Germany pushes ahead on poultry welfare

Representatives from the German poultry industry organization ZDG have made public a new Poultry Charter, presenting the document to the federal agriculture minister, Christian Schmidt.
ZDG President, Leo Graf von Drechsel, said the Charter is proof of how seriously his members take their responsibilities to their animals, people and the environment, now and in the future. The whole sector gave input into its 6 chapters, which cover such hot topics including animal welfare, the use of antibiotics, disease prevention and consumer information.
Schmidt praised the industry for its active engagement in delivering this latest initiative. Having laid the foundation stone in July by ending routine beak-trimming of laying hens and fattening turkeys, the Charter provides new requirements and ambitions for the whole poultry meat sector, he said. It is a sign of the readiness of the industry to meet the expectations of the market and of consumers, he added.
The Charter describes the poultry sector and how it works. It makes clear that those whose standards fall short will not be allowed to remain in the organization, while also setting out what the sector requires from politicians and society so that it can achieve its stated aim of making Germany the best country in the world for poultry.

New regulations on Pekin duck welfare in Lower Saxony

The German region of Lower Saxony has made a significant step to improve the welfare of farmed Pekin ducks. These birds will from now on have access to water to meet their behavioral needs for preening their feathers in addition to that for drinking.
An agreement was signed earlier this week by the region’s agriculture minister, Christian Meyer, and Friedrich-Otto Ripke, president of the local poultry association, NGW.
Ripke commented that his association is in favour of improving animal welfare by any means that is practical, proven to be good for animals and workable on farms. The fact that most of the welfare suggestions have come from within the industry is noteworthy, he said.
Among the points covered by the agreement is that if access to bathing water is impossible, the ducks must be able to immerse their heads in water. Scientific studies have shown that open troughs and bowls are adequate for the birds to carry out these natural requirements.
Up to now, ducks only needed water provided for drinking but all farms with more than 500 fattening Pekin ducks will have to provide water for bathing from the end of 2016.
Also under the agreement, all duck keepers will have to participate in an animal health scheme. According to Ripke, Pekin ducks are robust and rarely require antibiotics but, as for other farmed species, duck farmers will have to maintain records of their state of health and make them available to the authorities.
Furthermore, ducks must also have permanent access to manipulable materials and there will be higher requirements for the training of animal keepers. All these measures are aimed at maintaining the reputation of Pekin duck keepers with the public, according to Ripke. Lower Saxony has around 800 Pekin duck farmers with places for a total of around 1.2 million birds.
Germany is 72 percent self-sufficient in duck meat. About 50,000 Muscovy ducks are also reared in Lower Saxony and these have been covered by an agreement over minimal standards since the beginning of 2013. Beak trimming, which was a normal practice to prevent feather pecking and cannibalism, was banned in 2014 and replaced with other precautionary measures.

Germany to end beak tipping

Beak tipping in Germany will end on January 1, 2017. The German Poultry Association, the German Egg Association and the Association of German Turkey Producers have entered into an agreement with Germany’s Federal Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt, albeit on a voluntary basis, to end the practice.
The sector will stop beak tipping layers from August 1, 2016, and will stop stocking pullets with tipped beaks from January 2017.
Leo Graf von Drechsel, president of the Central Association of the German Poultry Industry commented: “Animal welfare is key for guiding our daily work. We see ourselves as constructive partners, we hear very clearly what society thinks and we are proud to have implemented this agreement on a voluntary basis.”
He continued that, in order for the German layer sector to not be put at a disadvantage by the agreement, it should be promoted at European level and the practice harmonized across the European Union’s Member States. 

Low pathogenic avian influenza in German layer flock

Low pathogenic H7N7 has been confirmed in a layer flock in Herzlake, Lower Saxony, Germany.
According to a June 11 report from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), there were 36,100 birds in the flock. There were no mortalities in the flock.
The source of the German avian influenza outbreak has not yet been determined. OIE noted that no poultry or poultry meat has been moved to other regions in Germany, EU member states or third countries. Eggs have been moved to one state of Germany only but no eggs have been to EU member states or third countries.
Screening and zoning measures will be initiated at the farm, and the property will be disinfected.
The report of the Herzlake avian influenza case was released the same day OIE issued a report that a previous H7N7 avian influenza case, also in Lower Saxony, had been resolved. In that case, reported in March, a fattening turkey holding of 23,500 birds in Langen was infected. There were 100 deaths, and the remaining birds in that flock were destroyed.
Bookmark WATTAgNet’s avian influenza update page for the latest news and analysis about how the avian influenza virus is impacting the global poultry industry.

Germany’s Wiesenhof returning to GM-free feed for poultry

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  Andrea Gantz

  German poultry producer Wiesenhof is returning to using feed free of genetically modified ingredients.

  From WATTAgNet:
  German poultry producer Wiesenhof announced it would return to using feed free of genetically modified ingredients due to consumer demand.
  Wiesenhof’s decisions comes just 10 months after the German Poultry Association unilaterally declared that it would stop using GM-free animal feed, following similar moves by other associations in England and Denmark. Reasons given at the time to stop using GM-free feed included a shortage of GMO-free soya, the risk of contamination, and the associated legal uncertainty.
  Wiesenhof confirmed December 5 that it will soon be in a position to supply GM-free fed poultry again, as this is what is “desired by customers.”
  Alexander Hissting of the Association Food without Genetic Engineering stated: “We expect an almost complete return of the poultry meat industry to GMO-free production in the coming months.”
  The decision was also a result of pressure from German supermarkets, as in late August the supermarkets, with a broad consensus, demanded the German Poultry Association to stop using GMO feed for both egg and poultry meat production, beginning January 1, 2015. That is the date when the retailers want to receive GMO-free fed products again, meaning that poultry suppliers have had to rush to get their feed supply chains again free from GMO feed.

German poultry temporarily banned from Russia

Russia has imposed temporary trade restrictions on live poultry, eggs and poultry products from Germany, following an outbreak of avian influenza in Germany.
According to Rosselkhoznadzor, the Russian federal service for veterinary and phytosanitary surveillance, temporary restrictions have been placed on the following products:


• Not heat treated poultry meat and all kinds of poultry products (not less than 70 C), feeds, feed additives for poultry (excluding feed additives of chemical and microbiological synthesis) and used equipment for poultry management, slaughter and cutting from Germany
• Live birds, hatching eggs, down and feather, poultry meat and all kinds of not heat treated (not less than 70 C) poultry products, feeds and feed additives for poultry, used equipment for poultry management, slaughter and cutting from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Brandenburg of Germany.
The restrictions have been put in place after H5N8 avian influenza was detected at a turkey holding in Germany in early November. In that outbreak, an estimated 1,880 birds were infected with culling efforts following.
Germany is one of a handful of countries that have been dealing with problems centered around avian influenza. Outbreaks of avian influenza have also been reported in The Netherlands, U.K., India, Japan and Canada.
The outbreaks have prompted the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to urge the global poultry industry to increase their avian influenza prevention efforts.

German poultry, livestock farmers face more antibiotic scrutiny

Local authorities in Germany will soon be able to recommend change where antibiotic use on farms is found to be above average and, in extreme cases, suspend livestock owners from farming.
The change, aimed at gradually reducing the use of antibiotics in livestock farming, is part of the 16^th Act amending the German Drug Act, which came into force in July, and applies to chicken, turkey, pig and cattle farmers.
Under the new system, supervisory authorities will assess the frequency of antibiotic therapy on a farm and make comparisons with other farms. Following comparisons, a farmer can be required to take action deemed necessary.
As part of the system, poultry and other farmers must report every six months on what antibiotics they have administered to which animals in the period and in what quantities. After federal state authorities and the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety have analyzed the data, a nationwide “farm-specific biannual therapeutic frequency” list will be drawn up, with first due for publication in March 2015.
If a farm’s individual index exceeds the federal average, the farmer and veterinarian will have to jointly identify the causes and take steps to curb antibiotic use. If a farm’s index is among the highest 25 percent, the farmer will, after consultation with veterinarians, have to draw up a written plan to cut antimicrobial use and submit that plan to the competent authorities.
Farmers can now be obliged to change husbandry methods, feeding practices, stocking densities and hygiene measures, and failure to comply could result in fines or a suspension from keeping animals.

Discovery of avian influenza in Germany leads to trade barrier

Poultry from Germany has been banned from being imported into Hong Kong, after a low-pathogenic form of avian influenza was detected at a poultry farm in Thuringen, Germany. Hong Kong's ban of German poultry quickly followed a report from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) that confirmed the discovery of avian influenza in Germany.
The virus killed four birds, while another 823 susceptible birds at the farm were destroyed. Zoning procedures have been implemented, and the property has been disinfected. There has been no poultry movement from that farm to other regions in Germany or to other countries, according to the OIE report.
A spokesperson for Hong Kong's Center for Food Safety told the Global Times the Hong Kong agency has been in contact with officials from Germany concerning the avian influenza issue.