What changed between the draft committee report and the plenary report

Change 15

Added:BH. whereas the number of large carnivores in continental Europe in 2012 was estimated at 9 000 Eurasian lynxes, 17 000 brown bears, 1 250 wolverines and 12 000 wolves; whereas there is no uniform, up-to-date EU estimate of large carnivore numbers;

General remarks

Change 16

Removed:1. Welcomes and supports the Commission’s initiative, in its ‘Vision for Agriculture and Food’, to set up a work stream on livestock to develop appropriate policy pathways to support livestock farming;

Added:1. Welcomes and supports the Commission’s initiative, in its Vision for Agriculture and Food, to set up a workstream on livestock aimed at identifying and developing appropriate policy pathways to support livestock farming and enhance its competitiveness through targeted and territorial solutions rather than a ‘one-size-fits-all’ policy, while taking into account climate, nature and animal protection aspects, in addition to food security, resilience and animal disease management; underlines that the diversity of livestock production, the needs of species and the disparities between local conditions require solutions tailored to a national, regional or sub-regional scale; calls on the Commission to take specific measures in respect of livestock rearing in mountainous, remote and disadvantaged areas;

Removed:2. Calls on the Commission, as part of this work stream, to establish a high-level group on livestock modelled on the high-level group on wine policy; believes that by bringing Member States and stakeholders together, this forum will prove useful in addressing the challenges faced by the sector and exploring possible solutions;

Added:2. Expresses its concern over initiatives or legislative proposals that, through direct or indirect measures, act as a disincentive to livestock farming; insists that the livestock sector should not be brought under a regulatory regime designed for heavy industries;

Removed:3. Stresses that the specific challenges affecting the sector call for a multidimensional policy response to take into account the economic, environmental and social importance of livestock farming in the EU;

Added:3. Calls on the Commission, building on the work of the EU livestock workstream, to establish a high-level group on livestock, modelled on the high-level group on wine policy, involving all relevant stakeholders, including farmers, Member State representatives from the livestock sector, academia and the veterinary profession, representative associations and relevant animal health organisations, industry representatives, and representatives from local authorities; points out that the composition of this group should reflect the plurality of EU territories by providing balanced representation of different regional circumstances, including areas with high livestock densities;

Removed:4. Points out that improving the sustainability of livestock farming depends on a range of factors, including price and non-price competitiveness, adaptation to climate change, enhanced ecosystem services, animal welfare, increased innovation and improved quality of life for livestock farmers;

Added:4. Believes that by bringing Member States and stakeholders together, this high-level group should reflect on the challenges faced by the livestock sector and provide concrete and social solutions, based particularly on research conducted in this field; calls for an open and constructive dialogue among all stakeholders to encourage collaboration, develop practical solutions, and ensure fact-based communication on livestock farming; believes that these solutions should address, in particular, the relocation of production outside of Europe, generational renewal and the promotion of investments to foster the competitiveness of livestock farming;

Removed:5. Insists that this holistic approach should, in particular, address the challenges to the sector’s resilience posed by climate-related extreme weather events and the increasing emergence of animal diseases and the recurrence of major transboundary animal diseases, as their consequences can have ripple effects on food supply, trade and human health;

Added:5. Stresses that the specific challenges affecting the livestock sector require a coordinated, multidimensional policy response that, while avoiding trade-offs between these challenges, fully reflects the economic, environmental and social importance of livestock farming within the EU and its rural areas; believes, furthermore, that this policy response should also reflect the sector’s contribution to rural cohesion, food security, sustainable land management, animal welfare and the supply of animal protein on the EU market;

Removed:6. Underlines that there cannot be a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to the livestock sector, as the diversity of livestock production and the disparities between local conditions require solutions tailored to a national, regional or sub-regional scale;

Added:6. Calls on the Commission to provide a stable and predictable framework for farmers by limiting unnecessary regulatory burdens and simplifying livestock rules, especially for small-scale and family farms, thereby facilitating operations and supporting the sector’s development; stresses the need to assess the cumulative impact of EU legislation and to prevent legal uncertainty and administrative burdens caused by EU law and national gold-plating;

Removed:7. Highlights that the diversity of European livestock farming systems, from free-range farming in mountain areas to large-scale specialised farms, allows them to provide a range of complementary goods and services, and thereby improves the resilience of the whole livestock sector while satisfying a wide range of consumer demands; calls, therefore, on the Commission to promote the diversity of production systems;

Added:7. Points out that improving the social, economic and environmental sustainability of livestock farming depends on a long-term vision addressing a broad and interconnected range of factors, including price and non-price competitiveness, the capacity to adapt to climate change and related extreme weather events, and animal diseases; believes that other highly relevant factors include nutrient pollution, the development and provision of remunerated ecosystem services, targeted investment support, the promotion of animal welfare, innovation and digitalisation incentives, as well as generational renewal, access to support and advisory services and improvement of living and working conditions for livestock producers;

Added:8. Stresses that farmers have the greatest interest in ensuring the good health and welfare of their animals, as doing so is both an ethical and economic imperative; underlines that animal welfare on farms is also linked to the competence of the particular animal keeper; stresses the importance of training and regular further training in this regard;

Added:9. Highlights that the diversity of European livestock farming systems, ranging from free-range farming often involving pastures of high environmental value and endangered farmed species and breeds to large-scale, specialised and highly efficient farms, crop-livestock systems, regenerative and organic farming and pasture farming, seasonal transhumance, forest grazing and small-scale farming of animals for personal use, and the variety of breeds of livestock kept allows farms to provide a range of complementary goods and services, and thereby improves the resilience of the whole livestock sector while satisfying a wide range of consumer demands; calls on the Commission to promote and enable the diversity of production systems;

Added:10. Stresses the need for increased transparency in the allocation and use of EU funds allocated to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in order to prevent any risk of misuse or undue influence on EU policies; calls on the Commission to establish a public register specifying the amount and purpose of funding received by NGOs; is concerned about the allocation of funds, including through the programme for the environment and climate action (LIFE), to NGOs carrying out lobbying activities before the EU institutions, in particular on animal welfare, thereby potentially violating the principles of separation of powers and sincere cooperation; calls on the Commission to stop funding NGOs conducting targeted lobbying and conveying a misleading, militant and ideological image of livestock farming in Europe; calls on the Commission to ensure that all beneficiaries of consolidated funds disclose their meetings with representatives of the EU institutions when they aim to influence EU policies;

Economic sustainability and food security

Change 17

Removed:8. Underlines that improving productivity and efficiency in the EU livestock sector is essential to increase the domestic supply of high-quality proteins and strengthen food security, particularly in the context of global market volatility, geopolitical tensions and the expected rise in global demand for animal proteins over the next 30 years;

Added:11. Notes that maintaining a thriving, sustainable and resilient livestock sector in the EU will benefit global food security, strengthen the EU’s food sovereignty and economic growth and contribute to balanced and diverse European diets through the consumption of animal-based products of high nutritional quality that are a unique source of several micronutrients and bioactive compounds, the nutritional value of which cannot be adequately replaced by plant or artificial alternatives and should be acknowledged when drafting evidence-based dietary guidelines;

Removed:9. Calls for a balanced approach that recognises the essential role of livestock-derived products in global nutrition while simultaneously addressing the impact of production systems on the environment and animal welfare;

Added:12. Notes that the FAO’s 2023 report entitled ‘Contribution of terrestrial animal source foods to healthy diets for improved nutrition and health outcomes’ highlights the role of animal-based foods in providing high-quality protein and essential micronutrients that may be lacking in plant-based diets; stresses that these foods are vital for children, teenagers, pregnant and lactating women, women of reproductive age, older people, and people living with chronic diseases, and that they could be difficult to replace with plant-based alternatives;

Removed:10. Notes that maintaining a thriving livestock sector in the EU will benefit global food security, strengthen the EU’s food sovereignty and contribute to balanced European diets through meat products of high nutritional quality that are a unique source of several micronutrients and bioactive compounds;

Added:13. Strongly underlines the importance of livestock farming for regional value chains and local markets; calls on the Commission to carry out an impact assessment of the social and economic consequences of further dismantling the network of regional slaughterhouses;

Removed:11. Recalls that providing livestock farmers with more stable incomes and better working conditions is key to the economic sustainability of the livestock sector;

Added: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;

Removed:12. Underlines that livestock farming is essential for the socio-economic vitality of mountain and disadvantaged areas, such as permanent grasslands and peatlands, where it sustains rural employment, prevents depopulation and preserves cultural heritage;

Added: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;

Removed:13. Calls for production and emissions to be optimised by launching a plan for genetic herd improvement and the dissemination of good practices, rather than imposing brutal restructuring measures that would reduce European food sovereignty;

Added: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;

Removed:14. Welcomes the proposal by the Commission, in its ‘Vision for Agriculture and Food’, to better target direct support; notes, in this respect, that the lack of economic viability of numerous livestock holdings, especially ruminant farming systems, requires special attention;

Added: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;

Removed:15. Underlines the need to stop and reverse the trend of decapitalisation, and to ensure effective protection of the EU market and full reciprocity of EU standards for imported products; stresses the importance of maintaining the CAP budget in real terms by taking inflation into account, securing coupled support for ruminant livestock production without additional environmental conditionalities, and adapting market interventions by updating the reference prices for the safeguard clauses, taking into account the new market values and management tools;

Added: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;

Removed:16. 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, while promoting high animal welfare standards and fostering integrated and resilient livestock supply chains, including fair pricing mechanisms for farmers;

Added: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;

Removed:17. Notes that livestock farming systems could,in particular, take advantage of practices and technologies that can be used to achieve efficiency gains, including, for instance, precision livestock farming and animal breeding, and make use of new digital technologies that can improve animal and system management, data processing, transparency along the food chain, and traceability; requests that the Commission report on best practices in livestock sustainability and propose measures that support innovation and resilience in the sector;

Added: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;

Removed:18. Encourages the development of policies that support family farmers and rural communities in maintaining sustainable livestock production as a means of livelihood and food security;

Added: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;

Removed:19. Highlights the necessity of global cooperation and knowledge transfer in supporting sustainable livestock systems, particularly in regions facing rapid population growth and urbanisation;

Added: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;

Removed:20. Urges the Member States to invest in education, training and infrastructure that enable farmers to implement more sustainable, efficient and animal-welfare-friendly livestock production practices, including training on innovative tools and technologies for the early detection and prevention of epizootic diseases, such as health monitoring systems for livestock;

Added: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;

Change 18

Changed:21.24. UnderlinesAcknowledges 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 majorlarge beneficiaries of the current CAP under pillarPillar oneOne (direct payments, coupled payments for beef, veal, sheep and goat) and pillarPillar two,Two, notablyparticularly 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 roleimportance of coupled payments to active farmers; calls for a dedicated and robust budget for the CAP in shapingthe livestocknext farmingmultiannual systems;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;

Change 19

Removed:22. Calls on the Commission to build on the existing support measures under the CAP when addressing the sustainability challenges posed by livestock systems; insists that CAP subsidy payments are vital to livestock farmers’ incomes, particularly for holdings specialising in beef, dairy, sheep and goat production, and that a transitional period is therefore necessary to allow farmers sufficient time to adapt in the event that new support schemes are introduced in the post-2027 CAP;

Added: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;

Removed:23. Calls on the Commission to recognise the specific needs and challenges faced by livestock farmers in mountain and disadvantaged areas and to ensure adequate support through the CAP, including coupled support and targeted rural development measures;

Added: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;

Removed:24. 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 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, which suffers from a lack of attractiveness, and to take into account the increasing number of women working on livestock farms by promoting gender-inclusive measures and opportunities;

Added: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;

Removed:25. Invites the Commission, in the upcoming EU bioeconomy strategy, to recognise the role of livestock farming in circularity and to fully unlock the potential of livestock by-products through the rendering sector to provide additional sources of income for livestock farmers;

Added:28. 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;

Removed:26. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to identify adequate and long-term funding opportunities for appropriate preventive measures and adequate compensation for farmers, not only for any losses suffered and costs incurred as a result of large carnivore attacks, but also for the mitigation measures implemented;

Added:29. 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;

Removed:27. Highlights that the targeted amendment of the Habitats Directive to align EU legislation with the revised protection level of the wolf from ‘strictly protected’ to ‘protected’ in the updated Bern Convention aims to provide more flexibility in managing wolf populations across the EU, in order to improve coexistence and minimise the impact of the growing wolf population, including the related socio-economic challenges;

Added:30. 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;

Added:31. 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;