O goodness on a plate

By year, as many as 80 billion land animals and more than a trillion sea animals, go to our plates and bins due to the fact that we waste food in a frightening way.

During this year's Freedom Games as part of the panel o Animal welfare Morgan Janowicz (Green REV Institute), Karolina Kuszlewicz (law), Karolina Chodkowska (LabFarm), Aleksandra Ozimek (Open Cages) and Magdalena Galkiewicz (Party of Zielona, Civic Coalition) jointly debated.

Their discussion took place only a fewer days after Ursula von der Leyen gave an yearly speech on the state of the European Union (The State of The Union #SOTEU) in which the president of the European Commission importantly ignored the issue of revision of current government in the context of animal welfare from industrial farming and did not rise the issue of creating legal foundations for building a sustainable food strategy (Sustainable Food strategy Law). This is clear support for the demands of the European People's organization (EPP), 1 of the largest factions in the European Parliament, which has been building support for the livestock sector since the start of the war in Ukraine and is trying to prevent its improvement under the European Green Deal.

There's something to reform. According to the UN, we are wasting about a 3rd of our food on a global scale, with about 88 million tons of food thrown into the garbage all year in the European Union alone. This strategy is inefficient. On the 1 hand, it offers a more privileged part of the planet food from all over the globe, “over seasons”, “overlocal” in any amount, on the another hand – as many as 811 million people (9.9% of the population of the earth) starve and endure from malnutrition.

Often in favour of maintaining the existing status quo there is an argument about the increasing population in the world. However, expanding animal production will not aid feed the world, but on the contrary, the livestock sector is the driver of climate disaster, killing biodiversity, destroying water, dirt resources, polluting and causing civilizational diseases. alternatively of producing animal feed, we should rebuild wildlife and produce plant food for humans alternatively of killing animals – rebuild water resources and make agrarian areas alternatively of feeding food with antibiotics – educate and strengthen awareness of the function of agriculture and the food system.

The discussion on welfare is constantly a discussion about animals on our plates and food poverty, which poses a real and real threat to billions of people worldwide. Further investigations by NGOs, which show the cruelty, abuse and reality of industrial farms, do not go to politicians. Finally, as long as the killing of animals in the name of the profits of meat and dairy companies is normalised, the European Commission will respond to further calls from NGOs, as in July 2023 erstwhile a communication was issued in consequence to the French NGO L214 run against the grinding of duck chicks: “The Union must not prohibit the killing of ducks for purely moral reasons.” And that's where the dog is buried. In the current legal situation, animal welfare is in part: food and its production, not in government to defend animals from suffering, disease, cruelty. If specified government were to be created, its intent would should be clear – closure of the farm.

The question is, if moral issues and empathy towards animals are not adequate reason to change the law, will the quality of life and wellness of people surviving in agrarian areas in the vicinity of farms? Will there be a improvement of EU government on the welfare of industrial animals after almost 40 years? Politicians do not want to perceive to the public, they like to talk to interest groups, so unless animals have a strong, decisive and uncompromising representation, decision-makers will consistently support those who have a cruel strategy of feeding the planet with a moral, climatic, social and wellness disaster on a plate. Therefore, erstwhile discussing welfare, it is worth considering a strong action for a green, fair transformation of the food strategy and justice for all animals.

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Panel: Welfare of breeding animals

• Karolina Chodkowska – a scientist, a veterinarian, a technological manager at LabFarm Sp. z o.o.,
• Morgan Janowicz – Green REV Institute Partnership KOO,
• Karolina Kuszlewicz – the lawyer and founder of “The Chancellery on the Vistula”,
• Aleksandra Ozimek – Specialist for political advocacy in the Open Cages Association, doctor, specialist in gynecology and obstetrics.

Moderation: Magdalena Gałkiewicz – Secretary of the National Board, National Councillor and co-chair of the Łódź Green Party.

Path: Green 100 days

Co-organizer: European Climate Foundation

How do we view animals these days? As a sentient, respectable being or as a origin of protein? Are we susceptible to the harm of animals reared in industrial farms? Or possibly we don't know what's going on there or – seduced by a image of a happy pig on a pack of meat – we don't want to know at all? What benefits will global switching to a plant diet for reducing greenhouse gases? And are we on this road yet?