December 15, 2012

The issue on transport conditions for animals was discussed during the Strasbourg plenary session held during December 10-13.

Ever more animals are being transported in the EU in persistently sub-standard conditions. The remedy is to enforce existing rules properly, step up inspections and impose more dissuasive penalties on offenders, say MEPs in a resolution passed on Wednesday (Dec 12).

To avoid long journeys to abattoirs, the EU should promote the use of local ones and consider an eight-hour cap on journey times, they add.

The numbers of animals transported within the EU rose substantially in 2005-09, example by 70%, in the case of pigs. One-third of these journeys took eight hours or more.

To remedy persistent animal welfare problems in transport, existing legislation in all EU member states must be properly and uniformly enforced, MEPs insist. More on-the spot inspections should be carried out and national sanctions against rule-breakers should be harmonised and made far more dissuasive, they say.

Measures to restrict the time taken to transport animals to slaughter to eight hours should be considered, but geographical and science-based exceptions for certain species must be allowed, says the text.

However, an eight-hour journey limit would not by itself suffice to improve animal welfare, which often depends more on proper vehicle equipment and on the good handling of animals, MEPs note..

Parliament therefore calls for science-based improvements in transport conditions, including space and water allowances.

To avoid unnecessarily long-distance transport of animals, the EU should help to create short and transparent food supply chains and take measures to halt the decline of small, local abattoirs and promote local processing, MEPs add.