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Sheep being transported in poor conditions

Act now to stop long distance live animal transport

Sign this petition to the EU Commission

Worldwide, every year, tens of millions of farmed animals are live transported over long distances, forced to endure journeys of hundreds, or even thousands, of miles, only to be slaughtered on arrival or be fattened in often inhumane conditions

Many of these journeys take place across or from the EU. Under current rules, pigs can be transported for 24 hours non-stop and sheep and cattle for 29 hours with just a one-hour ‘break’. At the end of such journeys, a 24 hour break is mandated, but following this break, the cycle can be repeated as often as it takes until the animals arrive at their final destination, to the extent that they can be on the move for several days or weeks. 

In addition to the routine suffering taking place during long journeys such as dehydration, stress, and overheating, live export is inherently risky and sometimes disaster strikes leading to dire and heart-breaking consequences for the animals. 

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In the latest such incidents:

  • Over 2,600 calves heading from Spain were killed after being kept adrift at sea for three months as no county wanted to accept them due to suspected disease outbreak.
  • Another crisis followed in April when a container ship blocking the Suez Canal, a major shipping route, meant potentially hundreds of thousands of animals were left trapped for additional time onboard crowded, over-heating vessels.


Karim Allah & Elbeik investigation and footage credit - Animal Welfare Foundation

Join us in demanding a ban on the export of live animals outside the EU, a ban on long-distance transports over eight hours and a ban on the transport of live animals on ships.

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Let's reform the system

The lack of controls and penalties is a systematic violation of the already lax EU regulation 1/2005 on the protection of animals during transport. The few breaks and the stocking density of the vehicles are continuously disregarded. We demand a reform of the system. It is time to end this now, immediate measures and a change in the law are necessary to protect animals.

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How many more disasters will be tolerated?

By signing this petition you are urging the EU Commission to review the EU Transport Regulation.

Will you sign this petition?

WE, THE UNDERSIGNED, call for a revision of EU Transport Regulation and immediate action to address the worst animal welfare issues. The revised EU Transport Regulation should provide the following:

  • An immediate ban on the export of live farmed animals to third countries for fattening and for slaughter;  
  • Live transport journey times to be limited to a maximum of eight hours and four hours only for poultry, by 2024, with investment in well-managed local and mobile slaughterhouses to reduce travelling times;   
  • A ban on transporting unweaned animals;
  • More unannounced checks and tougher sanctions for infringement; 
  • A prohibition on live transport if expected outside temperatures are below 5˚C or above 25˚C;   
  • Strict enforcement of the Regulation.  

The issues of long-distance live animal transport and live exports should also be addressed in the context of:

  • European Commission objectives to urgently improve animal welfare and to improve public access to healthier diets with less meat;
  • European Union international commitments on climate change and sustainability, including food security – the EU should not market live animals or animal products from harmful and polluting industrial farming systems to third countries.

And direct action against live exports should be accompanied by significant reductions in the numbers of farmed animals in the EU, to reduce the need for transporting and exporting excess livestock.

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