The intergroup dedicated to sustainable livestock farming has been launched as a platform for informal exchanges of views, allowing us to address substantive and topical issues in a constructive atmosphere, taking into account the interests of all stakeholders, including civil society.
Each intergroup includes MEPs from at least three different political groups. Although they are not official bodies of the European Parliament, intergroups are recognised by the Parliament, which regulates their creation. The intergroup is established at the start of the term by consensus among the chairs of the political groups. For this new term, around fifty intergroups were proposed by MEPs on very different topics, ranging from space to children's rights, cancer and many others. The maximum number of intergroups was set at 28 for this term, and despite strong competition among the topics, the intergroup dedicated to sustainable livestock farming was approved. This one, proposed by Belgian MEP Benoît Cassart (Renew Europe) and supported by Austrian MEP Alexander Bernhuber (EPP) and Romanian MEP Marie Grapini (European Socialists), received the backing of the European Parliament's Bureau.
“We fought hard to create an intergroup dedicated to sustainable livestock farming, because it seemed essential to us to put livestock farming back at the heart of the European agenda. Livestock farming is often subject to excessive criticism, most of the time based on little evidence. The aim of our intergroup is to provide accurate and scientific information on livestock farming from different angles. First, the environment. This is the current issue that most concerns the public, following the severe impacts of climate change and the disasters it causes. We will look into the real impact of livestock farming and the improvements that could be made. Secondly, animal welfare. I believe this is where we hear the most misinformation about our sector. Equating livestock farming with cruelty to animals is intellectual nonsense.” said Benoît Cassart, farmer and MEP.
The aim of the intergroup dedicated to sustainable livestock farming is to bring together livestock farmers, farmers, politicians, EU officials, university professors and heads of scientific research centres to work on an objective basis. The idea is to connect a whole world that has an interest in livestock farming, whether close or distant, even consumers who are bombarded with dogmatic information not based on any scientific evidence.
“Livestock farming is clearly declining year after year. Yet it is a solution to many problems, whether in terms of food sovereignty, the circular economy or the preservation of biodiversity. Once livestock farming disappears, it will be for good, even though it is essential to the agricultural ecosystem. People who are not farmers' children and who have no connection to this farming activity will not revive it. A new term is beginning, so it is time to make the right decisions if we want to revitalise livestock farming in Europe. With the ongoing work on the new CAP, many are thinking about the future, and decision-makers need to be as well informed as possible in order to make decisions that support the revitalisation of livestock farming in Europe.” concluded Benoît Cassart, MEP.
The creation of an intergroup dedicated to sustainable livestock farming, together with the own-initiative report on the future of livestock farming, for which Mr Cassart was appointed rapporteur for the Renew Europe group, shows that the European Parliament is finally aware of the need to recognise livestock farming as an essential activity and that it is high time to support and strengthen it.