Document type: Press release of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
Author: French Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
Preview: In view of the major difficulties currently facing the abattoir sector, the French government has launched a joint action plan involving practitioners and local authorities that is intended to develop a locally-based abattoir management strategy for the benefit of the livestock industry.
There are 233 abattoirs across France. Abattoirs play a major role in the livestock industry and in the food chain, being an obligatory step in the journey of livestock whose meat is destined for human consumption. As providers of services and jobs, they play an essential role in the economy of our regions.
Current circumstances in the livestock industry have seen a more pronounced loss of capitalization in recent months, combined with rising energy costs and inflation. This situation is likely to threaten the survival of the least secure abattoirs.
These circumstances call for anticipatory measures to preserve the relevant networks in each region to ensure the survival of our livestock sectors.
Marc Fesneau, the French Minister of Agriculture, has therefore decided to promote a local approach to the management of abattoirs. This approach, which has been adopted in collaboration with the professional sectors and local authorities, has four main pathways:
- The first pathway investigates the short, medium and long-term supply and demand for abattoir facilities in each region, and then identifies directions for improvement and adaptation relevant to each area.
- The second pathway aims to develop a standardized methodology to assess the strengths and weaknesses of an abattoir. The issues likely to affect the viability of an abattoir are, in fact, of various kinds: health issues, animal protection issues, financial stability, governance and management of the abattoir, corporate strategy, etc.
- The third pathway involves the creation of a single reference document listing the tools that can be used by those involved to support establishments struggling with economic and health difficulties.
- The fourth pathway seeks to improve existing synergies between the various government departments to better support abattoirs.
This approach is designed to bring together the resources and skills of French central government, local authorities and the livestock industry, in order to identify the most appropriate slaughtering models for each region. The aim is to ensure that a network is developed of abattoirs that meet the needs of the livestock industry, adopting an anticipatory local approach. This work thus complements measures already underway, notably through the French Recovery Plan, that have allowed the provision of €115 million to support 181 abattoirs, directed towards the modernization and improvement of working conditions and animal welfare in these establishments.
