The European Commission has today (Friday, September 19) opened a public consultation seeking input on the revision of EU legislation for on-farm animal welfare.

Farmers, citizens, businesses, national and regional authorities, NGOs (non-governmental organisations) and other interested parties are encouraged to share their views.

The revision of this legislation stems from the mission letter from Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to EU Health and Animal Welfare Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi, and will take place in the context of the Vision for Agriculture and Food adopted last February.

This was where the commission committed to closely exchange with farmers, the food supply sector and civil society, on the issue of animal welfare.

The commission plans to present its first proposal to revise EU legislation towards the end of next year.

This proposal will be evidence-based and will be a follow-up on the commission's response to the Citizens' Initiative ‘End the Cage Age'.

It will also address the issue of animal welfare standards relating to products imported into the EU.

The commission has said that its work on the revision will be supported by other consultation activities, such as targeted surveys for the main stakeholders concerned, as well as scientific input provided by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

Commissioner Varhelyi said: “Modernising some of our animal welfare rules is a clear expectation of our citizens.

"We need everyone around the table to come up with viable and future-proof solutions based on robust evidence.”

The consultation, available on the Have Your Say portal, will remain open until December 12, 2025 and te commission will summarise the input it receives in a synopsis report.