The European organisation of poultry meat producers, Avec, launches the ‘Sustainability Charter’, symbolising the European chicken meat sector’s commitment to a more sustainable future.
In the context of the European Green Deal and the ‘Producer to Consumer’ strategy where the 27 EU Member States are committed to transforming the EU into the first climate neutral continent by 2050, the EU poultry sector wants to contribute to sustainability by committing to the best possible balance between the 3 pillars of sustainability: environmental, social and economic.
The poultry sector is part of the solution in ensuring sustainable and available food and the Avec Sustainability Charter aims to pave the way for continuous improvement with a list of ambitions in the sector in the following areas
- Environmental impact
- Packaging
- Animal welfare
- Antibiotics
The path towards sustainability and resilience in each EU country is different and must be considered and respected. The Charter is designed to evolve over the years and among Avec members.
Avec invited its members to translate and adapt the Sustainability Charter to their national sustainability strategy.
Policy decisions should aim at the best balance between the 3 pillars of sustainability.
This is why Avec is presenting the European Commission with a list of policy measures needed to ensure the success of the Sustainability Charter 2022.
Here are some important points highlighted:
- Imported products must reflect the requirements imposed on EU products, including animal welfare.
- A level playing field should be ensured for meat imported from third countries at EU borders by increasing the frequency of checks.
- Investment in better residue control in meat imported from third countries to ensure compliance with EU standards.
- Audit missions to third countries should lead to the control of the entire supply chain from hatchery to slaughterhouse. On-farm and feed mill controls are particularly important.
- New legislation on mandatory origin labelling should be introduced for all products containing poultry meat (especially in out-of-home consumption).
AVEC-sustainability-charter_WEB.pdf (avec-poultry.eu)
The editorial staff of M.A.C.
