July 2025 Newsletter – Phasing Out Fur Farming: Latest EU Animal Law Developments
Welcome to the July edition of the European Institute for Animal Law & Policy's newsletter!
Dear subscribers and supporters,
As we conclude the first half of the year, we are pleased to begin this edition of the newsletter with a landmark development in EU animal welfare law. The EU has officially listed minks under the Invasive Alien Species (IAS) Regulation, a move that effectively prohibits their keeping and breeding, thereby bringing mink farming in the EU to a de facto end. Although some Member States, notably Denmark, are seeking exemptions, the regulation marks a historic step towards phasing out fur farming across the Union.
As many institutions and offices wind down for the summer, we encourage all stakeholders to engage in two pivotal public consultations now underway: one concerning the reform of EU legislation on farm animal welfare, and another addressing the future of fur farming. These consultations represent a rare and timely opportunity to shape the legal landscape in ways that can deliver more meaningful protections for animals throughout the EU.
At the Institute, we were proud to co-sign the recently published Blueprint for an EU Action Plan for Plant-Based Foods, as well as a joint letter on global ocean policy delivered at the United Nations Ocean Conference. While our activities will slow in August, we will return in the fall with renewed momentum. In the meantime, please save the date for a major conference we are co-organizing with the French Foundation for Animal Law (LFDA), to be held on November 18th in Brussels. This high-level event will convene leading voices in the field to advance the legal and policy agenda for animals in Europe – a unique opportunity to take part in shaping the future of EU animal law.
In this edition of the newsletter:
Updates from the Institute
A Vote of No Confidence Against President Von der Leyen
Animal Law News
EU
Member States
International Law
Events
Publications
Job Postings
Updates from the Institute
Publications
Alice Di Concetto (Chief Legal Advisor) authored two entries on “Animals Used in Research and EU and International Law” and “Overview of EU Animal Law” in the Elgar Concise Encyclopedia of Animal Law. Use the code “ANML35” at checkout for a 35% discount.
Media Appearances
Gabriela Kubíková (Policy Advisor) was interviewed by the Catalan news agency Agència Catalana de Notícies regarding the European Parliament’s recent vote on the proposed EU law on the protection of dogs and cats.
Alice was quoted in a Vox.com article about new Swiss food labeling laws.
Alice was also interviewed on the podcast How I Learned to Love Shrimp hosted by James Özden, to discuss EU farm animal welfare reforms.
Events
Past
Alice Di Concetto (Chief Legal Advisor) spoke at the conference “Access to Justice for Animals in Europe: Towards an ‘Aarhus Convention’ for Animals?,” on July 1st in Hamburg, Germany. The event was organized by the research group AJA (Access to Justice for Animals) and hosted by the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law.
Alice also presented on developments in EU animal law at a conference at Université Toulouse-Capitole, in Toulouse, France, on June 23rd.
Upcoming
Alice will speak at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics’ Summer School, Animal Captivity and the Law: Progress and Limitations, on August 6th.
Alice will speak on a panel entitled “Behind the Green Mask: Food Industry's Marketing Tricks” at the European Vegan Summit, which will take place online from September 9th – 11th.
What the Vote of No Confidence Against President Von der Leyen Tells Us About New EU Political Dynamics
On July 10th, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen faced a no confidence vote, introduced by far-right Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). Although the motion was decisively rejected by an overwhelming majority of MEPs, such votes remain rare and symbolically significant within EU institutional politics.
While the outcome was never in serious doubt, the episode offered a revealing glimpse into the shifting dynamics between the Commission and the Parliament, as well as between political groups, in the wake of the June 2024 election. Notably, several members of Von der Leyen’s previous coalition – the Socialists (S&D), the Greens, and the centrist liberals (Renew) – used the debate to voice their opposition to Von der Leyen’s agenda, particularly the Commission’s deregulatory turn.
This discontent was underscored by Von der Leyen’s late June announcement that the Commission may withdraw its proposal for a new Green Claims Directive – a legislative initiative that would have regulated commercial environmental claims and, indirectly, benefited animal welfare. The move reflects broader political tensions and foreshadows continued contestation around the EU’s green and social policy agenda in the next institutional cycle.
Animal Law News
Animal Law News in the EU
🇪🇺 EU
📝 New Laws
Access to Justice (Environmental Rules): On May 12th, the Commission adopted Implementing Regulation 2025/905, amending Regulation 794/2004 to enhance public access to justice in matters concerning EU State aid. Under the new rules, nonprofit organizations are now entitled to request an internal review of administrative acts adopted under state aid procedures.
Animal Health (Veterinary Profession): On April 10th, the Commission adopted Delegated Directive 2025/1223 amending Directive 2005/36 on minimum training requirements for veterinarians.
Companion Animals (Brexit): On June 13th, the Commission adopted Implementing Regulation 2025/1165, which lays down specific rules for the application of Regulation 2023/1231 regarding the information to be included in the pet travel document (“passport”) for certain companion animals entering Northern Ireland from other parts of the United Kingdom.
Wild Animals (Wolves): On June 17th, the EU adopted Directive 2025/1237 amending Directive 92/43/EEC (Habitats Directive) on the protection status of wolves. Published in the Official Journal on June 24th and entering into force on July 14th, the amendment effectively downgrades the conservation status of wolves under the EU Habitats Directive. However, national competent authorities remain obligated to demonstrate that killing authorizations do not affect the “good conservation status” of the species. For a detailed legal and policy analysis, please read our full report.
Fur Animals: On June 20th, the EU Council approved an amendment to the EU’s regulatory list of invasive alien species under Regulation 1143/2014 (Invasive Alien Species Regulation), formally classifying the American mink (Neogale vison) as an invasive species. Once the updated list enters into force later this summer, the keeping, breeding, and farming of mink will be prohibited throughout the EU. However, some Member States, such as Denmark, will likely apply for an exemption for “reasons of compelling interest, including those of a social or economic nature.”
Wild Animals (CITES): On June 23rd, the Commission adopted Council Decision 2025/1314 on the EU’s proposals for amendments to the appendices to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) ahead of the 20th meeting of the Conference of the Parties, which will take place from November 24th – December 5th.
🌐 Trade Agreements
Aquatic Animals (Quotas): On July 2nd, the EU and the Côte d'Ivoire adopted a Protocol on the implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement on fish quotas. The Protocol does not include animal welfare measures, such as those addressing bycatch, the treatment of marine life, and it contains only limited oversight provisions regarding fishing practices.
✍️ Public Consultations
⚠️ Farmed Animals: The Commission has launched a “call for evidence” seeking scientific and economic input to inform the revision of EU farm animal welfare legislation. Key areas of focus include the use of cages, the killing of chicks, and the extra-territoriality of EU animal welfare measures on imports.
Deadline for submissions: July 16th, 2024.Wild Animals (Insects): The European Commission is seeking feedback on its draft act outlining a science-based method for monitoring pollinator diversity and pollinator populations under the Nature Restoration Regulation.
Deadline: July 17th 2024.
Fur Animals: The European Commission is seeking contributions in science and economics (“call for evidence”) to inform its assessment of the European Citizens’ Initiative “Fur Free Europe,” which calls for an EU-wide ban on fur farming and the sale of farmed fur products.
Deadline: August 1st 2025.
Other News
Farmed Animals (Environment): On June 4th, the Commission adopted Recommendation (EU) 2025/1179, promoting the “water efficiency first” principle, which encourages water-saving measures across sectors, including agriculture.
Farmed Animals (Transport): On June 10th, the Polish government, which held the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU from January to July 2025, published a progress report on the Proposal for a new Regulation on the Protection of Animals During Transport. The report includes recommendations to extend maximum journey times for most species and to widen the acceptable temperature range during transport to 0°C to 35°C (up from the current 5°C to 25°C standard).
Farmed Animals (Factory Farming): On June 12th, the organization AGtivist published an investigation “The Face of European Farming,” revealing the ubiquity of factory farming in the EU. The investigation was covered in major EU media, including Euractiv and the Corriere della Sera.
Animals Used for Scientific Purposes: The Council and the Parliament reached a provisional agreement on the “One Substance, One Assessment” package (a series of three proposals for new regulation), which aims to streamline assessments of chemicals across relevant EU legislation, strengthen the EU’s knowledge base on chemicals, and reduce the reliance on animal testing.
Aquatic Animals: On June 20th, the European Committee of the Regions adopted an opinion on the “European Oceans Pact,” calling for stronger EU action to strengthen the EU’s maritime governance and promote sustainable ocean policies.
Consumer Information (Greenwashing): A statement by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen indicating that the Commission could withdraw the proposed “Green Claims” Directive sparked a coalition crisis, raising concerns about a potential fracturing of the centrist alliance (EPP, Renew, Greens, S&D) in the European Parliament.
Member States
📝 New Laws
🇦🇹 Austria – Farmed Animals: On May 9th, Austria’s Parliament adopted an amendment to the Animal Welfare Act (zum Tierschutz-Gesetz) to phase out fully slatted floors in pig production. The legislation provides a transition period lasting until June 1st, 2034 for existing facilities. Interim improvements, such as higher welfare standards, must begin by June 2029.
🇫🇮 Finland – Labor Legislation: On June 16th, Finland implemented a new legislation that allows employers to require employees to work if a strike poses an immediate and serious threat to animal welfare.
🇫🇷 France – Companion Animals: On June 29th, the French administration adopted new rules amending its existing framework on companion animal welfare. The updated regulations introduce new regulations for the fostering of cats and dogs for adoption and include a ban on inbreeding practices.
🇫🇷 France – Farmed Animals: On July 8th, France’s Parliament passed a new law (loi Duplomb), easing environmental rules for industrial farm animal production. The law raises thresholds for mandatory environmental assessments, from 40,000 to 85,000 chickens, and from 2,000 to 3,000 pigs, facilitating the expansion of large-scale infrastructures. These changes, set to take effect in late 2026, align with Directive 2010/75/EU on Industrial Emissions (IED). The law must now be reviewed by the French Supreme Court (Constitutional Council).
🇮🇹 Italy – Companion Animals: On May 29th, the Italian Senate definitively passed Bill S. 1308, strengthening legal protections for animals. The new law amends both the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, reclassifying animals as victims in their own right and increasing penalties for offenses such as abandonment, cruelty, and organized animal fights. However, wild and farmed animals are excluded from the scope of the new law.
⚖️ Rulings
🇫🇷 France – Animals Used for Scientific Purposes: On June 19th, the Dijon district administrative court ordered greater transparency regarding the Mézilles dog breeding center (Yonne), following a lawsuit from the animal advocacy group One Voice. The court ruled that the prefecture must respond and disclose more detailed information about the center’s practices.
🇫🇷 France – Animals Used for Scientific Purposes: On June 16th, France’s highest administrative court, the Conseil d’État, issued a ruling affirming that inspection reports produced by national authorities responsible for enforcing animal welfare legislation in laboratories constitute administrative documents. As such, they must be disclosed upon request. The court also held, however, that identifying information contained in these reports must be redacted to protect the physical integrity of researchers. This decision stems from a legal action brought by Nicolas Marty, of Observatoire de l’expérimentation animale (OXA).
🇫🇷 France – Animals Used for Scientific Purposes: In a series of 18 rulings handed down on June 26th, the Paris Administrative Court (Tribunal administratif de Paris) found that the French administration had not properly designated, as per the rules laid out in Directive 2010/63, 18 ethics committees responsible for evaluating and approving procedures involving the use of animals for scientific purposes. While the Court acknowledged procedural shortcomings in the committees’ designation, it did not invalidate their past authorizations of animal use, ruling that the committees’ decisions were not, in themselves, unlawful. This ruling was handed down as the result of a lawsuit filed by Transcience.
🇪🇸 Spain – Human Rights: In a ruling handed down on July 11th, the High Court of Galicia determined that Spanish national and regional authorities had violated residents’ human rights to live in a healthy environment protected under Spanish constitutional law, EU law, and the European Convention on Human Rights, by failing to manage record levels of pollution from hundreds of pig and poultry farms in the A Limia region. Read more from ClientEarth.
Other News
🇧🇬 Bulgaria – Criminal Law: On July 4th, the Bulgarian Parliament voted in favor of 11 bills amending the Penal Code, including an increase in criminal penalties for animal cruelty and the creation of special juries for animal cruelty cases. The bills will need to be approved in a second reading for it to be adopted.
🇪🇪 Estonia – Companion Animals: In an opinion piece published on July 2nd, the Estonian Minister of Regional Affairs and Agriculture announced the adoption of a series of new companion animal welfare measures, including a ban on dog tethering and zoophilia, stiffer criminal penalties in cases of animal cruelty, and new licensing requirements for shelters.
🇮🇹 Italy – Farmed Animals (Chicks): On June 19th, the State-Regions Conference approved guidelines on in-ovo sexing, requiring hatcheries to use non-invasive technologies to determine chick embryo sex by the 14th day of incubation. This follows the December 2023 legislative decree banning the selective culling of male chicks as of December 31st, 2026.
🇮🇹 Italy – Wild Animals (hunting): On June 20th, the Minister of Agriculture published a bill relaxing hunting regulations (Legge 157/92). The draft bill includes proposals to restrict the scope of hunting bans in certain areas, and for certain species of animals, allow live bait hunting, while expanding the permissible types of hunting weapons.
🇳🇱 Netherlands – Farmed Animals: On June 24th, Agriculture Minister Wiersma concluded an agreement for “a humane agriculture” (Convenant stappen naar dierwaardige veehouderij) with 13 organizations from the private and nonprofit sectors. The goal of this agreement is to gradually improve farm animal welfare by 2040 under the oversight of a new independent authority responsible for monitoring progress towards this end. Announced measures include the reduction of stocking densities on pig farms and a ban on tail docking by 2030; a ban on the tethering of dairy cows and calves by 2035; a ban on cages in the egg sector by 2035, and a reduction on stocking densities on broiler chicken farms. The Dutch administration further submitted a new draft regulation implementing the agreement to public consultation.
🇪🇸 Spain – Companion Animals: On June 30th, the Spanish government submitted two draft royal decrees for public consultation on the identification and ownership of companion animals, implementing the 2023 Animal Welfare Law. The proposals provide mandatory training for dog owners, mandate dog owners to subscribe to insurance, and mandate the use of contracts for the sale, adoption, or donation of companion animals. The decrees further require the microchipping of dogs, cats, and ferrets. The government also plans to launch a centralized database to ensure traceability and prevent animal abandonment.
🇸🇪 Sweden – Farmed Animals (Cages): Sweden has effectively become cage-free for hens, following commitments from 85 companies to cease sourcing eggs from farms that use cages for laying hens.
🌏 International Law
📝 New Laws
🇦🇺 Australia – Companion Animals: On June 10th, 2025, the 2024 Family Law Amendment Act entered into force. The law amends the 1975 Family Law Act to create new rules on companion animal custody during separation court proceedings.
🇲🇽 Mexico – Wild Animals in Captivity (Cetaceans): On June 28th, Mexico adopted a new law amending the General Wildlife Law (Ley General de Vida Silvestre) to ban the use of dolphins and other cetaceans for entertainment purposes. The law allows the captivity of cetaceans for scientific research purposes.
⚖️ Rulings
🇬🇧 United Kingdom – Aquatic Animals: Following a judicial review brought by Animal Equality against North East Lincolnshire Council for approving the construction of a land-based salmon industrial farm, the High Court of England and Wales ruled that animal welfare can be considered a “material consideration” in planning decisions. This is the first time a UK court has officially recognized animal suffering as a valid legal factor in urban and rural development approvals.
Other News
🇧🇷 Brazil – Animal Testing: On July 9th, Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies approved the Senate substitute for bill PL 6602/13 (now PL 3062/22), banning federal animal testing for cosmetics, personal hygiene products, and perfumes. The bill now awaits presidential approval before implementation within two years.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom (Northern Ireland) – Companion and Farmed Animals: In May 2025, the Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs launched a 10-point Animal Welfare Pathway aimed at reinforcing companion and farmed animal protection. The 2025–2027 plan includes regulatory action to ban third-party pet sales, regulate dog breeding and animal shelters, and mandate the use of video surveillance in slaughterhouses.
Events
Academia
Summer School – The Ethics of Captivity, The Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics Annual Summer School, August 4th – 7th, Oxford (UK). Learn more.
Conference – European Animal Rights Law Conference, Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law, September 4th – 5th, Cambridge (UK). Learn more.
Conference – Animal Law & Advocacy Conference, Animal Justice, September 26th – 28th, Toronto (Canada). Learn more.
Conference – Animal Law Conference, Animal Legal Defense Fund and the Center for Animal Legal Studies at Lewis & Clark Law School, October 17th–19th, Chicago (USA). Learn more.
NGOs
Summit – The European Vegan Summit, September 9th – 11th, online. Learn more.
Conference – Conference on Animal Rights in Europe (CARE Conference), September 11th – 14th, Warsaw, Poland. Learn more.
Publications
Law & Policy
New resource: The newsletter of the Observatoire Quebecois de Droit Animalier (OQDA) (in French).
FAO, Review of the State of World Marine Fishery Resources, 2025.
European Commission, Shaping the Future of Food Research and Innovation: Insights and Recommendations from Food 2030 Experts (2025).
European Parliament Research Services, Future-Proofing the Vision for Agriculture and Food (2025).
UNEP, Unlocking the Sustainable Transition for Agribusiness (2025).
Academia
A. Acosta et al., The Future of Antibiotic Use in Livestock, Nature Communication (2025).
Maria Bielza et al., Impacts of Reduced Livestock Density on European Agriculture and the Environment, Agricultural Systems (2025).
Diana Dajnowicz-Piesiecka (ed.), Animal Protection in Poland as a Challenge for Criminal Law and Criminology (2025).
Joan E. Schaffner (ed.), Elgar Concise Encyclopedia of Animal Law (2025). Use the code “ANML35” at checkout for a 35% discount.
Elien Vernier, De nieuwe Vlaamse Codex Dierenwelzijn en het welzijn van landbouwdieren, VVOR Environment (2025) (in Dutch).
NGOs
Alex Godfroy and Melanie Muro, Improving Animal Welfare through the Common Agricultural Policy, IEEP (2025).
Global Fishing Watch, A Vision for Ultimate Beneficial Ownership in Fisheries (2025).
Calls for Contributions
The Animal Legal Defense Fund is inviting animal law papers for its 2025 Student Convention. Deadline: July 30th. Learn more.
Job Postings and Career Advancement
Job Offer – The World Federation for Animals is looking for a Food Systems Policy Officer (based in Rome). Learn more.
Job Offer – The Food Policy Coalition is looking for a Project Officer (based in Brussels). Learn more.
Brooks Animal Law Student Summit – The New York University (NYU) Center for Mind, Ethics, and Policy invites expressions of interest for the upcoming Brooks Animal Law Student Summit. Faculty, students, and researchers across the humanities, sciences, and law and policy are encouraged to apply, with a particular emphasis on law students (JD, LLM, JSD) with a demonstrated interest in animal law. Learn more.