LIVESTOCK IN THE EU – PERIODIC NEWS

The crisis in Ukraine and its geopolitical consequences are leading to an increase in feed prices, production costs, energy and gas costs, which is putting a strain on European livestock farms. States continue to provide emergency aid to support farmers. Spain, which is particularly concerned by the consequences for monogastric farms, has set up several aids.

In the beef sector, a drop in meat production and a stagnation in milk production is expected. The pig sector is experiencing a delicate situation, with a drop in meat prices and the consequences of the international situation. In the poultry sector, the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza has led to the slaughter of 15 million animals in France, which encouraged the Commission to address the issue of vaccination.

Tensions on the feed market – particularly maize – are a reminder of the structural deficit between supply and demand in the EU. A drop in world production is also expected next year.

Europeans are therefore putting in place measures to allow the production of this food. In the short term, with stocks accumulating in Ukraine, the Commission is trying to find other ways than the inaccessible Black Sea ports to import Ukrainian grain.

On the link with the ecological transition, the Industrial Emissions Directive and the recent rule to take account of livestock farming considered as industrial are criticised for the apparent disconnection with reality that it demonstrates.Finally, other concerns relate to animal welfare, to a new European Citizens’ Initiative criticising the aid allocated to livestock farming and to the development of non-meat alternatives on the market (vegetable alternatives and cultivated meat).

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