Document type: Written answer from the European Commission
Authors: question: Annika Bruna (ID). Answer: Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission.
Question in French (original): The use of mobile abattoirs for on-farm slaughter is permitted in France on a pilot basis under Article 73 of the ‘EGalim’ Act (2018-938) of 30 October 2018.
Mobile abattoirs have many advantages:
- they obviate the need to transport the animals and the cruel conditions that entails (long, cramped, sometimes very hot journeys);
- they replace traditional abattoirs, many of which are closing, meaning that there are fewer of them and they are further away from farms, and the animals have to be transported even further;
- they prevent the kinds of abuse committed in conventional abattoirs, including ritual slaughter without stunning, and the farmer is on hand to ensure that the animals are slaughtered in proper conditions on the farm;
- Unlike industrial abattoirs, they do not spread diseases (such as COVID-19).
- Is the Commission intending to fund mobile abattoirs in order to promote this form of slaughter, which places more emphasis on animal welfare?
- Is it aware of pilot schemes in other Member States that it could share information about?
- Can it improve the information provided to the public, for example by supporting local labelling schemes?
Answer :
- The Commission is aware of the interest of using mobile slaughterhouses in certain cases. Mobile slaughterhouses may represent an alternative to fixed establishments within a particular national or regional context. The Commission believes that such funding should be considered at that level.
- The Commission is not aware of pilot schemes on mobile slaughterhouses in other Member States, as there is no systematic collection of data on this topic. Such information could be exchanged in the context of the EU animal welfare platform created by the Commission in 2017
- In the context of the Farm to Fork Strategy, the Commission will consider options for animal welfare labelling to better transmit value through the food chain. For that purpose, the Commission will launch a study early in 2021. Based on the outcomes of the study, as well as other sources, the Commission will take initiatives as necessary.
