Eurogroup for Animals condemns the authorisation of insect-protein in pig and poultry feed
The Farm to Fork strategy recognises the urgent need for a shift in European diets towards more plant-based food, but it also emphasises the role of improved animal welfare in a sustainable food system. Eurogroup for Animals cautions that allowing insect protein for feed will go contrary to the intentions in the Farm to Fork strategy by preserving the status quo of factory farming instead of achieving a dietary shift towards more plant-based diets in combination with higher welfare and sustainable farming systems. Other than maintaining the status quo of intensive livestock farming, concerns are raised in the scientific literature with regards to environmental consequences, risks to the One Health approach and the lack of knowledge about insect welfare.
We are deeply concerned that insect protein is announced as a sustainable solution to animal feed. Replacing soy with insects, that will be industrially produced on a massive scale, to feed factory farmed pigs and poultry is not the way forward to create sustainable food systems. We need to urgently move towards a dietary shift, with more plant-based diets and systems with fewer animals that allow for higher animal welfare. Unfortunately, the decision to authorise the use of insect-derived protein for pig and poultry feed serves to prop up intensive animal production in the EU rather than supporting the transition to a truly sustainable food systemReineke Hameleers, CEO of Eurogroup for Animals
