Five years ago the European Commission wrote a page of history: for the first time, it responded positively to all the requests of a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI), committing to present a law to put an end to the era of cages in farming. Today, five years later, that promise has largely yet to be kept. To mark this anniversary, the associations of the Italian End the Cage Age coalition gathered in Piazza Santi Apostoli, just steps from the Representation of the European Commission in Rome.
The demonstration in the capital is part of a wider European mobilization, with rallies organized in various cities, including Brussels, Madrid, Warsaw and Paris. Present in Piazza Santi Apostoli were Animal Law Italia, CIWF Italia, ENPA, Essere Animali, Humane World for Animals Italia, LAV, Legambiente and LNDC Animal Protection.
The 2021 promise and the Citizens’ Initiative
On 30 June 2021, the Commission publicly committed to presenting, by the end of 2023, legislative proposals to ban the use of cages in livestock farming. The commitment came in response to the success of the “End the Cage Age” ECI which — with the support of a coalition of 170 associations coordinated by Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) — had collected 1.4 million certified signatures across Europe, of which 90,085 in Italy. Since then, however, the associations report, there have been “continuous delays, steps backward and about-faces.”
During the rally in Rome, a delegation of the associations went to the Representation’s headquarters to symbolically deliver — in the form of a large postcard — the request to present the legislative proposals as soon as possible. Senator Stefano Patuanelli (M5S), promoter of a bill for the establishment of a fund dedicated to the transition toward cage-free farming systems, also took part in the demonstration.
Signals from the Livestock Strategy
The latest chapter of the campaign arrives on a day full of significance: today Brussels published the Livestock Strategy, the document in which the EU executive reaffirms its intention to introduce legislative proposals to ban cage farming of hens in 2026 and of sows in 2027.
“It is a positive sign that the Commission has included clear timelines for these two species,” comment the associations present. “If the proposals were actually introduced, they would make a difference for over 160 million animals every year and would provide an initial concrete response to citizens’ requests.”
The coalition, however, is not satisfied: the 2021 commitment concerned all animals, not just hens and sows. This is why the associations are calling for equally clear timelines for all other species raised in cages, and for the modernization of animal welfare rules, now considered obsolete.
Broad and cross-cutting support
Support for the ban, the organizations point out, is widespread and deeply rooted well beyond the world of advocacy groups. In the EU’s public consultation last autumn, almost all of the more than 190,000 participating citizens declared it “important” or “very important” to gradually eliminate cages for all species. A significant part of the industry also expressed itself in this sense: 54% and 46% of responding companies said they agreed with eliminating cages for hens and sows respectively. On the scientific front, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has recommended in its most recent opinions that cages be abandoned for laying hens, breeding sows, quails and ducks.
“Many words but few facts. Animals can no longer wait. The people who signed the ECI can no longer wait,” the associations reiterate. And they conclude: “We hope that the Livestock Strategy is part of an ambitious and concrete project to put an end to cage farming for all animals. No one excluded. As long as every animal is not free from cages, we will be here, ready to make our voice heard in defense of animals.”
The Italian End the Cage Age coalition
Amici della Terra, Animal Aid, Animal Equality Italia, ALI – Animal Law Italia, Animalisti Italiani, CIWF Italia, Confconsumatori, ENPA, Essere Animali, Humane World for Animals Italia, Il Fatto Alimentare, Jane Goodall Institute Italia, LAC – Lega per l’Abolizione della Caccia, LAV, Legambiente, LEIDAA, LNDC Animal Protection, LUMEN, OIPA, Partito animalista, Terra Nuova, Terra! Onlus.