State lawmakers took another step Thursday to beef up the New Jersey rules against selling cosmetics that have been tested on animals.
Both houses of the state Legislature overwhelmingly passed a bill that bans the sale of any cosmetics that have been developed or tested on animals beginning January 2020. The prohibition applies even when tests were performed outside of New Jersey.
New Jersey lawmakers said they want to discourage all companies from testing products on animals. They passed a bill Thursday that would ban the sale of new cosmetics in the state that were developed or tested on animals.NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
The state already bans animal testing on cosmetics when there’s an alternative testing method, such as using engineered human tissue or computer models. But lawmakers said they want to totally end the practice and send a message to companies that still engage in the practice.
“Cosmetic testing on animals is not only unnecessary and oftentimes ineffective, but it contributes to the serious suffering of animals,” state Sen. Joseph Lagana, D-Bergen, said.
“It is heartbreaking to know what these animals endure for days or weeks,” Lagana added. “This bill will make it illegal for any product that was animal tested to be sold in New Jersey, incentivizing companies to stop this unethical practice.”
The legislation (S1726) was sent to Gov. Phil Murphy’s desk by a 74-0 vote in the state Assembly with one abstention and 35-0 in the state Senate.
Violators can get hit with a $1,000 fine.
“Animal testing for cosmetic products was instituted in the 1940s,” the Assembly prime sponsors — Anthony Verrelli, D-Mercer; Lisa Swain, D-Bergen; and Andrew Zwicker, D-Middlesex — said in a joint statement
“Since then we have made many testing advancements and the procedures once used are now very outdated,” they said. “We are able to ensure products are safe by using modern methods that do not include harming animals.”
There’s an exception if testing on animals is required by federal or state regulator authorities, according to the bill.
Positive thinking; positive vote, positive moves for the future.
WAV Comment: With a Prime Minister like Justin Trudeau (JT) attempting to be at the helm of Canada; is it any wonder that transport regulations have not changed for 40 years – just like ‘Mr no action’ and the mass seal clubbing that obviously has his support – otherwise, would he not have taken action by now ?
A very good article which probably reflects how many Canadians feel. and the National Animal Care Council – paid money to do what ? – does ‘animal care’ actually come into the equation ?
We totally unite with our campaigner friends at Toronto Pig Save, and all other campaigners across the beautiful country that is Canada – I (Mark) have visited and enjoyed many times. We wish them all well with their campaigns and the fight for justice for sentient beings. And we think things are bad in the EU ? – well they are, disgusting when it comes to live animal transport; but Canada really has to move into this day and age and not live 40 years ago, when the obvious putrid regulations were formed.
Live animal transport – archaic in Canada; disgusting in Europe; so about time politicians woke up, yawned, and then did something in the way of action !
Justin Trudeau; very much living in the past.
‘JT’ Living in the past – and JT stands for ……………………………. we suggest he listens to it sometime.
We’re outraged when dogs are kept in hot cars. Why not pigs in transport vehicles?
In Canada, there are no laws regarding temperatures above or below which farmed animals cannot be transported
A dog suffering in a hot car will typically cause people to react with immediate action and outrage. They break windows, call the police, and the atrocity might even be documented on the news or social media, leading to floods of angry comments and demands that owners be punished. Today the act of locking an animal inside a hot car is widely condemned, considered dangerous, deadly and morally repugnant.
But what if that animal is not a dog, but rather a pig? And what if it is not a car, but a large metal transport truck? What if it is not one, but dozens of pigs crammed together, panting and suffering, after traveling up to 36 hours in the sweltering summer heat?
How do we feel then?
Canada is known for having some of the worst animal transport standards in the Western world. (Dave Ritchie/CBC)
Pigs in distress
Last week, animal rights activists with Toronto Pig Save and The Light Movement shared footage and photos on social media allegedly recorded outside of a slaughterhouse in Burlington, Ont. The videos show pigs inside trucks breathing rapidly, some foaming at the mouth, some lying on their sides in obvious distress.
Environment Canada issued a heat warning for the region the day that footage was shot, with temperatures reaching 33 degrees Celsius in some areas.
But heat warnings don’t stop meat production.
In Canada, there are no laws regarding temperatures above or below which farmed animals cannot be transported.
Though the National Animal Care Council does have recommendations regarding transport of farmed animals in extreme weather, they are merely guidelines — not law — and are vaguely worded and rarely enforced.
This differs greatly from farmed animal transport standards in the European Union, which requires trucks be outfitted with forced ventilation systems that maintain a temperature range between five and 30 degrees Celsius, along with temperature-monitoring systems to alert drivers when limits are reached.
In Canada, where weather fluctuations are arguably more extreme, transport trucks typically employ simple open-air ventilation systems and are not required to have mechanical climate controls or monitoring.
There are also notable differences between Canadian regulations and those of other countries in terms of the lengths of time in which farmed animals can be in transport without food, water or rest.
In the EU, where advocates are currently fighting for even shorter times, cows can be transported for a maximum of 14 hours, pigs up to 24 hours and chickens for 12 hours. In the U.S., there is a law that limits all farmed animal transport to 28 hours.
In Canada, however, cows can be transported for up to 52 hours straight, and pigs and chickens for 40 hours.
That these animals are enroute to their death is no justification for causing them such prolonged suffering: suffering that in no way fits into our general cultural view that animals — all animals — in Canada are to be treated humanely.
Jenny McQueen, a member of Toronto Pig Save, filed a complaint to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency regarding what her group observed and recorded last week, but says she is not confident much will come of it. “I’m used to filing complaints and having no action taken,” she says.
That’s because even though what is seen in the footage could technically be considered against the law, lack of enforcement is also a major problem. “Technically there’s a strong case that the law prohibits it, but in practice it happens every day and the laws go unenforced,” says Anna Pippus, a Canadian animal rights lawyer with Animal Justice.
Outdated regulations
Canada is known for having some of the worst animal transport standards in the Western world, and despite years of protest from animal advocates, it appears legislators are in no rush to update the 40-year-old regulations in order to protect animals from extreme weather. This is in spite of a 2015 poll conducted by NRG Research Group, which showed eight out of 10 Canadians agreed that animal-transport regulations should be updated to reduce animal suffering, including protection from extreme weather.
That means that as the hot summer sun continues to bear down on Canada, farmed animals in hot metal trucks will continue to suffer, day after day.
Canadians do have some power to elicit change within this system of cruelty — apart from lobbying legislators — by simply not contributing to the demand for these products. We can opt instead for plant-based proteins and meat alternatives, access to which has never been easier as vegan restaurants boom across the country. Even Canada’s largest distributor of packaged meat, Maple Leaf Foods, plans to extend its product line to include plant-based protein products.
While the sight of a dog locked in a hot car is sure to elicit strong public reaction, so too should these images of pigs suffering inside transport trucks. Though the majority of us may not want to know how the sausage is made, as Einstein once said, “Think occasionally of the suffering of which you spare yourself the sight.” These animals and the systematic cruelty they endure deserve our attention, our outrage and our action.
WAV Comment: The only thing that is missing from this headline below is ‘… and a lot of bloody hard work by the people, for the people’
A major, major win for animals in the future.
‘Cruel’ Cages In Europe’s Animal Agriculture System To Be Banned
It took a 1.4 million strong petition and 170 NGOs to press politicians over three years, in what’s being described as the biggest push for animal welfare in European history
The European Commission has announced it will introduce legislation to ban the use of cages in the animal agriculture system by 2027.
Thanks to the calls of more than 1.4 million people, animals will no longer be confined to ‘cruel’ cages in the 27 member states within Europe.
Animal cages banned
The landmark decision comes after a collection of individuals pressed MEPs to increase welfare standards in collaboration with charity, Compassion in World Farming. This involved over 170 NGOs joining forces to make a stand.
They formed a proposal and took it to the EU Commission, which is the executive governing body responsible for legislation.The End the Cage Age European Citizens Initiative has spent three years working on a proposal to prohibit the cages.
It applies to chickens, pigs, cows, ducks, geese, among other farmed animals. Additionally, it will apply to all imported animal products too. Moreover, it’s thought to be the biggest push for animal welfare in European history: affecting over 300 million farmed animals.
The organization said: “Farmed animals have never had so many people standing up for them. From caged hens who long to stretch their wings to sows who want to mother their piglets unconfined, and rabbits who deserve the space to hop – each one of them now has a better chance in life, thanks to you.”
European Commission
The commission announced the news on Wednesday, June 30. From the end of this year, it will begin the legislative process.The Initiative confirmed it will ‘monitor’ this process to make sure the EC ‘sticks to its word’, however.
Moreover, the group said it will press each individual member state to embed the ban into each national law.
‘Cages are a desolate reflection on our society’, it added.
Animal agriculture in Europe
The European Parliament voted in favor of the ban earlier this month. 558 MEPs backed it whilst just 37 voted against, and 85 abstaining.
Whilst it banned battery cages for hens in 2012, the controversial practice of ‘furnishing’ cages were still legal.
Further victories for the EU this year included the landmark rejection of Amendment 171, also known as the dairy ban.
The ban sought to reject descriptive words for plant-based dairy products that were too similar to those used for dairy products: such as ‘vegan cheese’ or ‘yogurt-style’.
Because of your support, World Animal Protection recently rescued Cam, an illegally captive bear from a life of awful abuse and misery on a bear bile farm in Vietnam.
When Cam was found, he was being kept in a narrow, steel cage that didn’t allow him to turn around and was fed a poor diet that didn’t meet his nutritional needs.
Thankfully, Cam was found by staff and government officials who were visiting different bear farms to ensure all the bears in these facilities were tagged. His release was negotiated with local authorities and a plan executed to bring him to his forever home. He is now settling into his new surroundings and can live a life free of cruelty and suffering.
Rescues like this are possible because World Animal Protection has been working with other partnering NGO’s and the Vietnamese government, to end the cruel practice of bear bile farming and protect the small population of bears that remain in the wild.
Sincerely,
Liz Quick-Corral Interim Executive Director/Director of Development
The EU Commission wants to gradually end the caging of farm animals such as laying hens and pigs.
In response to a European citizens’ initiative, the authority announced a corresponding legislative proposal by 2023 on Wednesday.
An ordinary pig farm: legalized torture of living beings …
This means that citizens’ requests could become a reality nine years after the initiative was launched.
Brussels now wants to first prepare an impact assessment by the end of 2022.
There should be a public consultation on this from the beginning of next year at the latest.
Brussels will “examine in particular whether the proposed legislation is realistic in 2027,” said the authority.
As EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said, the EU also wants to push for animal welfare standards to be anchored in trade agreements. This is also intended to prevent foreign producers from undermining these standards and thus unfairly competing with EU farmers after they have withdrawn from cage farming.
However, it is still unclear how long the possible transition phases will be.
Activists had collected nearly 1.4 million signatures with the “End the Cage Age” campaign by October last year.
In doing so, they received enough support within the framework of a European citizens’ initiative that the EU Commission had to deal with the matter.
Money for remodeling stables
The EU Commission announced that it would use the EU agricultural policy to help farmers abolish cage farming.
“The phasing out of cages will come at a cost for farmers,” said Kyriakides.
The Commission will not let them down, “but support them in all phases of the transition to better animal welfare and sustainable food systems”.
Funds from EU agricultural policy are to be used to support farmers in converting stables or purchasing new housing systems.
The consumer organization “Foodwatch” called the abolition of cages overdue and called for a faster process. “Every day on which we do not act is a day on which a million sows cannot look after their piglets and chickens and rabbits cannot move as they need”, explained Foodwatch representative Matthias Wolfschmidt.
The animal welfare organization “Four Paws” spoke of “a great victory for Europe’s livestock”.
However, as usual, the Commission can only submit proposals.The specific regulation must then be negotiated with the member states and the European Parliament.
A concrete draft is to be submitted in 2023 and then requires the approval of the EU Parliament and the EU Council
When it comes to cage management, there is likely to be strong resistance from some Member States,or at least calls for long transition periods.
And I mean…According to the citizens’ initiative, far more than 8.2 million animals still live in cages in Germany. This corresponds to a share of 14 percent of livestock in Germany.
This means that Germany is pretty well within the EU average.
Only in Austria (3 percent), Luxembourg (3) and Sweden (8) is the proportion lower. It looks worst in Portugal (89), Spain (89) and Malta (99). Across Europe, according to the initiative, more than 300 million animals are suffering in cages.
Image: SOKO Tierschutz
Copa-Cogeca welcomed the aid and accompanying measures proposed by Brussels for farmers.
The association emphasized that the ban proposed by the Commission could only be accepted if the proposal was based on clear economic principles.
In addition, an impact assessment must be available before the exit date is set. In other words, one can assume that farmers can in principle live with an end to cage management.
But they will be compensated dearly for the exit and will insist that the EU apply the same strict standards to imports.
We cannot speak of a victory before the end of cage husbandry comes as soon as possible, and also the end of the import of caged animal products.
We still have to watch closely what happens now so that the agricultural lobby does not overturn the project. Because they would have enough time for that, 6 years!
If you really want animals to be released from their cages, you have to stop eating their bodies and their products.
Here’s Why Millions of People Don’t Eat Lamb Anymore
We all know the children’s song “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” but did you ever seriously think about just how messed up eating lamb is? Let us fill you in.
The USDA reported that around 2.2 million lambs were killed for meat in 2015. Like cows, pigs, and chickens, lambs are raised in filthy factory farms, subjected to cruel mutilations, and horrifically slaughtered.
Lambs are usually “tail docked just a few weeks after birth. Farmers claim this is to reduce buildup of fecal matter around the animals’ backsides. But this cruel and painful mutilation is performed without anesthetics and often leads to infection, chronic pain, and rectal prolapse.
Typically slaughtered around six to eight months of age, lambs live a mere fraction of their natural lifespan. Mother sheep are deeply caring and form strong bonds with their babies. In fact, they can recognize their lambs who have wandered too far away by their calls. Sadly, this bond is broken at factory farms where lambs are ripped away from their mothers just a few days after birth.
Lambs are not only sweet and gentle but also highly intelligent. They are capable of problem solving and considered to have IQs that rival those of cows. They also have great memories. Lambs can remember at least 50 individual sheep for years! Through highly developed communication skills, lambs use various vocalizations to communicate different emotions. They can even display emotion through facial expressions.
How can anyone claim to love these gentle animals while still eating them?
People who are opposed to animal cruelty often cling to the idea that eating meat is necessary. But the science is clear: We’re more than capable of living happy, healthy lives without eating meat or other animal products.
It’s time to put our ethics on the table and stop eating lambs and all other animals. We can live our values of kindness by switching to a vegan diet.
Click here to order your FREE Vegetarian Starter Guide.
After the many years of existence of our blog (both new and old) it should be clear to most of the people that we are not only posting or translating articles that provide information and correct knowledge about the animals, but that we think it makes sense to take position on it.
We are convinced that the fight for animal rights is a political one and that is why we openly express our solidarity or support to groups such as ALF, whose activities are often criminalized in most countries.
Those who want to discredit the ALF’s tactics keep throwing up the word “terrorism”.
For example, the FBI, the US repression agency, describes the ALF as “the most dangerous terrorist threat after Al Qaeda”!
When we consider that not a single human or non-human animal has been injured since the ALF was founded in England in 1976, and the meat industry alone is responsible for the murder of millions of sentient individuals every day, then the question arises, who the real terrorists are.
On the contrary, ALF activists are compassionate people who risk their own freedom for those who cannot defend themselves.
The animal exploitation industry and the state go hand in hand.
The animal exploitation industry and the state make billions killing non-human animals.
The activists of the Animal Liberation Front are trying to stop the animal exploitation industry and that is why the cooperation partner “State” is fighting a growing social movement.
In view of the above, it is no wonder that members of ALF and similar groups are very careful with their private data, which we fully respect here.
The brand anticipates ‘enormous potential’ in the future plant-based sector within Spain Credit: Supplied
Flax & Kale Unveils 45 New ‘Revolutionary’ Plant-Based Products
The range consists of 14 vegan meat products and 31 vegan cheese items developed by renowned chef Teresa Carl
Flax & Kale, the brand under a renowned restaurant specializing in health foods, has announced it is launching 45 new ‘revolutionary’ plant-based products.
Moreover, it claims to be ‘the only’ multi-category brand to create local plant-based products in Spain.
Flax & Kale
The range will be one of the biggest Spanish-produced plant-based product lines to date.
It consists of 14 vegan meat products and 31 dairy-free cheese items such as gouda, cheddar, and mozzarella in different forms.Vegan meat on offer will include a beef and chicken alternative available in hamburgers, croquettes, nuggets, meatballs, and mince.
Prices will range between €1.99 and €2.99 for the vegan cheese products, and €3.59 and €3.99 for the meat alternatives.
Celebrated international chef Teresa Carles formed the recipes. Moreover, they have been tested in the group’s restaurants for three years.
All are produced in a modern research and development facility in Lleida, Catalonia.
‘Plant-based leaders’
The Flax & Kale brand is under the Teresa Carles Healthy Foods restaurant group.
CEO Jordi Barri told PBN: “Our ambition is to become a leader in the plant-based market in Spain over the next few years.
“With a very diverse range and truly competitive prices, which we can offer thanks to 100 percent local production and sizeable investment over recent years in the latest generation industrial production lines.
“This launch is just the first step in that direction, and there will be many more steps in the coming months.”It comes as the brand anticipates ‘enormous potential’ in the Spanish plant-based sector this year.
Additionally, restaurants are adding more vegan options to their menus across the country.
Veganism in Spain
According to figures published on Statista, vegans and vegetarians in Spain are limited.
This is according to surveys revealing almost 90 percent of the population ate both meat and dairy.However, these figures are from 2019 – and updated data shows an increase in stores offering vegan food.
The products are soon available online and in leading supermarkets and restaurants across Spain.
Specific dates surrounding the launch are yet to be released.
Regards Mark
RIP Amy (Winehouse) – taken far, far too early, as many of the best people are.
WAV Comment – we very much welcome this excellent news from Turkey, and congratulate all those who have campaigned for improvements to animal welfare legislation, and the politicians who are making it reality.
Quote – The legislation aims to curb incidents of violence toward animals in the country, following public outcry regarding the treatment of stray animals by government ministries.
So really excellent news regarding the treatment of stray animals – EU take note and do something about strays in Europe !
As we said in a recent post, England: People Power For The Animals. – World Animals Voice people power works; and this must never be forgotten. Politcians work for you, they are elected by you; and they can be deselected by you. You have the power to make change.
Regards Mark.
Stray – Homeless but not wild – Help Me Please.
TURKEY WILL NO LONGER CLASSIFY ANIMALS AS COMMODITIES
Turkey’s highly anticipated animal-rights bill is expected to be presented to the Turkish Parliament and enacted into law in the coming weeks. The new legislation will redefine animals as living beings instead of “commodities,” as is the case under current laws. It also seeks jail time for anyone who kills, abuses, or tortures animals.
The legislation aims to curb incidents of violence toward animals in the country, following public outcry regarding the treatment of stray animals by government ministries. In addition, in recent years, incidents of violence toward animals have made headlines, including an incident in which seven dogs and seven cats died after consuming chicken laced with poison. This month, a man was fined for killing and eating stray kittens. Under current laws, any act of torture or killing of a stray animal is punishable under “damage to commodities” and comes with a lenient fine. In the past, courts have also handed down light sentences in a few exceptionally brutal cases.
The law’s new definition will automatically put crimes like these on equal footing as violence toward humans and carry a jail sentence. The jail sentence sought for crimes against animals will be from six months up to four years, which will avoid criminals getting out on bail or converting the prison sentence to a fine.
Sweeping animal-rights legislation
The proposed legislation follows Parliament’s creation of an Animal Rights Legislative Commission in May 2019. The Turkish Grand National Assembly’s Animal Rights Investigation Committee spent several months meeting with animal-rights activists, nonprofit organizations, academics, experts, and other people involved in animal welfare and rights for a more comprehensive approach to the matter. The committee has since made its recommendations in the new legislation.
The recommendations also included banning zoos, circus animals, horse-drawn carriages, dolphin parks, fur farms, and pet stores, while restricting hunting and animal experimentation. However, the law deals largely with animal companions such as cats and dogs and does not address the cruelty to farmed animals, including fish.
Improving companion animal laws
Countries around the world have different laws for animals who are considered companions. Last year, China’s Ministry of Agriculture announced it was removing dogs from the “livestock” category to instead consider them companion animals. However, this reclassification largely affects the global dog and cat meat trade, which animal-rights organizations have been working to ban for decades. According to the Humane Society International, approximately 10 million dogs are killed for food annually in China. Recognizing that dogs are companions instead of “livestock” is the first step toward eliminating the consumption and trade in dog meat.
The UK government announced back in 2017 that it did not intend to transfer the hard won EU animal sentience regulation into (UK) national law as a result of leaving the EU (Brexit).
British animal welfare campaigners were outraged with this – so it was time to turn up the heat with the British government, who always talk loudly about animal welfare issues. Why suddenly, on leaving the EU, would UK animals NOT still be covered by laws that gave them some protection as an EU member state ?
Battle lines were drawn between the campaigners and the government. The campaigners won, and by the end of the year the UK government was forced into a major U turn.
Despite words from the government, legislation did not materialise. In 2019, a coalition of more than 40 animal welfare organisations joined together, along with over 100,000+ signatures from British activists on a Parliamentary petition, asking Ministers to:
(Note – it has to be remembered that under UK law, if a petition exceeds 100K signatures, then the issue concerned (whatever it is about) has to be debated in the British Parliament, London).
Demands from the people included;
Impose a legal duty on governments to pay all due regard to the welfare needs of animals as ‘sentient beings’.
Recognise animal sentience when formulating and implementing policies.
Ensure clear, consistent processes for for all Ministers to deliver against their animal sentience duties.
Create an Animal Welfare Commission to monitor the government performance against animal sentience law.
As stated, with over 100k signatures on the petition, the petition was debated in Parliament as it had to be. The result being that Victoria Prentis MP (Defra) stated that the government would introduce the necessary legislation on animal sentience as soon as they could.
The people had won with their campaigning ! – efforts had resulted in victory.
But they still had to keep up the pressure for over a year longer to get the legislation. In the Queens Speech on 11th May 2021, defining the schedule for government legislation in the next parliamentary session, the government finally announced legislation would exist under UK law to recognise animals as thinking, feeling (sentient) beings.
The ‘Animal Welfare Sentience Act’ was introduced to parliament 2 days later, and will:
Formally recognise animals as sentient beings under UK law.
Establish and ‘Animals Sentience Committee’, or ASC, to ensure that across all government departments, policy making and implementation considers animal sentience.
Requires Ministers to respond to reports from the ASC, to ensure that they remain politically accountable.
This new law ensures that all farm animals are treated with respect and kindness, and that their experiences and feelings DO matter. This new law is a critical step towards the final goal of ending factory farming and replacing it with sustainable, compassionate alternatives, such as organic and free range farming.
The new legislation is currently working its way through parliament at this very time to become law.
What do we learn ?
Victory is never delivered on a plate.
As with the sentience Bill; the Brits had to work and fight hard to get it; but they did, and they achieved result. Brits are generally good animal welfare people; (II am one of them) – tell them that sentience does not matter and they will probably manhandle you out to the nearest airport, and put you on a one way ticket flight to a distant land.
But importantly, as we always ay in the UK, ‘politicians work FOR YOU’; they are not gods; as they can be put out to pasture whenever the electorate feels the need. So activists everywhere; keep on with your fights, whatever issue it is for, and in the end you will achieve. Personally, I have fought live exports in the UK for over 32 years; but only now, this year, 2021, have we seen the government listen to us and make first moves to get a ban on. Never give up; unite and fight the fight; good (us) always overcomes evil (them) in the end.
I take inspiration from wonderful Jill at Animals Asia (video above), and the multitude of other excellent campaigners dotted all over the globe; unsung heroes who fight endlessly for better welfare and the rights of animals – you all have my greatest admiration and respect. Look at the fur industry – it is on its knees and desperately hanging on in there attempting to survive much because the good, normal people have said ‘No’ to the disgusting abuses that are placed before them by the fur rabble humans.
It is a victory of the people, by the people, for the people but very much for the animals also.
An ordinary pig farm: 
World Animals Voice 