November 27, 2008
EU pig groups warn of legislation overload
Leaders of three EU pig organisations have warned that the pig industry may suffer from too many regulations.
Detlef Breuer, manager of the German pig farmers' organisation ISN, questioned if EU farmers would be able to handle the additional costs from extra regulations, which include air quality legislation, the 2013 gestation crate ban, the reluctance to use GM feed, and the introduction of farm inspections in Germany.
Wyno Zwanenburg and Hans Aarestrup, chairpersons of the Dutch union for pig producers (NVV) and the Danish Pig Producers, respectively, agreed with Breuner.
Aarestrup said, "The pig industry might resemble that plane that is so safe that it cannot crash. There is only one problem - it can't fly anymore."
Aarenstrup also said Dutch producers can export to Germany freely as of next year as the Netherlands will gain a pseudorabies-free status by that time. That would lead to a supply increase of about 2.5 million piglets for the German market, and Denmark would be affected as it had been exporting piglets to Germany.
Currently, only about 110 Dutch pig farms export piglet to Germany, as they have been following procedures. The procedures will not be necessary anymore once the Netherlands obtain the pseudorabies-free status.