World's animal protection organizations request OIE to reconsider the animal welfare code for laying hens

To regain confidence in the OIE animal welfare code!

Press release: 2020/12/25

Japan’s animal protection groups Animal Rights Center Japan and The Humane League Japan, and the international chicken welfare alliance Open Wing Alliance, working with six domestic animal protection groups, have pointed out to OIE that the current draft of “Chapter 7.Z Animal Welfare and Laying Hen Production Systems”, which includes Japan’s possibly fraudulent opinions, is unreliable. We requested that the items that Japan’s comments and opinions may have influenced be reviewed, and be revised to a fair standard that could truly bring about improvements in animal welfare to the world.

This request letter was sent on 2020/12/24 (Japan time) to the OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) headquarters (Paris, France: The Director General, Dr. Monique Eloit) as well as to each regional representatives of the OIE.
Request letter: https://bit.ly/3ro0a6p

Domestic consumers, and even among companies, have noticed how outdated Japan’s farm animal welfare is, and the interest is increasing. The Niigata Animal Network, which has been engaged in activities to protect dogs and cats, also sent a request for review to the OIE on the following day, the 25th, also asking citizens to send their opinions to the OIE.

Background

There is growing suspicion that the former representative of Akita Foods, a major egg producer, has bribed the former Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. It has been revealed by the press that the intention at that time was to lower animal welfare in favor of the industry in Japan’s comments on the laying hen animal welfare code being formulated by the OIE.

Over this laying hen animal welfare code draft, we have been watching the Japanese government for the provision of science-based animal welfare. However, the Japanese government stubbornly did not reflect the opinions of consumers and continued to give opinions to lower the animal welfare in line with the current situation of the Japanese poultry industry.

Parts of Japan’s opinions are directly adopted in the draft.

The OIE’s animal welfare codes are based on scientific evidence and aims to improve animal welfare around the world. Achieving high animal welfare is directly linked not only to animal health, but also to human and environmental health and sustainability, and that’s especially important in countries like Japan where farm animal welfare is extremely low.

They are not enforceable codes, but are important conventions that affect the sustainability of society. It is regrettable that the discussions included bribery by the Japanese poultry industry that wanted to maintain the status quo.

There is a suspicion that Japan’s comments and opinions at the OIE General Assembly have been distorted by fraud. Standards adjusted based on these opinions raise questions about their legitimacy and validity, making it difficult to earn the trust of people around the world. The code will be adopted at the OIE General Assembly in May 2021, but the OIE must recognize that the code may have been distorted, and must correct this.

The world is stopping cage rearing and shifting to cage-free rearing. The society is moving toward one where all are at least cage-free, rather than the idea that there are some good ones.

[ Animal Rights Center Japan, a certified nonprofit organization ]

Animal Rights Center Japan is an animal protection organization in Japan that reveals the actual situations of animals, improves animal welfare, and promotes animal rights. We mainly carry out activities to protect animals who are treated as food such as eggs and meat, and animals who are treated as clothing materials such as fur and angora, create an action network of animal rights throughout Japan, and promote ethical consumption. The no-fur campaign, which started in 2005, has a track record of reducing Japan’s fur consumption by 80% in 10 years.

[ The Humane League Japan ]

Since its inception on 2017/4/1, The Humane League Japan has targeted major food manufacturers, hospitality companies, restaurants, food contract companies, and other major companies that have influences in Japan, Asia, and the world. We are continuing activities to introduce the policy of “cage-free egg procurement” in order to liberate as many chickens as possible from cages.

[ Open Wing Alliance (OWA) ]

OWA is a global coalition of animal protection organizations focused on creating a unified front in our campaign to end the abuse of chickens worldwide. The alliance was founded in 2016 by The Humane League and has grown into a global force with 84 member organizations changing the way the world’s biggest companies treat animals and setting a new standard for corporate animal welfare policies locally—in every major market—and globally.