How Aging Makeshift Vessels Transport Farm Animals Out of the EU

Global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS on transport vessel Express M stuck en route to Haifa

What happens if an aging makeshift vessel carrying animals gets stuck at sea? Lack of food, risks of dehydration, even a possible heat stroke – the list of dangers for animals is alarming. This horrible scenario recently involved the Express M, a transport vessel carrying farm animals that departed from Midia, Romania on 22 February en route to Haifa Israel. Due to technical issues, their journey took 15 days – tripling the expected journey of five days. For global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS, these cases of unplanned prolongations of transport journeys raise serious concerns about the wellbeing of animals born and raised in the EU and transported in inappropriate vessels to third countries.

“When a vessel doubles or even triples its journey time unexpectedly, it raises serious animal welfare concerns – do the animals have enough water and food? How are they dealing with the often already hot temperatures inside? How are ships prepared to take care of animals during unexpected delays? The transport vessel Express M incident raises important but hardly discussed questions. It also puts a spotlight on the severe gaps in EU legislation that – in theory – should protect the wellbeing of animals transported via sea. These gaps are not just ‘legal flaws’ but may ultimately be responsible for the deaths of innocent animals every year,”

Corinna Reinisch, Programme Lead Farm Animal Welfare at FOUR PAWS

Many transport vessels carrying animals within and out of the EU are old and derelict makeshift transporters – averaging at almost 43 years – which were initially not designed for animal transports. According to the Animal Welfare Foundation, more than 35% of EU approved livestock carriers have had technical issues or incidents while being in service, including engine failures, fires or oil spills. The Express M has been in service for over 40 years. Just three months prior to this incident, the vessel was detained in Portugal for 25 reported deficiencies. “Given its aging condition, Express M should have never been given the authorisation to leave the shores of Romania. There is no shortcut to improve these transport conditions but to ban sea transports completely,” adds Reinisch.

Israel Against Live Shipments (FFA) witnessed and documented the unsanitary transport conditions of the animals when Express M arrived in Haifa.

The European Parliament and the Council of the EU are currently working on amending the European Commission proposal on the protection of animals during transport. FOUR PAWS urges them to strengthen its legislation around animal transports and calls for:

Ban on live animal transports to third countries
Ban on live animal transports by sea
Ban on transport of unweaned animals
No animal transports in temperatures below 5°C or above 25°C
Restrict maximum transport duration to eight hours (four hours for poultry and rabbits)
Slaughter of animals at the nearest suitable slaughterhouse
Transport of meat and carcasses instead of live animals

Source: FOUR PAWS

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