Despite 200 million turkeys are being slaughtered every year in EU countries, and almost all of them had a miserable life full of suffering, they are almost inexistent in political discussions. They are the forgotten ones among farm animals.
To change this, Green MEP Sarah Wiener has set herself the goal of achieving binding turkey husbandry standards at EU level that reflect the current state of scientific research before the end of this legislative period. Shifting Values supports Sarah Wiener’s turkey initiative as a consultant.
On 11 June, the initiative achieved an important milestone: The Ministers of Agriculture of the German states adopted a resolution calling on the Federal Government to
- amend the Animal Welfare Ordinance on Farm Animal Husbandry to include a section on turkey husbandry,
- actively advocate the adoption of minimum requirements for turkey husbandry in EU law, and
- follow the current state of scientific research in both areas.
As Germany is among the EU Member States raising the largest numbers of turkeys, the resolution guides the way that shall be taken at EU level: legal husbandry requirements that eliminate the worst animal suffering and reflects the scientific knowledge.
For this forward-looking decision, we would like to thank the German state ministers of agriculture, especially the teams from the states of Brandenburg and Hessen, who pushed the decision forward.
