The MAPA proposes a new royal decree to improve animal welfare in livestock farms

08/11/2021

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) has begun a period of prior public consultation of a draft royal decree that aims to improve animal welfare on livestock farms and guarantee a harmonized approach on official controls on conditions of animals involved in the food chain, including aquaculture.

With this new royal decree, the national ordinance is adapted to the community regulations on animal welfare. The regulation of official controls of the European Union establishes several general obligations to the member states, such as guaranteeing adequate coordination of the competent authorities and ensuring the coherence and effectiveness of the controls.

To this end, in the future royal decree the existing coordination mechanisms will be strengthened and a network of contact points will be established for the exchange of information between the authorities responsible for slaughterhouse controls and controls in primary production, which in the vast majority of the autonomous communities belong to two different councils.

In addition, the obligation to have an animal welfare plan on farms, which already exists for intensive pig and poultry farms, will be extended to the rest of the species, from a certain number of animals. The provision will also be included for the appointment, through a ministerial order, of a national reference center for animal welfare, which will provide scientific and technical support to MAPA.

On the other hand, once the non-legislative measures have been exhausted to ensure compliance with the regulations on mutilation in pigs, more specific requirements will be established by means of the new royal decree that will help to comply with the prohibitions established in the community regulations on cutting of tails and fangs.

Finally, all royal decrees on the protection of animals on farms will be modified, in order to adapt them to the community regulations regarding the deadlines for sending the reports of the results of the controls and other technical administrative aspects.

The consultation will take place from October 30 to November 13 on the ministry’s website, at the following link:

https://www.mapa.gob.es/es/ganaderia/participacion-publica/consulta_previa_rd_bienestar.aspx

Source: MAPA https://www.mapa.gob.es/es/prensa/ultimas-noticias/El-Ministerio-de-Agricultura,-Pesca-y-Alimentaci%C3%B3n-saca-a-consulta-p% C3% BAblica-un-new-royal-decree-to-improve-animal-welfare-on-livestock-farms– / tcm: 30-579720

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