Minister Schouten is going to ban domestic cattle transport at 35 degrees Celsius or more. Although the red meat industry had already voluntarily agreed not to transport animals at 35 degrees Celsius or more, the poultry sector had not joined in. Last summer, hundreds of thousands of chickens were transported at temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius. In several slaughterhouses, a large number of the chickens were dead on arrival. The Minister has therefore decided to include the agreement in the law.
The ban is a direct result of the inspections done by Eyes on Animals. In August, EenVandaag (a Dutch current affairs tv program) released footage of EonA inspections – showing dead chickens and chickens in severe heat stress. Click here to watch the report in EenVandaag. In March EonA, joined by the Dutch Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, also published a report on heatstress.
We are pleased the minister will ban transport at 35℃or more. Although heat stress may already occur at much lower temperatures, this ban is an important first step to facilitate enforcement and reduce animal suffering.
