Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:1998:624
Date: 1998-12-17
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Agriculture and Fisheries;Free movement of goods;Measures having equivalent effect;Quantitative restrictions;Veterinary legislation
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Austria

Summary of the Judgment 
Free movement of goods — Quantitative restrictions — Measures having equivalent effect — 
Restrictions on the transport of live animals for slaughter — Obstacle to international transport 
— Not permissible —Justification put forward — Protection of health of animals — No justifica­
tion 
(EC Treaty, Arts 30, 34 and 36 (now, after amendment, Arts 28 to 30 EC)) 
I - 2921 
SUMMARY — CASE C-350/97 
On a correct interpretation of Articles 30, 34 
and 36 of the Treaty (now, after amendment, 
Articles 28 to 30 EC), a Member State is pre­
vented from restricting the transport by road 
of animals for slaughter by requiring such 
transport to be carried out only as far as the 
nearest suitable abattoir within national ter­
ritory and under conditions such that, upon 
observance of the motor vehicle and traffic 
regulations, a total journey time of six hours 
and a distance of 130 kilometres are not 
exceeded, account being taken of only half of 
the kilometres actually travelled on a 
motorway. 
Such a measure constitutes an obstacle to 
international transport as regards both jour­
neys to or from national territory and transit 
through it and is not justified on grounds of 
the protection of the health and life of ani­
mals, given that measures appropriate to that 
objective and less restrictive of the free move­
ment of goods are conceivable. 
I - 2922