European Parliament report misses opportunity to offer plant-based milk alternatives to EU school children

9 May 2023

Today, the European Parliament adopted its own initiative report on the school scheme for fruit, vegetables, milk and dairy products (2021/2205(INI)), but missed the opportunity to explicitly include plant-based alternatives to dairy milk.

Together with more than 30 NGO and industry representatives, Eurogroup for Animals and its members called on the Parliament to include plant-based milk alternatives. Authorising  Member States to procure plant-based dairy alternatives in EU schools would align the scheme with the Farm to Fork strategy’s ambitions and recognise the needs of children who cannot, or do not want to, consume dairy milk due to allergies or for ethical or environmental reasons. 

The EU School Scheme supports the distribution of fruit, vegetables, milk and milk products and benefits around 20 million children throughout Europe. Given that 70% of the EU’s agricultural emissions are attributed to livestock farming, the School Scheme can be a low-hanging fruit for the EU to reduce methane emissions from the food system without compromising with the health aspect of the scheme.

It’s a disappointing outcome for what should have been a logical step to make plant-based, sustainable options more accessible in schools across the EU. Now we look to the European Commission to align their policies meaningfully to ensure a smooth transition to sustainable food systems.

Reineke Hameleers, CEO, Eurogroup for Animals

In spite of the missed opportunity to include plant-based drinks, the European Parliament’s report does support higher animal welfare as it encourages the uptake of organic products within the scheme, mentioning that at least 25% of the products should be organic. The report also calls on the Commission to ensure that the products comply with objective criteria for animal welfare. 

The EU’s Farm to Fork Strategy has stressed the need for a transition towards sustainable consumption patterns and the fact that a shift to a more plant-based diet will benefit public health and the environment. In addition to the environmental and health credentials of plant-based dairy alternatives, the crops used for most EU plant-based drinks are grown in the EU and their inclusion will support European farmers. The European Commission will review the School Scheme as part of the Farm to Fork Strategy and put forward a  proposal towards the second half of the year.

Eurogroup for Animals and its member organisations therefore call on the European Commission to: 

Include unsweetened, fortified plant-based dairy alternatives in its proposal and;

Ensure that all dairy milk that is distributed should follow higher animal welfare standards, i.e be organic, and contribute towards the Organic Action Plan. Dairy products from intensive, non-organic farming systems should not be subject to public funding through the school scheme. 

File

School scheme briefing, CIWF EFA 2023.pdf4.37 MB

Regards Mark

New images from GAIA: millions of piglets castrated in Flanders without anaesthesia

4 May 2023

GAIA

Press Release

A new investigation from GAIA reveals how painful piglet castration really is. Every year millions of piglets are castrated in Flanders (Belgium) without anaesthesia, and GAIA is launching a petition to stop this practice.

In Belgium, 5 to 6 million male pigs are bred every year and 80% of them are castrated (annually 4 to 4.8 million piglets). The piglet is castrated surgically at three to seven days of age to prevent it from developing the sexual hormones that can affect the meat’s odour in 3-5% of the carcasses, called ‘boar taint’. Alternatives to painful surgical castration exist, namely in the form of a vaccine or raising entire boars.

A new survey by Ipsos shows that 3 out of 4 Belgians (86%) are in favour of a legal ban on the surgical castration of piglets. In The road to end piglet castration report published today, GAIA is calling for a ban on this gruesome practice.

97 to 100% of Belgian piglets (3.9 to 4.8 million) are castrated without anaesthesia and only 85% receive meloxicam, an anti-inflammatory agent, as prescribed by BePork, the Belgian quality label for pork. Although analgesics and anaesthetics, used individually or in combination, can reduce pain or induce unconsciousness during castration, the way in which these substances are used in the field is insufficient to prevent severe suffering. 

The only way to ensure a painless procedure would be to apply the same protocol used for cats and dogs (namely a combination of sedation and gas anaesthesia with pre-and post-operative pain relief). Only a trained veterinarian has the necessary competences to properly follow that type of procedure thus requiring time and costs that the farmers are virtually unable or unwilling to carry.

Both the vaccine against boar taint (15% of Belgian male pigs are vaccinated) and the rearing of intact boars with detection of boar taint at the slaughterhouse (8% of Belgian male pigs are kept as intact boars) are two good solutions and therefore alternatives to castration that pig farmers can use to manage the risk of boar taint, without surgically castrating the piglet. 

Only a legal ban on the castration of piglets will remove the very serious and unacceptable suffering experienced by Belgian piglets during and after castration. Some retailers, such as Colruyt, have already decided to stop selling meat from castrated piglets, and McDonalds Belgium no longer buys it.

Ann De Greef, Director, GAIA

Our battle against the surgical castration of piglets spans two decades. Scientific evidence and public outcry against this practice are overwhelming and can no longer be ignored. There is no justification whatsoever for the European Commission to allow for this painful mutilation to continue and we are confident that the revision of the animal welfare legislation will include a full ban in favour of the tried and tested humane alternatives.

Reineke Hameleers, CEO, Eurogroup for Animals

Notes

Ipsos survey

Video

The road to end piglet castration report

No Animal Left Behind: why do farmed fish need specific laws to protect their welfare?

2 May 2023

Fish are farmed in their billions in Europe, yet sadly, they currently receive little to no welfare protection, and many of their needs are still unknown. Countless fish are farmed in the EU every year in awful conditions where they experience overcrowding, high mortality rates, inhumane slaughter methods, and stress and injuries from routine handling and transport. The European Commission has the power to address these issues when revising the animal welfare legislation this year, by including species-specific laws for fish in farming, transport and slaughter.

Fish are sentient animals with individual personalities, who experience diverse emotions and live complex lives. Importantly, each species of fish is unique and varies greatly from another, which also means that their needs are not ‘one size fits all’. Fish in aquaculture are not domesticated animals – most are carnivorous predators and many of them are solitary animals by nature. 

Just like other animals, their environment impacts their wellbeing, whether its available space, water quality, water temperature, etc., there are a lot of factors to take into account for each fish species. 

Unfortunately, to date, fish have been neglected and misjudged. As our recent exposé revealed, billions of fish are suffering in the EU because aquaculture systems are based on a poor understanding of their needs and natures, and high mortality rates have been accepted with little regard for the welfare of the fish involved.  https://www.youtube.com/embed/dJwhDA63egY?autoplay=0&start=0&rel=0&enablejsapi=1&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.eurogroupforanimals.org The needs of farmed fish have been neglected for too long

These poor beings often spend up to two years: 

Packed in overcrowded conditions where diseases can spread quickly

Being routinely handled, which is extremely stressful for farmed fish and can cause scale loss, skin, fin and eye injuries, muscle bruising, reduced appetite and impaired development

Struggling psychologically, as the farm environment is devoid of stimulation, particularly when compared to the dynamic, ever-changing sea and river environments in which fish evolved to live.

If they manage to survive the farming environment, the journey to slaughter is yet another tribulation, where fish typically undergo:

Starving for days or even weeks, which can increase aggression, competition and stress amongst farmed fish

Crushing as they are lifted out of the water in a large group net

Inadequate transport methods where water quality, water movement, noises and vibrations are severe stressors

A slow death from asphyxiation as the fish are put on ice or into an ice slurry bath which can last for minutes or hours. 

Learn more about these issues on pages 7-9 of our new exposé report. 

It’s time for the European Commission to protect farmed fish

The European Commission has the power to dramatically improve the lives of farmed fish when they revise the animal welfare legislation later this year. They must factor in strong, precise, and targeted rules for fish welfare that take into account their sentient status and the best welfare practices that we know of. 

They should be handled with care, offered enriching lives and slaughtered in a way that doesn’t inflict intense suffering. There is no substitute for these basic needs. 

We’re trying to change history for farm animals this year through phase two of the No Animal Left Behind campaign. 

Add your voice to our movement!

25 April 2023

Humánny Pokrok

All over Europe, laying hens are living stifled and limited lives behind bars. Recent investigations by Essere Animali, Equalia and Humánny Pokrok highlight what life in a cage really looks like for these poor sentient beings, emphasising why a truly cage-free future isn’t just desirable, but critical for their welfare.

No space to move. No access to natural light. Their bodies mutilated. These are just some of the circumstances laying hens in cages tragically experience in their short lives, in which they’re forced to lay huge quantities of eggs while suppressing their own natural behaviours and needs.

It’s an unbearable existence – and it’s one that the European Commission has the power to change, by effectively phasing out cages across Europe while also making specific rules for laying hens in their upcoming revision of the animal welfare legislation. Both are key opportunities for policymakers to put the wellbeing of these innocent birds first, and change millions of lives.

The time is now. Captured and shared by our members across the continent, these undercover investigations prove the issues laying hens in cages face span several Member States. Their problems are an EU concern, which only EU laws can address sufficiently. Read on.

Equalia: laying hens in cages in Spain

In 2021, Equalia published a shocking expose video on the experiences of caged laying hens on a Spanish factory farm. Not only did their footage show laying hens in great physical, emotional and mental distress, it also proved that these kinds of housing conditions can become incredibly unhygienic – posing a great risk to public health. 

You can see:

Dead laying hens decomposing next to the living

Plucked and injured birds struggling to cope, and immersed in near-total darkness

Mites growing in eggs intended for human consumption, and pests like rats running among the birds

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has already concluded cages are unsafe, as there’s a clear connection between the amount of birds in cages and prevalence of diseases such as salmonella.

While Equalia acknowledges progress has been made towards transitioning to cage-free systems in Spain, it’s clear more needs to be done to ensure they’re truly banned from Europe’s farming systems. No shortcuts are to be taken if we want to be confident that the health and happiness of these birds – and that of Europe’s citizens – has been addressed as seriously as it deserves.

Essere Animali: laying hens in cages in Italy

In Italy, what Essere Animali recently uncovered about an egg-producing hens farm is nothing short of sickening. Their hard-hitting footage and investigative work shows a range of immoral and even illegal actions taking place, such as:

Hens being illegally slaughtered without being stunned first 

Animals being violently treated, including by being thrown to the ground, grabbed by the legs and crushed into cages by workers’ feet

Eggs falsely and illegally being marketed as ‘free range’

Since the launch of Essere Animali’s investigation, the farm has fortunately been sentenced on several charges – but it’s worrying that these abuses and illegalities were able to slip through the cracks in the first place, especially as this investigation was preceded by another in 2019 detailing similar problems. Sign Essere Animali’s petition here for better animal welfare laws.

Humánny Pokrok: laying hens in cages in Slovakia

This year, our member Humánny Pokrok published the first investigation exploring the lives of caged laying hens in Slovakia. Filmed across three locations, what they found was far from pretty.

Their footage shows laying hens: 

Suffering from severe feather loss and untreated injuries 

Shoved together in tiny, suffocating and lightless spaces

Dying in obscene ways – one laying hen was even recorded being thrown into a garbage can and buried alive

The footage spread quickly throughout Slovakia. In the first 48 hours after it was published, it had reached one in five people, and inspired further political discussion about a ban on cages. Slovakian residents can sign Humánny Pokrok’s ongoing petition for such a ban here.

Laying hens deserve comfortable and satisfying lives! Do you agree?

Citizens across Europe have already called for the cage age to end – now it’s time for the European Commission to deliver, as well as to create specific rules for laying hens to ensure they live happier, freer, and healthier lives. It’s completely in the power of policymakers to bring about this positive change.

It’s time for the suffering of laying hens to end, and begin a new era that puts their welfare first.

This year, we’re calling for no animal to be left behind in the updated animal welfare legislation. Add your voice to our call for change.

Regards Mark