EU minimum standards for turkey husbandry
22.2.2023
Question for written answer E-000570/2023
to the Commission
Rule 138
Sarah Wiener (Verts/ALE)
The statutory EU animal welfare fitness check proposed by the Commission as part of the farm to fork strategy reveals that many of the provisions of Council Directive 98/58/EC concerning the protection of animals kept for farming purposes are too generally worded to ensure the welfare of certain animals, such as turkeys, and are not adapted to their specific needs. There are still no EU minimum standards for turkey husbandry. After chickens and pigs, it is turkeys that are slaughtered in the greatest numbers, 190 million annually, in the EU. The Commission announced in 2020 that provisions regarding this particular species would be introduced to take account of its needs. However, the announced review of animal welfare legislation contains none of the specific modifications for turkeys that have been proposed to date.
- 1.Does the Commission consider it necessary to introduce EU minimum standards for turkey husbandry?
- 2.Is it planning extend the current review of EU animal welfare provisions, such as the ‘Broilers Directive’, to cover turkeys or does it intend to include them in separate legislation?
- 3.When exactly does it intend to introduce EU minimum standards for turkey husbandry?
Submitted: 22.2.2023