The coming weeks are crucial to ensuring that the EU Commission’s plans and priorities for the next five years respond to the hopes and expectations of Europeans in many policy areas, including that of animal welfare — which is very popular among citizens but too often neglected by their institutions.
Eurobarometer and other surveys consistently show that animal welfare is very important to a majority of EU citizens, who want to see improvements in the way animals are treated.
The new EU Commission that is taking shape in this period should no longer allow a lack of resources or clarity to affect the enforcement of – and necessary improvements to – existing legislation, as well as the promotion of higher welfare standards among our trading partners.
25 years ago, the EU banned conventional battery cages for laying hens. This happened at the end of a decade in which important pieces of legislation were approved, greatly improving the treatment of billions of animals by phasing out some farming systems and practices that were inherently incompatible with animal welfare.
It was a period in which the EU institutions were listening to their citizens and to sound science, rather than allowing progress to be hindered by niche private sectorial interests.
Since then, progress has slowed down – and often halted altogether. Increasingly, we have seen it replaced by ambitious statements that have rarely been followed by significant action. This is both because inadequate resources have been directed towards animal welfare and because there has been a lack of clear institutional responsibility, which has also resulted in poor transparency and accountability.
As a result, billions of animals have continued to endure easily avoidable suffering. In recent months, the previous commission even postponed the delivery of the long-overdue revision of the animal welfare legislation, including the ban on cages.
This has not only impacted countless animals but has also meant that the demands of EU citizens for improvements in the way animals are treated have been blatantly ignored.
An Ipsos survey of June 2024 confirmed that 70 percent of Europeans want an EU commissioner for animal welfare. This survey was commissioned in the light of the key demand of the #EUforAnimals campaign, promoted by the Belgian animal welfare organisation GAIA, which aims to provide a concrete response to the low ambition on animal welfare currently being shown by the EU institutions.
Over 309,000 citizens, 208 MEPs in the 2019-24 term of the parliament, and around 100 MEPs in the 2024-29 term have already joined the #EUforAnimals campaign, asking for this responsibility to be made explicit in the name of the relevant Directorate-General and the job title of the competent EU Commissioner.
In the present context, the Commissioner’s responsibility would become for “Health, Food Safety and Animal Welfare”.
In 2022, the European Parliament’s recommendation based on the final report of the Enquiry Committee on live animal transport (ANIT) stated "that a clearer and more explicit responsibility for animal welfare in the EU institutions would be of great importance to improve the enforcement of existing legislation on animal welfare, the identification of relevant gaps, and the elaboration of proposals needed to provide effective responses when necessary”. It also called for the “responsibility for animal welfare to be made explicit in the title of the relevant EU Commissioner and the name of the relevant Commission Directorate-General in order to reflect the significance of this issue for European citizens and ensure that enough political attention is accorded to it”.
Animal welfare will not be adequately protected in the EU unless it is managed in a different way from the past. Now is the time to deliver this much-needed change.
Currently, Animal Welfare is only mentioned in the name of a single unit of DG SANTE, under Directorate G: “Crisis Preparedness in Food, Animals and Plants”. The absurdity of this situation is evident.
This is why we are deeply concerned that, in the first announcements made by President-elect Ursula von der Leyen regarding changes that she wants to implement in the new EU Commission, she did not include the transformation of DG SANTE into a DG for “Health, Food Safety and Animal Welfare”.
Of course, this change is still possible, and we hope that Ms von der Leyen will want to move on from the current situation in which, as European citizens, we continually hear our institutions say that animal welfare matters but then do not see those statements transformed into concrete action.
This situation is no longer justifiable – if it ever was.
EU commission president von der Leyen has in front of her a call from more than 60 national and international organisations that are behind the #EUforAnimals campaign, as well as over 300,000 citizens, hundreds of MEPs and, according to the Ipsos survey, 70% of Europeans. They should not be ignored.
It is imperative that animal welfare be given a higher profile in the new Commission, by proposing that the responsibility of the SANTE commissioner should become for “Health, Food Safety and Animal Welfare”.
This would demonstrate a real commitment to improving animal welfare in the EU and worldwide. It would also show Europeans citizens that their institutions care for animals as much as they do.
Adolfo Sansolini has successfully led campaigns at the national and international level and coordinated international coalitions. Presently, among other commitments, he is the coordinator of the #EUforAnimals campaign on behalf of the Belgian animal welfare organisation GAIA.
Adolfo Sansolini has successfully led campaigns at the national and international level and coordinated international coalitions. Presently, among other commitments, he is the coordinator of the #EUforAnimals campaign on behalf of the Belgian animal welfare organisation GAIA.