NL FR menu MUCH HIGHER FINES AND TOUGHER PRISON SENTENCES FOR ANIMAL ABUSERS 'With such a substantial increase in the penalties for animal cruelty, Flanders is significantly making up for lost time' Read more THE MURKY DEPTHS OF THE SCOTTISH SALMON INDUSTRY “The salmon suffer in silence” Read more TIME FOR AN EU COMMISSIONER FOR ANIMAL WELFARE How the EU can grant animals the better treatment they deserve Read more CELL-BASED MEAT A future without the slaughter of animals Lees meer Our actions and campaigns aim to gradually reduce abuse and organised cruelty against animals See all our campaigns GAIA in figures Support GAIA GAIA Education: 50.000+ SCHOOL STUDENTS informed and enlightened More than 85.202 MEMBERS on our side Nearly 575.000 CANS OF FAUX GRAS® DE GAIA were put on sale in 2020 GAIA celebrated its 29th ANNIVERSARY in 2021 News The Constitutional Court upholds the ban on slaughter without stunning in Flanders and Wallonia 30 September 2021 Following a lengthy legal battle, in December, the CJEU clearly concluded, in response to the preliminary questions by the Belgian Constitutional Court, that the ban on unstunned slaughter is not contrary to European law and that the Flemish ban strikes a fair balance between the right to religious freedom and animal welfare. With this ruling, the Belgian Constitutional Court also confirms the legality of the ban in Flanders and Wallonia. Much higher fines and tougher prison sentences for animal abusers in Flanders (Belgium) ACHIEVEMENT 25 August 2021 'With such a substantial increase in the penalties for animal cruelty, Flanders is significantly making up for lost time': GAIA’s President Michel Vandenbosch welcomed the Flemish government's decision at the initiative of the Minister of Animal Welfare, Ben Weyts, who announced the measures. GAIA has also insisted on this. Minister Weyts announced much stricter punishments for citizens and companies who mistreat or neglect animals. Animal abusers can be imprisoned for up to 5 years or even 10 years in case of repeat offenders. 'The Minister of Animal Welfare could hardly send an even stronger signal to the judicial authorities and to society as a whole that animal abuse must not be taken lightly', emphasises Michel Vandenbosch. NEW CAMPAIGN // Deformities, parasites, and high mortality rates: the murky depths of the Scottish salmon industry revealed in new undercover investigation GAIA INFORMS 23 March 2021 Between September and November 2020, a large-scale research[1] project involving drones and frogmen was conducted, commissioned by Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) in cooperation with GAIA, at 22 Scottish salmon farms rearing salmon in sea cages on a massive scale. The research reveals an enormous amount of animal suffering: salmon with deformities, diseases, missing eyes, seaweed growing from large open wounds, pieces of flesh and skin eaten away by sea lice, etc. Show all news Who we are What we do How you can help Contact us GAIA since 1992 Results to be proud of Meet our team Follow us and experience our actions and campaigns in real time Facebook Twitter Vimeo Press Subscribe to our newsletter and stay informed about our main actions © 2021 Legal notice Cookies