+++ Pet food manufacturers emphasize: the importance of pet food is greater than ever +++
Berlin / Bonn. The Deutsche Verband Tiernahrung e. V. (DVT) pointed out at its annual press conference in Berlin that tailor-made feeding is more important than ever in order to ensure that animals are productive and animal-friendly, but also
Initiative TierWohl
More presence in the food retail sector: consumer information from the Tierwohl initiative
From April 2016, participating food retailers will be able to draw more attention to their participation in the Animal Welfare Initiative // The aim of the increased communication activities is more information and transparency for consumers
“With today's declaration, we are setting a common sign for responsible animal husbandry and more animal welfare. This is a strong signal for animal welfare in livestock husbandry. Because more animal welfare can best be achieved quickly and across the board through cooperation between the authorities and farmers, ”said Minister Johannes Remmel. The signatories work together for animal-friendly agriculture in order to ensure sustainable animal husbandry in NRW.
In order to make this decision a reality, Prime Minister Kris Peeters recently invited representatives from associations of agriculture, the food trade, the meat and feed industry as well as the manufacturers of meat products to a working meeting.
The core of the new benchmarks is the so-called "health control program", which uses animal-based indicators to enable comparative conclusions to be drawn about the health status and well-being of turkeys. Among other things, parameters such as animal losses, footpad health and changes in the skin of the breast should be used. This program does not only serve statistical purposes, but develops practical benefits in the sense of targeted improvement possibilities: As part of a feedback system, the turkey farmers are informed about the results from their flocks so that they can work out and implement a health plan together with the herd-supervising veterinarian in the event of any abnormalities. The permissible stocking density is also linked to participation in the health control program. Other key changes to the new benchmarks relate to, among other things, the requirements for the turkey owners' expertise as a basic requirement for animal welfare-friendly handling of the animals, the provision of materials for the animals to work with, the structure of the barn as well as technical specifications for the supply facilities and ventilation.
Although the Central Association of the Poultry Industry has announced a "breakthrough for more animal welfare", the stocking densities will not change at all. As before, 52 kg of live weight per square meter are allowed for hens and up to 58 kg for roosters, ie up to four animals with over ten kg weight. Run and fresh air are also not part of the agreement. The formulation of the bedding is also far too vague to really ensure that the turkeys have dry, loose bedding. The number of drinking troughs is sometimes even reduced.
The topic of sustainability and especially CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) in the agricultural and food industry has been discussed in detail and controversially for years. Almost all the media relevant to the industry have taken up this topic in detail and sometimes in an inflationary manner. And yet apparently always in the sense of the value of a sustainable economy along the entire supply chain, which should ultimately be honored by the consumer.
The poultry industry across Flanders has a turnover of 500 million euros; Last year it represented nine percent of the total turnover of the Flemish agriculture and horticulture industry. "The province of Antwerp has a very high priority for this sector," emphasized Ludwig Caluwé, who heads the agricultural department in the provincial government. “This is where most of the poultry farms, suppliers and buyers are located. That is why we as the provincial government think it is important to promote poultry farming as an industry ”.
The current high prices on the grain and animal feed markets are not only the result of temporarily poor harvests, but also structural and permanent increases in global demand. The German Association for Animal Nutrition e. V. (DVT) therefore calls for more political support for a long-term raw materials strategy and sees this as an important contribution to securing the location of animal husbandry in Germany.
In view of the ongoing protests against the construction of animal husbandry facilities, particularly in the poultry sector, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's Agriculture and Environment Minister Dr. Till Backhaus: “The demand for poultry meat is increasing worldwide, but also in Germany. The consumption of poultry meat per head of the population in Germany rose to 2010 kg in 19,3. “This is not surprising for him, since the consumption of poultry contributes to a healthy diet. Poultry is low in fat and high in protein. It contains a lot of folic acid, which protects against arteriosclerosis. The fat in the leg of chicken is polyunsaturated fatty acid that can help prevent heart attacks. The same applies to turkey meat.