Agriculture - Authorities often fail to carry out required animal controls
In many districts in Saxony-Anhalt, there is a lack of personnel to conduct the required number of animal inspections at businesses. Several districts informed the German Press Agency on inquiry that often fewer than the required ten percent of businesses were inspected in the previous year. In addition to personnel shortages, some districts criticize increased bureaucracy or problems such as missing documents in livestock farms.
The problem is not only about the number of inspections but also about their intensity, stated the Landkreis Stendal for example. Due to the numerous requirements in veterinary law, these inspections are very labor- and time-intensive, whose preparation, execution, and follow-up consume a lot of time. In addition, the number of employees is often low in larger farms. Present employees often speak poor German, they are often fully occupied with taking care of the animals, and the business managers responsible for the farm are usually not on site.
Dead pigs left in the pen
At the beginning of the month, there were reports of alleged violations of the Animal Welfare Act in a pig breeding farm in Kleindemsin in the Jerichower Land. Two weeks ago, the slaughterhouse permit was revoked from a pig farm in Eisleben. In February, there were accusations of animal cruelty against the farm. Images from an animal welfare organization showed, among other things, that decomposing pigs were still in the pen next to the living pigs.
In Saxony-Anhalt, the Agriculture Ministry published a control ordinance last year, which, among other things, regulates the number of inspections. Accordingly, at least ten percent of businesses in the commercial pig farming should be inspected annually in the districts. At least five businesses should be inspected, according to the State Administration Office. "Which businesses are then inspected depends on a risk assessment that ensures, for example, that businesses with a high violation risk are inspected more frequently," said a spokesperson. Similar regulations apply to other animal species.
Personnel shortages - increasing tasks
However, several districts, including Jerichower Land, Burgenlandkreis, Wittenberg, Salzwedel, and Anhalt-Bitterfeld, stated that the required number could not be met or only for certain animal species. Above all, the regulatory inspections are no longer fully feasible personnel-wise, stated the Landkreis Wittenberg. In addition, there have been increasing acute cases in the past, especially in the animal welfare and animal disease sectors. There are also more and more reports or measures against overburdened animal keepers or inappropriate animal husbandry. The Burgenlandkreis also reports an increasing number of justified animal welfare reports. Therefore, the personnel is tied up more.
Possible solution: Higher fees for inspections
The agricultural policy spokesperson of the Greens in the state parliament, Dorothea Frederking, has criticized for a long time that animal welfare inspections are inadequate. It's not just about the raw number of inspections, but also about quality and the way they're carried out. The focus is often on building regulations or paperwork rather than the animals themselves. Frederking advocates for looking more at the animals themselves. For this, a better financial endowment in the authorities is necessary. Farmers should be asked for higher fees for inspections, according to the Greens' demand.
- In response to the personnel shortages, some districts in Saxony-Anhalt, such as Jerichower Land and Burgenlandkreis, are struggling to conduct the required number of animal inspections at businesses, particularly in commercial pig farming.
- The German Press Agency reported that in the Stendal District, for instance, the problem isn't solely about the number of inspections but also the intensity and labor-intensive nature of these inspections due to numerous veterinary law requirements.
- The Burgenlandkreis, another district, reported an increasing number of justified animal welfare reports, which ties up their personnel resources even further.
- The Greens in the Saxony-Anhalt state parliament, led by agricultural policy spokesperson Dorothea Frederking, have advocated for higher fees for inspections to provide a better financial endowment in the authorities, ensuring more focus on animal welfare and quality inspections.
