What changed between the plenary report and the adopted text

14. Calls for a balanced approach that recognises the essential role of animal-based products in global nutrition, while taking into account the importance of such production for farm income and economic stability; recalls that livestock plays an important role in the circular economy and the upcycling of waste streams from the food industry, and in multiple sectors such as textiles, clothing, footwear, leather goods, construction, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals; points out the need to address, at the same time, the different impacts of production systems on the environment, climate and animal welfare;

15. Underlines the need to continue ensuring food security in Europe while minimising environmental impact, a challenge to be met through transparent, science-based approaches and innovation;

16. Underlines that improving productivity, resilience, efficiency and sustainability in the EU’s livestock sector is essential to increase the domestic supply of high-quality proteins that meet EU consumers’ needs and strengthen food security, particularly in the context of the volatility of global markets, geopolitical tensions and the expected rise in global protein demand over the next 30 years; notes that the EU remains heavily dependent on imports of plant-based proteins for animal feed from a limited number of partners, which undermines protein sovereignty and makes the food system vulnerable to global market fluctuations;

17. Stresses that sustainable, diversified and domestic protein production is essential to ensure sufficient, safe and high-quality food and feed; highlights that the animal protein sector can support such production by using livestock effluents as natural fertilisers and recovering plant by-products for feed and waste streams from food to promote a more integrated, circular and sustainable system; welcomes the Commission’s announcement, in its Vision for Agriculture and Food, that it will develop a comprehensive plan for a more self-sufficient and sustainable EU protein system, addressing the production, import and consumption of proteins in the EU to ensure the long-term resilience of the agri-food system;

18. Stresses the need to strengthen farmers’ position in the agri-food value chain, including through cooperatives, producer organisations and associations, and calls on the Commission and the Member States to explore mechanisms that ensure that farmers receive prices that at least cover their production costs; recalls that providing livestock producers with decent, fair and more stable incomes, better working conditions, social recognition, improved access to credit, and sustainable funding for research and investment in livestock quality is key to ensuring the economic sustainability of the sector, properly valuing farmers’ role in securing the EU’s food supply and attracting younger generations;

19. Emphasises that price instability, high production costs, excessive red tape and a lack of recognition of the profession by society have contributed to people leaving farming and to the ageing of the sector; points out that small and medium-sized farms already have to comply with a number of requirements, the effects of which do not reflect a reasonable cost-benefit ratio; reiterates, therefore, the need for effective instruments to support income, cut red tape, simplify existing legislation and improve the recognition of farm work in society, as key elements for ensuring the long-term viability of livestock farming in the EU; calls on the Commission to support the livestock sector and to proceed with the adoption of its livestock strategy;

20. Points out that investments in new livestock installations and the renovation of existing ones entail significant costs and must be planned and carried out over a long period of time; warns that revisions of animal welfare legislation could lead to livestock installations losing their authorisations, meaning that they have to be rebuilt at a high cost years before the end of their intended lifespan; calls on the Commission to promote and incentivise, within its capabilities, good authorisation practices in the Member States;

21. Underlines that sustainable livestock farming, particularly in small and medium-sized farms, is fundamental for the socio-economic vitality of rural areas, especially mountainous areas, livestock-dense areas, and disadvantaged areas such as permanent grasslands, peatlands and meadows, where it is often the main or even only viable economic activity and sustains production, economic growth and landscape maintenance; stresses that livestock farming not only creates rural employment and helps prevent depopulation, but also contributes to active land management, fire prevention, biodiversity conservation and the preservation of cultural and landscape heritage; highlights that in many regions it plays an irreplaceable role in territorial cohesion and in keeping communities alive; underlines that extensive grazing livestock farming is an effective way to reward farmers for the ecosystem services they provide;

22. Calls on the Commission to launch a plan that fosters new technologies, feed innovation and genetic herd improvement, to enhance investment in public and private research on animal breeding and genetics, to facilitate the dissemination of good practices rather than imposing large-scale numerical herd restructuring measures that would reduce and endanger European food sovereignty and security, and to optimise production and efficiency; underlines that animal breeding is an important tool to improve productivity, efficiency and animal health; stresses that the EU is a leader in research and innovation on animal breeding and genetics;

23. Calls for a plan to safeguard the gene pools of various endangered traditional breeds, promote local species and rearing rustic breeds better adapted to local climates and disseminate best practice while preserving genetic diversity; stresses the need to maintain aid under Article 27 of Commission Regulation (EU) 2022/2472 to support genetic progress in animal production; underlines the urgent need to promote research, innovation and the adoption of evidence-based practices that improve livestock sustainability across environmental, social and economic dimensions, including through targeted investment in genetic research, nutritional efficiency and selection for long-lasting production traits, and the need to stimulate and fund research and innovation in livestock dense areas to reduce environmental impact, while promoting high animal welfare standards and fostering integrated and resilient livestock supply chains; notes that genetic improvement with good management and innovation can cut emissions and provide a sustainable alternative to abrupt restructuring that threatens farm viability and EU food sovereignty;

24. Acknowledges that the Commission’s Vision for Agriculture and Food points out that the CAP remains essential for supporting farmers’ income, and that CAP direct payments continue to play a crucial role in supporting and stabilising agricultural income at farm level; stresses the importance of safeguarding direct income support and all the programmes currently funded by the CAP, as the livestock and mixed farming sectors are large beneficiaries of the current CAP under Pillar One (direct payments, coupled payments for beef, veal, sheep and goat) and Pillar Two, particularly through support for investments, payments for natural or other area-specific constraints and agri-environment-climate commitments; notes that economic viability and insufficient generational renewal are a challenge for many holdings, requiring special attention and production-related subsidies, and stresses the importance of coupled payments to active farmers; calls for a dedicated and robust budget for the CAP in the next multiannual financial framework and notes that this must be ring-fenced and maintained at least at the level of the current CAP budget in real terms, while also taking into account inflation;

25. Underlines the key role of cooperatives, given the perishable nature of animal-based products and high transaction costs, and calls on the Commission to support them to enhance resilience, producer empowerment, the valorisation of co-products and generational renewal and promote circular approaches; calls for CAP support to be tailored to farm circumstances, especially small-scale and family farms, and for the possibility of per-animal payments in the livestock sector; stresses the need to enhance the economic viability of farmers through diversification and risk management tools to improve competitiveness, profitability, and long-term resilience;

26. Notes that farmers are facing increasing and diverse risks, such as unpredictable markets, climate change and related extreme weather events, animal diseases, geopolitical tensions and uncertain impacts of trade agreements; calls on the Commission, in this regard, to both strengthen crisis management tools and increase the agricultural crisis reserve in the post-2027 CAP and combine it with the creation of new specific financial instruments funded from outside the CAP, as these measures are essential to better address the economic loss and additional costs faced by EU farmers and to provide them with greater stability;

27. Calls on the Commission to build on existing CAP support to strengthen financial and socio-economic mechanisms; insists that CAP payments remain essential for livestock income continuity, particularly for holdings specialising in beef, dairy, sheep and goat production, and those providing environmental services via extensive grazing; underlines the need for a transitional period post-2027 to allow adaptation to new rules; welcomes the inclusion in the CAP Omnibus of the acquisition of high-genetic-value bovine, sheep and goat animals among the eligible expenditures under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development; calls on the Commission to extend this provision to high-genetic-value pigs for breeding purposes, given their importance for the competitiveness and resilience of the European livestock sector; underlines the need to maintain at least the same level of ambition in the CAP post-2027; lastly, calls on the Commission to recognise the specific needs of livestock farmers in densely populated areas and to provide adequate CAP support, noting that balanced regional development can be enhanced by the maintenance of farm numbers and local infrastructure such as slaughterhouses, feed mills and processing facilities;

29. Underlines the need to stop and reverse the decapitalisation of the livestock sector and to ensure full reciprocity of EU standards for all imported products; calls on the Commission to develop specific strategies to ensure a level playing field and greater consistency between its trade and sustainability policies; calls on the Commission and the Member States to better take into account the specificities of the agricultural sector, ensure full reciprocity of EU standards by including mirror clauses when concluding trade agreements, and safeguard European agriculture, food production and public health in all trade agreements; insists, in this respect, that international trade agreements should not negatively impact European agriculture and should guarantee reciprocity and pose no risks to public health; stresses the urgency of adapting market interventions by updating reference prices for safeguard clauses in line with new market conditions and management tools;

30. Highlights that livestock farmers should also be able to benefit from the additional revenue stream provided by carbon farming; calls, in this respect, for a gradual shift away from the current system centred on prescribed practices and upfront administrative authorisation towards a results-driven emissions management framework, while allowing livestock farmers to decide which methods and technologies to use, thereby preserving entrepreneurial freedom and ensuring accountability for meeting those objectives;

31. Urges the Commission to review the regulations on meat processing, such as the technology used for meat inspection, and the harmonisation of minimum guidelines on meat content evaluation, which currently limit the full utilisation of animal carcasses, to increase transparency of the supply chain and ensure higher income for farmers;

32. Notes that livestock farming systems could, in particular, take advantage of practices and technologies that can be used to improve animal health and welfare and achieve efficiency gains, including, for instance, low-cost systems, two-way systems and precision livestock farming, and make use of new digital technologies that improve animal and system management, data processing and traceability; requests that the Commission report on best practices in livestock sustainability and propose concrete measures that support the sector’s innovation, efficiency and resilience, including better use of existing common databases and gene banks of foundation breeds to enable breeders who so wish to continue breeding certain old species; highlights the digital skills gap between rural and urban areas; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that the digital transformation benefits farmers;

33. Underscores that the pursuit of improved animal productivity or climate targets must not come at the expense of animal health and welfare;

34. Encourages the development of policies that support family farms and young and new farmers in maintaining and improving sustainable livestock production and small-scale livestock production as a means of livelihood and food security; points out that it is therefore necessary to support farmers in becoming well established through strong, dedicated financial tools, in order to allow them to be better able to face financial pressures; insists on the importance of collective structures such as farmer-owned and -run cooperatives and producer organisations;

35. Emphasises the need to strengthen support for the outermost regions, where structural and geographical conditions lead to much higher farming costs; calls on the Commission to update POSEI funding in the next multiannual financial framework to reflect inflation since 2007; notes that indexation alone is not enough to address rising production, transport and supply costs; stresses that adequate POSEI funding is essential to sustain farming, ensure farm viability and uphold the EU’s economic, social and territorial cohesion, in accordance with Article 349 TFEU;

36. Calls on the Commission to recognise the specific needs and challenges faced by livestock farmers in mountainous and disadvantaged areas, including island, inland, remote and outermost regions, and to ensure adequate support through the CAP, in particular through coupled support, sector-specific interventions and targeted rural development measures; underlines that maintaining livestock farming in remote, island and less favoured areas contributes to environmental sustainability by preventing land abandonment, supporting biodiversity and preserving traditional landscapes, supports farmers’ incomes and rural livelihoods and helps repopulate rural areas; emphasises the importance of ensuring the active participation of representatives of the outermost regions within the high-level group, as the specific geographical, socio-economic and production characteristics of these regions present their own challenges that require particular attention in the process of drawing up EU policies;

37. Highlights the necessity of global cooperation and innovative knowledge transfer in supporting sustainable livestock systems, particularly from European regions with highly efficient livestock systems, induced by rapid population growth and urbanisation;

38. Urges the Member States and the Commission to invest in education, training and infrastructure that enable farmers to implement livestock production practices that are more sustainable, more efficient and better for animals’ health and welfare, including digitalisation, applied research, transfer of knowledge and training on innovative tools and technologies for the early detection and prevention of epizootic diseases, such as health monitoring systems for livestock; highlights the importance of independent advisory services in this regard, and calls on Member States to make full use of the CAP in order to properly fund these services;

39. Calls for simpler animal welfare rules that focus on helping farmers through education and support rather than enforcement-focused methods;

40. Urges the Commission to present its conclusions on the development of an animal welfare labelling system that guarantees adequate and uniform information for consumers, thereby avoiding the risks to the internal market generated by the proliferation of local animal welfare schemes;

41. Points out that, with only 12 % of farm holdings in the EU run by people under the age of 40, the lack of young farmers threatens the economic viability, generational continuity and future sustainability of the European livestock sector; urges the Commission, therefore, to improve the effectiveness of start‑up support in overcoming entry barriers to the livestock sector, including high start-up costs; underlines the struggle of attracting young farmers to the livestock sector, which suffers from a lack of attractiveness because of the demanding nature of the work such as long working hours, limited opportunities to take time off and a lack of replacement services, and the need to take into account the increasing number of women working on livestock farms by promoting gender-inclusive measures and opportunities;

42. Welcomes the Commission’s generational renewal strategy; calls on the Commission to provide recommendations and explore solutions to tackle the key barriers to the installation of young livestock farmers, in particular high initial investments in infrastructure, difficulties in accessing land, especially as a result of differences between Member States, limited access to credit, labour shortages, issues related to risk management, the prevention and control of animal diseases and bureaucratic burdens;

43. Invites the Commission to consider the possibility of granting more direct payments to young farmers; stresses, moreover, the need to create suitable conditions for decent retirement; emphasises that facilitating access to credit and land, especially in Member States with high land prices, increasing investment in livestock quality and improving services in rural areas are essential conditions for attracting and retaining a new generation of farmers; stresses that the advice for Member States to allocate 6 % of the CAP budget to generational renewal is not binding enough to guarantee sufficient support for young farmers;

44. Welcomes the Commission’s presentation of the EU bioeconomy strategy; invites the Commission to recognise the role of innovative livestock farming in promoting circularity and to fully unlock the potential of energy production, particularly biogas and biomethane, the use of digestate as a bio-based fertiliser and the valorisation of livestock by-products through the rendering sector to provide additional sources of income for livestock farmers; underlines that livestock dense areas in particular play an important role in the bioeconomy, as their proximity to urban areas and short distances enable circular cooperation in upscaling human waste streams and the processing of farm waste streams;

45. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to identify adequate and long-term funding opportunities for preventive measures and compensation for farmers, which can include, but should not be limited to, the CAP, not only for losses suffered and costs incurred due to large carnivore attacks, but also for mitigation measures, including advisory services, knowledge sharing, and training for farmers on coexistence between grazing livestock and large carnivores;

46. Highlights that the targeted amendment of the Habitats Directive to align EU legislation with the updated Bern Convention protection level of the wolf is intended to provide greater flexibility in managing wolf populations across the EU and to minimise socio-economic impacts; stresses the need to take into account the high cross-border mobility of species and the fact that the conservation status of different populations of the same species can vary across regions; calls on the Commission and the Member States to further intensify cross-border collaboration on these issues;

Environmental sustainability

47. Acknowledges the essential role of livestock farming, notably grassland-based systems, in maintaining circular agricultural systems, enhancing ecosystem services and providing climate and environmental services by sequestering carbon, improving water quality and soil health, protecting biodiversity, providing habitats for fauna and flora, maintaining diversified and open landscapes, particularly in mountainous areas, and making use of marginal lands that cannot produce food for humans; highlights that monogastric species such as poultry and swine can further enhance circularity through the incorporation of waste stream products into their feed and the recycling of biomass, while their manure provides a valuable source of natural fertiliser for crop production; stresses that significant herd reductions may compromise these ecosystem functions;

48. Invites the Commission to propose tools to enhance the role of livestock production in maintaining grasslands that are important for the environment and climate stability through more efficient farming systems, to improve the sustainability of livestock systems by increasing their efficiency, and to ensure higher incomes for livestock sector workers;

49. Stresses the importance of integrating livestock into sustainable agricultural models, including mixed farming systems, ensuring balanced nutrient flows and minimising resource competition; stresses the importance of efficient livestock use to balance sustainability and food needs, and highlights the benefits of rotational and mob grazing for fodder productivity, carbon sequestration, soil quality, biodiversity and drought resilience; underlines the need to increase awareness of the environmental benefits of well-managed animals;

50. Calls on the Commission to increase the scope for Member States to support farmers in preserving landscape via the CAP, while reducing regulatory obstacles to the full use of pastures and ensuring stronger protection of EU agricultural land against land take, degradation and competing non-agricultural uses;

51. Stresses the importance for farming systems to integrate crop production with animal husbandry in order to facilitate the recycling of nutrients by favouring organic fertilisers over synthetic ones, to reduce the consumption of chemicals and to enhance soil fertility and biodiversity;

52. Calls on the Commission, while acknowledging the strategic importance of conventional fertiliser production in the EU for European competitiveness, to support the use of animal manure on certain crops and accelerate the approval and uptake of alternative fertilising products, such as digestate and RENURE materials, to enhance nutrient recycling, reduce dependency on synthetic fertilisers imported from non-EU countries and promote circularity within livestock systems; recognises the livestock sector’s strategic role in reducing dependence on synthetic inputs and notes that enhancing the use of both digestate and RENURE contributes not only to the circular economy, but also to the decarbonisation of the EU economy by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, supporting the production of renewable energy and reducing the EU’s dependency on imported fossil fuels;

53. Welcomes the Commission’s proposal for a targeted revision of the Nitrates Directive to allow the use of RENURE fertilisers above the limit set for the application of manure and to align it with the latest scientific evidence and innovative fertilisation practices, including the use of manure so as to promote circular nutrient management while continuing to protect water quality; refers to recent studies on the benefits and neutral impact on water quality of derogations given to Member States;

54. Calls on the Commission to ensure fair prices or due compensation for breeders, given the increasing cost of fertilisers;

55. Calls on the Commission to invest in innovation and infrastructure that enable the broader use of manure-derived fertilisers and biogas from livestock farming, in line with the EU’s climate and energy objectives;

56. Calls on the Commission to rethink the way in which agricultural products, by-products and residual products are classified as waste in order to facilitate their use as commodities; stresses that farmed animals are an indispensable element of the circular economy linked to the agricultural sector, and underlines the need for better recognition of the contribution of livestock farming to the bioeconomy through a more comprehensive approach to the nutrient and carbon cycles across all areas of food and non-food production; calls on the Commission to draw on research findings in its approach to the livestock sector and to facilitate research in the development of circular feed; calls on the Commission to review the regulations on animal by-products not intended for human consumption, in order to simplify the use of low-risk products, such as wool;

57. Warns against ‘one-size-fits-all’ policies aimed at large-scale reductions in livestock populations, which could exacerbate environmental degradation and threaten the resilience of the food system; notes, in particular, that reducing ruminant numbers could lead to land-use change with negative effects, including land abandonment, forest development, a loss of biodiversity and increased risk of fire;

58. Calls for increased investment in research and innovation to optimise crop production and livestock management practices and reduce the ecological footprint of livestock, including plant and animal breeding, feeding, grazing and manure and field management techniques that enhance sustainability outcomes;

59. Stresses the importance of a strategy that takes into account the entire farming cycle, supports optimal crop rotation planning, maximises the use of arable land, and enhances and customises the composition of feedstuffs grown by farmers, starting with plant varieties that enable emissions reductions; highlights the importance of restoring entrepreneurial freedom in agriculture, enabling farmers to develop and choose ventilation, housing and feeding systems that are adapted to their specific circumstances and best suited to their production systems;

60. Urges the Commission and the Member States to ensure that regulatory frameworks related to livestock are developed transparently, based on sound science, with full stakeholder engagement, especially from farmers and livestock producer organisations, and with long-term scenarios that allow for progressive adaptation; recommends that the decision-making process be underpinned by real public consultations, detailed impact studies and continuous feedback mechanisms to ensure effective and locally accepted implementation;

61. Calls for more policy space to be provided to facilitate a target-based approach, through farm-based benchmarking instead of top-down measures, meaning that farmers should be free to choose which measures to take, as long as they contribute to the set objectives;

62. Invites the Commission to propose tools to enhance the role of livestock production in maintaining environmentally and climatically valuable grasslands through more extensive farming systems and improve the sustainability of intensive systems;

Social dimension of livestock farming and sector-specific challenges

63. Stresses that the development of livestock policies must be firmly grounded in the highest scientific standards, ensuring a balanced and comprehensive understanding of the contributions and challenges associated with animal agriculture;

64. Underlines the importance of transparent, accessible and evidence-based scientific communication to counteract misinformation and ideological bias in public debates on livestock and meat production and consumption; points out, in this regard, that the World Health Organization encourages the consumption of animal proteins as part of a complete and balanced diet;

65. Emphasises that political decisions and social perceptions should be based on sound scientific evidence reflecting the diversity of production systems, their contribution to human nutrition, the rural economy and environmental sustainability, thus promoting a more positive image of the livestock sector, and that, to this end, it is essential to enhance the dialogue between science, policymakers, producers and consumers by encouraging an informed, balanced and non-polarised approach to the role of livestock farming in European society; stresses the importance of informing consumers of the benefits of consuming animal proteins as part of a complete and balanced diet;

66. Welcomes the Commission’s proposal to reopen the issue of meat denominations used to designate meat and meat cuts, in order to protect products of animal origin, and to ban their use to label products of non-animal origin, and believes that this provision should apply to cell-culture-derived products and hybrid products consisting of a mixture of animal and plant proteins; recalls that such protection exists for dairy products; stresses that clear, fair and transparent labelling is essential to provide and enhance real transparency for consumers and to promote the quality of EU animal products, including by highlighting their recognised labels and short supply chains;

67. Urges policymakers at all levels to uphold evidence-based standards in the development of dietary guidelines, fully recognising the nutritional, cultural and economic importance of meat, dairy and eggs, while also taking into account the affordability and actual protein intake provided by animal products in different regions;

68. Calls on the Commission to revise Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 to introduce mandatory origin labelling for all meat-containing products placed on the EU market, even when meat is not the main ingredient, clearly indicating an EU/non-EU origin; calls on the Commission to evaluate the feasibility of introducing a compulsory indication of the country of origin of meat when it is used as an ingredient in processed products;

69. Calls on the Commission to work with scientists to present studies on the effects of food substitutes; warns against the uncritical promotion of nutritionally and environmentally inadequate food substitutes as replacements for traditional animal-sourced foods, including those that do not provide the same bioactive compounds or essential micronutrients found in natural meat from healthy animals reared in high-quality systems, and especially warns against their inclusion in food baskets for children and young people in schools; notes that traditional animal-sourced foods, together with plant-based foods, can contribute to a balanced and nutritious diet;

70. Demands that the Commission conduct a comprehensive impact assessment based on the latest scientific evidence and proper consultation with all relevant stakeholders before presenting new legislative proposals affecting the agricultural sector;

71. Expresses deep concern about the increasing drive to promote synthetic foods, such as lab-grown proteins, without there being conclusive scientific evidence regarding their safety, industrial viability and environmental benefits; underlines the need to conduct proper impact assessments based on scientific evidence, taking into account all aspects related to safety, environmental impact, market implications and consumer protection before proposing any new regulatory framework for emerging food technologies, in particular through clear and appropriate labelling;