Is the EU sacrificing animal welfare to tackle the cost of living crisis?

The long-awaited EU proposals on animal welfare are late and it appears that the European Commission will not deliver on its long-promised legislative reform commitments. Brussels appears to be quietly handling the matter behind closed doors, following leaks that revealed the proposals could be scrapped in an effort to tackle high food prices and inflation gripping the continent. Animal rights organizations have accused policymakers of making a 180-degree turn and seem not to understand what is happening after the Commission committed years ago to “end the era of cages.” The “End of the Cage Era” was a citizen initiative, signed by almost 1.4 million people in 2020. It prompted the Commission to commit to proposing legislation to phase out the use of cage systems for animals such as chickens, rabbits and ducks by the end of 2023. The legislative framework was also to include an end to the practice of slaughtering day-old chicks and the sale and production of fur, as well as ...