VfGH overturns long transition period – Tierschutz Austria is pleased that the ban on fully slatted floors will not be postponed until the end of the day.
Vienna (OTS) – It worked on the second attempt: On Monday, the Constitutional Court (VfGH) granted an application from the Burgenland state government and overturned the long transition period until the complete ban on fully slatted floors in pig breeding. The animal protection law was passed by the ÖVP-Greens coalition in 2022. The decided ban on hard concrete floors with slats and without straw bedding for pig breeding has been in effect since 2023, but a transition period until 2040 has been set for existing facilities. This should give agricultural businesses planning security and protect investments made. In its ruling, the Constitutional Court found that the transition period of 17 years was not objectively justified given the balance between investment protection and animal protection. This means that the focus is one-sidedly on investment protection.
“The majority of pigs in Austria are still kept on fully slatted floors. These consist of concrete floors with recessed gaps through which feces and urine can flow and collect in a manure pit underneath the gaps. This means that pigs live on fully slatted floors directly above their own faeces. The inevitable consequence of the rising ammonia vapors is irritated eyes and respiratory tract. Pigs have an extremely sensitive sense of smell and, as trained truffle pigs, are able to sniff out truffles up to 3 meters deep (2). Pigs are also intelligent and social animals that dig around in the ground or straw with their noses as their favorite pastime. Fully slatted floor farming ignores all of these needs. The animals kept in fully slatted floors cannot meet their natural needs in any way. In addition, they have to live close together. An 85 kg pig in this type of housing is provided with just 0.55 m² of floor space,” informs Tierschutz Austria President MMag.a Dr. Madeleine Petrovic.
It’s no wonder that the animals are so stressed that they develop stomach ulcers more often than pigs kept on straw (3). In addition, pigs that are under extreme stress and are cognitively challenged can quickly develop harmful behaviors. This includes biting off other pigs’ ears and tails. Pigs kept on completely slatted floors also develop joint inflammation extremely frequently. A study by the University of Munich found that inflammation of the joints was found in almost 92% of all pigs examined that were kept on fully slatted floors (4).
FULL SLATS FLOOR CONDITION VIOLATES EU DIRECTIVES
“According to EU Directive 2008/120/EC, the minimum requirement is a lying area that is “physically comfortable” for the animals. Since the fully slatted floor causes pain due to inflammation in the majority of animals, it does not meet these requirements. Tierschutz Austria initiated infringement proceedings against Austria at the European Commission in September 2020. But so far, fully slatted floor farming is still permitted in Austria,” says Petrovic.
But there are alternatives: “Whether pasture or free-range farming, or even just paved lying areas with deep (straw) bedding – all of these types of husbandry would improve the quality of life of the pigs,” the animal rights activist continued.
CONCLUSION
“Pigs are intelligent, socially complex creatures with extremely sensitive noses. To improve animal welfare in agriculture, there must be enough space available so that the animals can avoid each other. Sufficient employment opportunities must also be provided for an animal that performs better than dogs on most cognitive tests (5). Pigs love to dig in fresh earth or straw, so large amounts of appropriate space must be made available. Fully slatted floor farming does not enable pigs to live adequately and is a disgrace for Austria’s agriculture. Anyone who cares about the welfare of pigs should either avoid pork altogether, or at least only buy meat from organic farms or with an animal welfare certified seal,” says Petrovic resolutely. Instead of the 25 percent animal-friendly procurement in the public sector (coalition agreement), Austria is currently at 4 percent.
SOURCES:
(1) https://www.ots.at/redirect/vier-pfoten7
(2) https://www.trueffelhang.at/tr%C3%BCffelhund/tr%C3%BCffelschwein/
(3) https://www.ots.at/redirect/kontrast
(4) Studies on the occurrence of accessory burses in fattening pigs. The ammonia.
(5) Thinking Pigs: Cognition, Emotion, and Personality (wellbeingintlstudiesrepository.org)
Questions & Contact:
Animal Protection Austria
Jonas von Einem
Head of Communications
+43 699 16604075
Jonas.from one@tierschutz-austria.at
www.tierschutz-austria.at