As of: February 27, 2024, 11:01 a.m
By: Fabian Hartmann
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Many consumers want higher standards for animal husbandry.
And are willing to pay for animal welfare.
Frankfurt – Many consumers have long wanted better conditions for animal husbandry.
However, that is expensive.
As early as 2020, the Animal Husbandry Competence Network (“Borchert Commission”) calculated the costs for a large-scale restructuring of animal husbandry.
In total, they were estimated at three to five billion euros annually.
At the time, the Borchert Commission suggested additional costs of around two cents per kilogram of milk and fresh milk products as well as eggs and 15 cents per kilogram of cheese, butter and milk powder as financial aid.
Although this did not result in a change, Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir (Greens) has again put an animal welfare tax up for discussion as a result of the farmers' protests that have been going on for weeks.
At the beginning of February (February 7, 2024), Özdemir presented a key points paper for the so-called animal welfare cent.
It proposes the introduction of a nationwide consumption tax on meat and meat products, which would be modeled on the coffee tax.
According to experts, a surcharge of 40 cents per kilogram of meat would be conceivable.
But how do consumers feel about the animal welfare tax?
Are you willing to pay more if it means you can promote animal welfare?
Many EU citizens are willing to support better animal husbandry conditions
A first answer is: yes.
At least this is exactly what a current and representative survey by the consumer protection organization BEUC, which was reported by the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (vzbv) and
Spiegel
among others , suggests.
In the survey, consumers from eight EU countries were asked about their meat consumption and their attitude towards animal welfare.
With 69 percent of those surveyed, almost seven out of ten consumers are willing to pay more for improved animal welfare conditions.
In addition, 88.5 percent of those surveyed support raising animal husbandry standards.
In addition to respondents from Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Hungary, consumers from Italy, Portugal, Sweden and Spain also took part in the study.
“Animal protection is important to consumers across Europe.
They want to know under what conditions farm animals are kept and they are prepared to spend more money on food if it has been produced in a more animal-friendly manner,” says Ramona Pop, board member of the vzbv.
Meat consumption remains at a high level
The study also shows how important meat consumption still plays in the diet of most Europeans.
A total of only 2 percent of all respondents described themselves as vegetarians, one percent as vegans and another two percent as so-called pescatarians - they abstain from meat but eat fish and seafood.
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Sustainable animal husbandry © IMAGO/Lars Froehlich
However, the vast majority of those surveyed eat meat, 18 percent of them even eat it every day.
In Hungary, 54 percent of study participants said they eat meat at least five times a week.
In Germany, only around a third of those surveyed said this.
In fact, fewer and fewer people in Germany are currently eating meat.
On average across all countries surveyed, poultry is the most popular among all respondents: around two thirds of all respondents eat it at least once a week.
Beef is eaten more often than pork, according to the survey.
Despite high meat consumption, many people want more animal welfare and transparency
Nevertheless, the consumption of meat is now accompanied by a desire for animal welfare and improved husbandry conditions.
As part of the BEUC study, more than a third of respondents in four countries - including Germany, Sweden, Italy and Hungary - said they would pay over 5 percent more for products if they were produced under higher animal welfare standards.
Consumers also want to know how animals are kept.
Around 72 percent of European consumers would like to see animal husbandry labeling, as is already the case across Europe for eggs, and also for other animal species.
Among consumers in Germany, approval for expanded labeling was even higher at almost 77 percent.
In Germany, in addition to the European farming label for eggs, there is a state farming label for unprocessed pork.
Since February 1st of this year, manufacturers have also had to label the country of origin of the meat.
From the perspective of vzbv board member Pop, it is urgently necessary for the federal government to significantly raise animal husbandry standards on a fundamental level: “So that animal owners can invest in animal-friendly husbandry systems and so that they can implement the higher animal husbandry standards, politicians must now set the course .
The federal government should take a pioneering role and present a roadmap for the urgently needed restructuring of animal husbandry.
This could serve as a blueprint for a European concept,” said Pop.
(Fabian Hartmann)