Document type : article published on the ANVOL website
Authors: the Interprofession de la Volaille Française (ANVOL) and the Comité Interprofessionnel de la Dinde Française (CIDEF)
Preview: The poultry industry is calling for an end to the constant increase in the number of animal welfare regulations and a shift towards requirements based on results, training and the harmonization of practices. Professionals also point out that the living conditions of animals in livestock farming and their protection during transport and slaughter are already strictly regulated (the so-called "broiler chicken" Directive 2007/43/EC, Regulation 1/2005 on transport and Regulation 1099/2009 on slaughter), making the European Union an example to the rest of the world in terms of animal welfare. Further, animal welfare is a core issue for the poultry industry, which has also voluntarily developed the "EBENE" application to monitor on-farm welfare using the animal-based indicators (such as behaviour, injuries, etc.) developed by European researchers. The sector is also transforming its practices through the training of farmers, live-animal transporters, animal protection managers and operators in abattoirs and by investing in new infrastructure and equipment, inserting windows in more than half of livestock buildings for example and introducing innovative anesthesia systems at abattoirs, etc. In this context, the proposal for a new European regulation concerning the transport of live animals is not acceptable to the sector because: (1) the proposed container densities and heights do not allow animals to be kept in good health, as they could not only cause injuries to the animals and trucks to overturn, but would also increase the number of transport vehicles on the roads by 30 - 40%, running counter to all efforts towards decarbonisation and impacting the economic viability of companies. (2) The proposed techniques for handling animals during capture are neither realistic nor easy to monitor, and bear new costs that will further weaken this link in the value chain. (3) The arbitrary limits set for transport durations would make it impossible for some regional farms to continue operations in cases where no nearby hatchery or abattoir is available. The setting of an arbitrary travel limit has a direct impact on the local organisation of the poultry sector and drastically limits the ability of hatchery companies to export their animals, encouraging them to relocate to outside the European Union. (...)
The Interprofession de la Volaille Française (ANVOL) and the Comité Interprofessionnel de la Dinde Française (CIDEF) are firmly opposed to the agreement adopted at the end of November by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, concerning the application of the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED). Counter to all expectations, this agreement sets different thresholds for the various poultry species, despite the fact that MEPs voted in large numbers against any reduction in the thresholds for pigs and poultry last July. In complete contradiction to their wishes, this agreement ratifies the application of the directive for turkey farms with more than 9,333 animals, as compared to the previous threshold of 40,000 birds. This drastic lowering of the threshold marks the end of the characteristic diversity of French poultry farming, since more than 73% of turkey farms would be affected. They would not be able to provide the major investment (estimated at more than 80 million Euros) necessary to comply with the directive, which requires the implementation of best available techniques to reduce environmental impacts. Additionally, the sector would also be hampered by a highly restrictive authorisation regime involving public inquiries.
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