Commission amends egg labelling scheme to avoid dispute with US

Date: 12/03/1998

By Myles Neligan

THE European Commission has been forced to water down proposals aimed at improving welfare standards for battery hens after its lawyers advised that a key provision would breach World Trade Organisation rules.

As a result, a planned EU-wide scheme to label eggs laid on battery farms which observe minimum standards of animal welfare will now be voluntary.

The system was to have been compulsory for all eggs sold in the Union. But the Commission's legal experts warned that this would place non-EU producers supplying the European market under an illegal extra-territorial obligation to meet the same welfare standards.

The last-minute amendment was introduced principally to avoid yet another trade dispute with the US, the largest exporter of eggs and egg products to the EU. But the Commission still faces a battle with the Union's egg industry, which is second only to the Chinese in terms of output.

Under the proposals, the minimum cage height for battery hens would be raised from 45 to 50cm and the minimum space requirement per bird would be almost doubled from 450 to 800cm square. Separate criteria relating to nesting and perching facilities, litter, feeders and drinking troughs are also set out. These standards would apply initially to new cages built after 1 January 1999, but would be extended to cover all cages from 2009.

A representative of the British Egg Association claimed that the plans would “ruin” the European egg industry. “The cost of adapting to these new standards would come to over 14 billion ecu. This extra financial burden would make it impossible for us to compete with US producers, who already operate under far fewer constraints,” he said.

The plan is also likely to encounter opposition from member states, with many expected to oppose the proposed increase in cage height on grounds of cost.

The animal welfare lobby, however, has welcomed the latest Commission initiative. “This is a courageous step. It shows that Agriculture Commissioner Franz Fischler is taking animal welfare issues seriously,” said David Wilkins of the Eurogroup for Animal Welfare.

“Of course. we don't want the EU egg industry to go bankrupt, but we do want it to observe fair welfare standards. We believe that the Union should bring pressure to bear on the WTO to make allowances for countries which choose to uphold rigorous standards in this area.”