Amended proposal for a Council Directive laying down minimum standards for the protection of laying hens kept in various systems of rearing(1)

(1999/C 184/03)

COM(1999) 223 final - 98/0092(CNS)

(Submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 250(2) of the EC Treaty on 12 May 1999)

On 11 March 1998 the Commission presented the above proposal to the Council.

Following the opinion the European Parliament delivered at its sitting of 28 January 1999, the original proposal is amended as follows:

- the following recital is added: "Whereas it is also essential to strike a balance among all the factors involved, including pathological aspects and the socio-economic and environmental implications;"

- in Article 2 a new paragraph is added: "6. 'Beak-trimming': the removal of the point of the upper and lower mandible."

- Article 3(1) first paragraph, is replaced by: "1. Member States shall ensure that from 1 January 2001, all newly built or rebuilt systems of rearing and all such systems of rearing brought into use for the first time, excluding those already covered by Directive 88/166/EEC, comply at least with the following requirements:"

- Article 3(1)(b) is replaced by: "(b) Adequate perching facilities, mounted at least 10 cm above housing or tier level, without sharp edges and providing at least 15 cm per bird, must be available for all hens. The horizontal distance between perches must be no more than 1 meter;"

- Article 3(1)(e) is replaced by: "(e) when continuous drinking troughs are used, each bird must have access to at least 3 cm of trough and where circular drinking troughs are used there must be access of at least 1,5 cm. When cups or nipple drinkers are used, at least one cup or nipple drinker must be provided for every 10 birds. If the group size is less than 10 birds at least two nipple drinkers or two drinking cups shall be within reach of that group;"

- Article 3(2) is replaced by: "2. If systems of rearing are used where the birds can move freely between different levels the following additional conditions to the requirements of paragraph 1 shall be met:

(a) stocking density may not exceed 20 hens per m2 of floor surface area; nest areas are not to be included as part of the floor surface area;

(b) the height between the levels must be at least 50 cm;

(c) the drinking and feeding facilities must be distributed equally;

(d) the competent authority may allow beak trimming, with the restriction that beak trimming may only be practised on chickens less the age of 10 days;

(e) at least one third of the floor surface area must be supplied with litter."

- Article 3(3) is replaced by: "3. If enriched cages are used the following additional conditions to the requirements of paragraph 1 are met:

(a) cages shall be at least 50 cm high at any point;

(b) cages shall be provided with a fully-opening cage front or an equivalent opening in another part of the cage to prevent injuries to the birds;

(c) there shall be a minimum aisle width of 1 meter between tiers of cages to facilitate inspection, installation and depopulation of birds;

(d) the birds shall not have their beak trimmed."

- Article 4(3) is replaced by: "3. However, from 1 January 2006 the required space per hen as laid down in paragraph 1(a) of this Article shall be increased to at least 550 cm2 per hen."

- Article 6.3 is replaced by: "3. Every two years, by the last working day in April and for the first time by 30 April 2003, Member States shall inform the Commission of the results of the inspections carried out during the previous two years in accordance with this Article, including the number of inspections carried out in relation to the number of holdings in their territory. This report shalll be available to the public."

- Article 9(1) is replaced by: "1. Not later than 1 January 2008, the Commission shall submit to the Council and to the Parliament a report, drawn up on the basis of an opinion from the Scientific Veterinary Committee, on the systems of rearing for keeping laying hens which comply with the requirements of the welfare of laying hens from the pathological, zootechnical, physiological, behavioural and socio-economic point of view, together with appropriate proposals to phase out those systems of rearing which do not meet these requirements."

- Article 10 is replaced by: "Article 10

Council Directive 88/166/EEC is repealed with effect from 1 January 2001."

- Article 11(1) first subparagraph, is replaced by: "1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions, necessary to comply with this Directive before 1 January 2001. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof."

(1) OJ C 157, 4.6.1999, p. 8.