Eurogroup for Animals

Plans are in motion to open the world’s first #octopusfarm in the Canary Islands, Spain. The opening of such a farm would be both detrimental for octopuses - extremely intelligent and solitary in nature - as well as for people because of its potential public health and environmental impacts. When applying to open the farm, the Spanish seafood company behind this project - Grupo Nueva Pescanova - submitted a simplified environmental impact assessment. This assessment omitted water analyses to prove that the tank water used would be fit for human consumption, jeopardising #foodsafety. 📣Join us and Compassion in World Farming and tell Nueva Pescanova to halt its reckless plans NOW. Share this post to #StopOctopusFarming Full report on the environmental risks of octopus farming available here: https://bit.ly/3zCxeA8

We congratulate Ursula von der Leyen on her re-election as President of the European Commission. We were pleased that in her speech she reiterated her commitment to realising the #EUGreenDeal. We hope that this will include the long-awaited revision of animal welfare legislation, including the promised ban on cages. There is still much to be done for animals in the EU: 🔴 ensure better protection of animals during transport, including a ban on the export of live animals  🔴 ensure better protection of animals at the time of slaughter  🔴 ensure that fish and aquatic animals, but also dairy cows, rabbits and turkeys receive the species-specific protections they currently lack  🔴 respond to the ECI #FurFreeEurope, signed by over 1.5 million citizens calling for a ban on fur farming and the placing of fur products in the EU  🔴 promote and accelerate the transition to non-animal science  🔴 protect wildlife, including halting efforts to lower the protection status of wolves and maintaining restrictions on seal skin products  🔴 ensuring that EU standards apply to imported animal products  🔴 ensure greater protection for companion animals, including equines. the list goes on. The time is now to act for animals. The time is now to listen to the European citizens. You said it yourself, President: 'What matters to Europeans, matters to Europe'. Now put your promises into practice. #EU #EuropeanCommission #AnimalWelfare #DelivertheProposal

This week is the first plenary session of the new legislature after the June elections. Why is this important? The European Parliament meets in #plenary session every month in Strasbourg for a four-day 'part-session' (Monday to Thursday). During these days, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) debate and vote on key issues. Being the first plenary of this new political term, this session is particularly important because MEPs will appoint the new President of the European Parliament (this happened yesterday) and the new President of the European Commission (the vote will take place tomorrow). OK, but... what place does animal welfare have in all this? The former Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, is running for re-election. Should this happen, it would be the perfect opportunity to re-affirm her commitment to review animal welfare legislation. A commitment she failed to honour in the previous term. Stay tuned for tomorrow's election #DelivertheProposal

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has released a scientific opinion addressing the use of high expansion foam for the stunning and killing of pigs and poultry in situations other than slaughter, such as emergency depopulation purposes. We call on the European Commission to take this latest opinion into account, and also advocate for the continuous improvement and adoption of the most humane methods available in this sector.

Great news for minks: The Administrative Court of Sofia City has supported the ban on the import and breeding of American mink in Bulgaria, following an appeal by the only operating mink farm in the country. #FurFarming is cruel and unnecessary. It causes extreme suffering to animals, while also posing a severe threat to #publichealth. With the European Commission's decision on the EU-wide ban on fur farming still pending, we hope this will serve as further evidence that a #FurFreeEurope is the only way forward. 

Together with Compassion in World Farming, we call for a halt to plans for the world's first commercial octopus farm. Read our new report exploring the environmental threats of Grupo Nueva Pescanova’s octopus farm plans: https://bit.ly/3zCxeA8 Join us and tell Nueva Pescanova to halt its reckless plans NOW. Share this post to #StopOctopusFarming

How well are animals represented in the new European Parliament? We're finally ready to share our analysis of the European elections and results are not at all bad! Our #VoteforAnimals campaign has proven to be very effective in all Member States, engaging candidates from all political parties, proving that #animalwelfare is a topic of increasing importance across all the political spectrum. Over 1,000 candidates have taken the pledge, committing to making animal welfare a priority. But how many have been elected? Find out in this video.  

Hungary took over the presidency of the Council of the European Union for the next six months. We take this opportunity to urge the new presidency to prioritise the critical needs in #animalwelfare: 🔵 a revision of the animal welfare regulation 🔵 better protection of animals during transport 🔵 promoting coexistence with wildlife 🔵 transition to a non-animal science Read more and access our full #memorandum. #HU24EU

The #EU often presents itself as the global leader on #animalwelfare, but in most cases, its standards do not apply to #imports. And that’s a big problem, because #trade agreements can impact the price of imports. If low welfare products from abroad become cheaper to import, demand for those products can increase, and we may end up stimulating cruel animal production in third countries. Scroll through this carousel to learn more about where some of the most consumed products in the EU come from. Full report available here: https://lnkd.in/dTggPrYb #StopCruelImports #TradeAgreements #EUTrade

The European Court of Human Rights has rejected the request of representatives of the Jewish and Muslim faiths to review the ruling banning slaughter without stunning. This now means that the ruling is final and no legal means can further challenge it. ''By rendering the judgement of 13 February 2024 final, the European Court of Human Rights sets in stone its decision that a ban on this practice does not constitute an infringement of freedom of religion. In other words, the Brussels Region can no longer legitimately invoke freedom of religion to justify its refusal to ban slaughter without stunning.'' explains GAIA's President, Michel Vandenbosch. Slaughter without stunning exposes animals to severe and prolonged suffering, which can last up to 12 minutes for cattle. All Belgian and European veterinary associations consider slaughter without stunning unacceptable in all circumstances.