Updated Eurogroup’s briefing on the Global Trade Challenge of Animal Welfare
Posted on 12/12/2011
News in category Briefings
Eurogroup’s briefing on slaughter without stunning
Posted on 01/12/2011
Eurogroup for Animals has made available a briefing on the subject of slaughter without stunning including a background explanation, a detailed state-of-play in the EU and our position on the issue.
To read the document, click on the link below
New briefing published: Animal Welfare Assurance Schemes: high animal welfare
Posted on 31/10/2011
Assurance schemes operate for the purpose of providing certainty and confidence that specified characteristics, attributes, practices and methods of production are followed. Millions of animals going through well developed and implemented certified assurance schemes with welfare criteria have benefited from improved welfare conditions. There are many benefits of welfare assurance schemes for the farmers and other supply chain operators but especially for the animals going through these schemes. Evolution of assurance schemes within the last decade in response to consumers concerns as well as issues in the supply chain means that conditions and guidelines need to be set to ensure that schemes are able to deliver the welfare outcomes that they claim. There are broad guidelines already provided on EN45011, EN17020 and EU best practice guidelines for voluntary certification schemes. Eurogroup expects certain basic requirements for schemes making claims on animal welfare and provides this information to complement other reference broad guidelines.
Briefing: The revision on the Generalised System of Preferences
Posted on 10/10/2011
For the first time, the European Parliament will decide, in common with the Council, on the revision of the General System of Preferences.
Since 1971, the European Union has granted trade preferences to developing countries. As part of the EU’s external action the General System of Preferences is granted to all countries sharing common needs for development, as the EU Trade is also governed by the contribution to development.
New Eurogroup for Animals’ briefing on export refunds for live cattle.
Posted on 04/10/2011
Export refunds are used as a market measure to help producers cope with difficult market situation. They are one of the market instruments designed in the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP). When the CAP was reviewed in 2003, the payment of export refunds for live cattle exported to third countries remained in place. This mechanism encourages transport over long distances, with all the associated animal welfare problems.
WTO Public Forum 2011 - The Global Trade Challenge of Animal Welfare
Posted on 19/09/2011
Trade liberalisation is being promoted as a mean of achieving peace and development. After the structural reforms of the 1980s, the international community engaged in the 1990s in a new episode of liberalisation with the reform of the multilateral trading system (from GATT to WTO) coupled with another wave of economic liberalisation (the so called “Doha Development Round”). As a component of civil society, animal welfare organisations are scrutinising the impact of trade rules on environmental, social and domestic policies. They are also examining closely the consequences of trade liberalisation on developing countries.