Policy background of Aquaculture Welfare project 163.38 Kb

Societal and political background

The Commission has been developing animal welfare legislation for over 30 years and has been at the forefront of initiatives to promote this internationally by its active participation in, and support for, initiatives of the Council of Europe and more recently the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). The European Commission's activities in this area start with the recognition that animals are sentient beings. The general aim is to ensure that animals do not endure avoidable pain or suffering, and obliges the owner/keeper of animals to respect minimum welfare requirements. Looking back, the first Community legislation on farm animal welfare was adopted in 1974 and concerned the stunning of animals before slaughter. Respecting the five basics freedoms (freedom from discomfort, from hunger and thirst, from fear and distress, from pain, injury and disease and freedom to express natural behaviour) is a fundamental principle underlying measures to protect animal welfare and the EU has already taken various practical steps to secure real improvements in animal welfare.

In this context, the Community Action Plan on the Protection and Welfare of Animals, adopted by the European Commission on 23 January 2006, embodies the Commission's commitment to EU citizens, stakeholders, the European Parliament and the Council for a clear map of the Commission’s planned animal welfare initiatives for the coming years.

It also responds to the principles set out by the Protocol on Protection and Welfare of animals annexed to the EC Treaty by the Amsterdam Treaty. This Protocol recognises that animals are sentient beings and obliges the European Institutions to pay full regard to the welfare requirements of animals when formulating and implementing Community legislation.

Welfare of fish

Traditionally, the welfare of fish compared to welfare of other, land farmed animals has not been an important topic to consumers, producers and legislators, an attitude which is reflected in past research projects and legislation directed towards welfare, which hardly ever took fish into consideration. So why were - and still are -fish, compared to other animals, not a hot topic regarding welfare concerns?

Firstly, there is a lack of tradition in perceiving fish as sentient beings, as fish do not evoke compassion and concern in humans in the same way other, warm-blooded animals do; secondly, there is still no consensus among scientists whether fish are able to perceive pain and to suffer; thirdly, large scale, industrialised aquaculture is a relatively recent farming method. (Wolffrom & Dos Santos, 2004).

Nevertheless, an increased concern for the welfare of fish in general and especially in aquaculture can be noticed in recent years, stimulated by research results suggesting the awareness of pain and suffering, and reports on farming conditions detrimental to health and welfare (Wolffrom & Dos Santos, 2004).

The Treaty of Amsterdam, mentioned above, was the first document that concerns the welfare of fish. Meanwhile the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) established workgroups to work on the protection of fish welfare.

Eight years later the new Constitution, which was adopted in June 2004, contains a reworded article on the protection and welfare of animals. The word “fisheries” was added, the text being “in formulating and implementing the Union´s agriculture, fisheries, transport, internal market, research and technological development and space policies, the Union and the Member States shall pay full regard to the welfare requirements of animals, as sentient beings…”.

The recent re-rewording of the welfare article, now including fisheries, illustrates the increased focus on welfare issues in fisheries made by European legislation (Wolffrom & Dos Santos, 2004).