Development (TSD) chapters will not yet apply to this trade agreement. The review process of the TSD Chapter should contain detailed language on the link between animal welfare and sustainable development, wildlife conservation and trafficking, and the importance of ensuring aquaculture welfare. In terms of enforcement, the EU and Chile should create clear roadmaps, identify priority issues, and include last-resort sanctions.

In November 2021, Chilean President Gabriel Boric signed an Animalist Commitment with Veg Foundation during his campaign. The document includes 10 points to improve the lives of animals raised for consumption.

Unfortunately after two years of government, very little progress has been made in fulfilling this commitment, since only one of the 10 points has been worked on. We call on President Boric to keep his word and improve the lives of millions of animals in Chile, by implementing these points in both trade agreements and national law. This FTA could have bolstered national efforts similar to the impact of the first EU-Chile trade agreement, which led to the adoption of Chilean animal welfare law in 2009

Ignacia Uribe, Founder and CEO, Veg Foundation.

Until the EU has animal welfare-based import requirements, the EU should negotiate ambitious animal welfare conditions with all trading partners, and replicate the approach it followed in the EU-New Zealand trade agreement. The EU should not let its trade agenda freeze the path toward higher welfare food systems. Embracing animal welfare conditions in some FTAs while omitting them in others would certainly be incoherent,

Reineke Hameleers, CEO, Eurogroup for Animals.

Eurogroup for Animals and the Chilean-based organisation Veg Foundation regret that the modernisation of this trade agreement fails to guarantee that EU-Chile trade does not have a detrimental impact on animals, and encourage the effective transition towards sustainable food systems in which animals’ well-being is promoted and respected.

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

EU: Survey Shows EU Consumers Want Better Animal Welfare Laws.

Survey shows EU consumers want better animal welfare laws

28 February 2024

Almost 9/10 consumers responded that they support better animal welfare laws for animals raised for consumption, and believe that the EU should act to update legislation to offer them protection.

In a new survey by BEUC, which aimed to analyse consumer’s attitudes on animal welfare, 6/10 consumers said that they have a low level of knowledge on animal welfare practices and 3/4r want a better labelling system for animal-derived products. Consumers expressed that they have a low trust in animal welfare claims by companies and 84% would react negatively to welfare-washing.

7/10 respondents expressed the need for the cost of transition to be equitably shared, and that the EU must provide funds to farmers to implement higher standards. 

A large majority, 78%, agreed that imports of animal products should be subject to the same welfare rules as those produced in the EU. This has been supported by another report by Vrije Universiteit Brussel and BEUC, which concluded that EU trade policy is not sufficiently coherent with the Green Deal, and consumers must be treated fairly through import requirements, and through better labelling that allows them to make an informed choice.

With 9 in 10 consumers supporting new laws for better animal welfare, our survey confirms that the way we treat animals raised for food matters to people. It is high time the EU Commission delivered on its promises to revise EU laws on farm animal welfare

Monique Goyens, Director General, BEUC.

This survey spans Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. 1,000 respondents per country were surveyed in November 2023.

WAV Comment – EU citizens are not the ignorant ones; it is those in the Commission who fail to take note !

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, Fur and Fur Farming, General News, Live Transport

EU: Political Herds See Animal Welfare Votes In Europe’s Elections.

All pictures – WAV Archives.

This article is part of our special report Animal protection – in Europe and beyond.

Europe’s 340 million pets are unlikely to swing this year’s European elections, though with cats, one can never be sure. Jennifer Baker looks at Europe’s animal-related policy dynamics and how they could influence June’s electoral mix.

2024 is a bumper year for elections around the globe. In Europe, the cost of living, energy, environment, and migration are among the top concerns of voters at a national level. With the European Parliament, voting intentions can be a little different, allowing for broader areas of concern where local party-political questions tend to be less dominant. This means issues such as animal welfare can come to the fore.

According to the European Pet Food Industry Federation (FEDIAF), European households boasted 340 million pets in 2022 – including 127 million cats and 104 million dogs – across more than 90 million homes, so it would seem we are a continent of animal lovers, and yet animal welfare is not an issue that is routinely seen as a vote winner in national politics.

Dr Joanna Swabe, senior director of public affairs for Humane Society International/Europe, explained: “Animal welfare is one of those rare issues that is neither left nor right. Across the political spectrum and irrespective of nationality, you’ll always find politicians who care about the plight of animals. It is certainly not the exclusive domain of the Greens and the Left.”

Swade remarked that over the years she’s even encountered very conservative right-wing MEPs for whom animal welfare is paramount.

In the European Parliament, the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals brings together more than 90 MEPs to work together to advance animal welfare and conservation in EU policy making.

Recent issues under discussion include a proposal for a regulation on the welfare of dogs and cats and their traceability, protection of wolves in the EU, the use of animals in science and a new proposal for a regulation on the protection of animals during transport.

The intergroup also advocates for Cage-Free Farming and a Fur-Free Europe, while highlighting the importance of Animal Welfare Labelling.

Catalysts for change

“MEPs can serve as catalysts to push for better animal welfare legislation,” explained Danish S&D MEP, Niels Fuglsang.

Fuglsang is one of many European Parliament candidates in the upcoming elections to have signed the Eurogroup for Animals’ “Vote for Animals” pledge: a commitment to push the European Commission to put forward ambitious legislation in areas critical to animal welfare.

Some of the legislative proposals are obvious, such as fur labelling in the revision of EU textiles Regulation. Others are more indirect. For example, the European Green Deal sets out the ambition to reach zero pollution for a toxic-free environment. The so-called REACH revision could be an opportunity to promote non-animal testing.

Landmark opportunity

And it’s not only animals’ rights groups that support better legal protection for our furry friends. Cefic, the voice of the chemical industry in Europe, described the REACH revision as a “landmark opportunity to accelerate development, validation and regulatory acceptance of human-relevant, animal-free approaches to assess safety of chemicals.”

“By making every effort to identify where animal-based testing can reliably be replaced by non-animal methodologies and reflect latest advances in science, we will create a triple win for the industry, regulators, and animal welfare. This requires a paradigm shift in safety assessment towards Next Generation safety assessment, similar to moves seen in the area of cosmetics or pharmaceuticals,” said the organisation.

The EU Pharmaceutical Package currently under co-decision could also encourage new technologies to reduce testing on live animals.

One national outlier where animal – specifically bird – welfare and safety is a hot button issue is Malta. During the last European elections in 2019, Malta’s powerful pro-hunting lobby, FKNK, urged its supporters not to abstain, but to vote for its preferred candidates.

Cannot ignore agriculture

In Malta it is the hunting lobby that pressures political parties. Elsewhere in Europe the influential farming lobby holds sway. The protests of recent weeks have shown candidates that they cannot afford to ignore the rural, agricultural vote.

The Humane Society International/Europe’s manifesto, which aims to encourage policymakers to take a more ethical stance on animal welfare, has farm animals top of its agenda.

Swabe pointed out that many politicians are happy to loudly trumpet their support for legislative action to end the illegal puppy trade but are conspicuously quiet when it comes to pigs and poultry kept on Europe’s farms.

“We are told the Commission is currently assessing whether the transition to cage-free farming is sustainable for the agricultural sector and that further consultations on, amongst other things, the costs and length of transition periods are needed,” said Swabe.

She added that for the millions of laying hens still confined to enriched battery cages, and millions of pigs who continue to languish in individual sow stalls for a significant proportion of their gestation, “ […] what is truly unsustainable is this failure to take decisive action to provide them with housing systems that meet their welfare needs.”

[By Jennifer Baker I Edited by Brian Maguire | Euractiv’s Advocacy Lab ]

Political herds see animal welfare votes in Europe’s elections – Euractiv

Regards Mark

One day soon lets hope !