Target: Olivér Várhelyi, European Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare
Goal: Advance enforceable maritime transport protections against alleged overcrowding and ventilation failures, with meaningful consequences for substantiated welfare breaches.
Cattle and sheep aboard transport vessels depend on adequate space, ventilation, water, and competent care throughout the voyage. Allegations of overcrowding and fatal ventilation failures expose the stakes of weak or uneven enforcement.
Danish Shipping has called for stronger, consistent requirements for livestock carriers, including comparable standards regardless of vessel flag. That position supports scrutiny of approval procedures and onboard arrangements. Individual violations require evidence and enforcement by competent authorities.
Revised rules should make welfare obligations measurable and enforceable before loading and throughout transport. Where adequate protection cannot be assured, the journey should not proceed. Demand stronger standards, effective inspections, and meaningful penalties for substantiated breaches while advancing humane alternatives to long-distance live transport.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Commissioner Várhelyi,
Please use your role in the transport reform process to advance safeguards that reflect the needs of animals transported at sea. Concerns about overcrowding, inadequate ventilation, and preventable deaths warrant a framework that authorities can inspect and enforce consistently. Commercial convenience must not determine whether essential protections apply.
Work with the relevant maritime and national authorities on clear approval criteria, reliable ventilation, appropriate stocking limits, emergency arrangements, and documented access to water and care. Require transparent reporting of serious welfare incidents and effective review when deficiencies are identified. Proposals should address responsibility throughout a voyage and avoid gaps based on a vessel’s flag. Please also support evaluation of alternatives that reduce or replace long-distance transport of live animals.
Promote enforcement arrangements under which competent national authorities investigate credible allegations and impose proportionate sanctions for established violations. Use the Commission’s applicable oversight powers where member states fail to meet their legal obligations. Strong rules must be accompanied by the ability to refuse unsuitable voyages and respond to proven harm. Please help secure a system in which animal welfare requirements are verifiable, consistently applied, and backed by meaningful consequences.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Pixabay
