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This morning 118 members of the European Parliament tabled an oral question, promoted by Niels Fuglsang MEP (S&D, Denmark), in support of the appointment of an EU Commissioner explicitly in charge of animal welfare.
GAIA reveals once again the sordid state of Flemish turkey farms with a brand-new video footage, shot in November 2021. The footage shows thousands of turkeys crowded together, severely weakened, crippled, injured and dying; and even corpses in an advanced state of decomposition.
Between September and November 2020, a large-scale research[1] project involving drones and frogmen was conducted, commissioned by Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) in cooperation with GAIA, at 22 Scottish salmon farms rearing salmon in sea cages on a massive scale. The research reveals an enormous amount of animal suffering: salmon with deformities, diseases, missing eyes, seaweed growing from large open wounds, pieces of flesh and skin eaten away by sea lice, etc.
Today, 10 September 2020, Attorney General Hogan’s Opinion was delivered in the Grand Chamber of the Court of Justice in Luxembourg. Michel Vandenbosch and Anthony Godfroid, GAIA’s lawyer, were present. In his Opinion, the Attorney General advises to prohibit stunned slaughter of animals on the conditions that (1) slaughter is carried out in accordance with religious rites and (2) slaughter takes place at an European slaughterhouse.
88% of house cats in Belgium are sterilised. This is shown by an Ipsos survey carried out for GAIA[1]. “Encouraging figures”, says GAIA director Ann De Greef. “But we mustn’t forget that despite the legal obligation, in Flanders about 160,775 cats still haven’t been sterilised/castrated, according to the survey, in Brussels 302.441 and in Wallonia 1.321.116.
GAIA’s position is clear: it is, besides an analysis of the effects of COVID-19 on human health and the economy, needed to identify the deeper underlying cause of COVID-19 and tackle it. GAIA finds that the World Health Organisation (WHO), as soon as the tidal wave of contamination dies down, must intervene and urge involved countries worldwide to take drastic measures against wet markets, trade in bushmeat and wild caught animals and live cattle transports to third countries (these live transports may spread animal diseases too).
Update on the achievements of GAIA during the periode of september - december 2019.
In close collaboration with GAIA, Continental Foods - the Belgian leader in agri-food - commits to no longer sourcing chickens bred to grow extremely quickly in Belgium, Finland, France, Germany and Sweden by 2026.
On 18 July, Brussels-Capital Region got a new government. Good news: responsibility for animal welfare now comes within the remit of a Minister, Bernard Clerfayt (DéFI) instead of a Secretary of State (Bianca Debaets, CD&V in the previous legislature).
KFC decided, in close co-operation with GAIA, to raise the welfare standards of its chickens. The chain is promising to end the use of rapid-growth breeds of chicken for its restaurants in Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Sweden, Netherlands and United Kingdom, by 2026.
On 25 April 2019, the VAT reduction was approved by the Chamber.
On January 1, 2019, many things will change in terms of animal welfare.
The company made this decision in consultation with the animal rights organization GAIA. A first in the business world.
GAIA welcomes the Parliament of Wallonia’s adoption this afternoon of the Walloon Code of Animal Welfare. The Animal Welfare Code is an initiative of Minister of Animal Welfare Carlo Di Antonio (cdH).
GAIA: ‘A first in Belgium, which brings hope for the tens of thousands of animals suffering in the laboratories of the Brussels region’
Too many unanswered questions, and the university fails to give adequate guarantees to prevent a repetition of the scenario
Michel Vandenbosch: "For GAIA, this is the result of 25 years of activism. Hundreds of thousands of sheep and cattle will finally escape the unnecessary and avoidable suffering of having their throats cut while fully conscious."
Actor Jean-Claude Van Damme - "the Muscles from Brussels" - and GAIA announce the start of a closer collaboration for animal welfare.
You only want to wear labels who don’t use fur? You are so right! GAIA can help you find fashion that is guaranteed fur-free.
"Stunning is the only way to minimize animal suffering"
