If the demands of the animal welfare referendum were implemented in pig fattening, the consumer would get his schnitzel only 7 cents more expensive.

11.10 a.m., March 17, 2021

The citizens’ initiative “Oekoreich” has now calculated how much more expensive meat would be if the fattening animals were kept better: everyone would Demands of the animal welfare referendum in pig fattening implemented, this would lead to additional costs of around 50 cents per kilo of slaughter weight. It would be 35 cents if existing animal welfare support were included. With a schnitzel weighing 200 grams, stayed 7 cents for the consumer left.

The figures come from a study by Leopold Kirner and Bernhard Stürmer published in “Reports on Agriculture – Journal for Agricultural Policy and Agriculture”. In the maximum variant “Animal Welfare Standard 2” will with double space (1.4 square meters per pig), separate eating and lying area without full gaps, Litter and run and the Prohibition of tail docking and castration without anesthetic as well as with GMO-free feeding calculated.

In the second highest level, the “Animal welfare standard 1”, with 1.1 square meters per pig and without full gaps, with litter and exercise area, even if it is only 8.5 cents per kilo or less than 2 cents per serving of pork schnitzel at additional costs.

“The study by Professor Kirner shows impressively that the implementation of the demands of the animal protection referendum is not only realistic, but also affordable“, says Sebastian Bohrn Mena, spokesman for” Oekoreich “, the follow-up initiative to the popular animal protection initiative. “Nobody can say that it would not be affordable.” Now it would be up to politicians to provide the necessary funds. Overall, the conversion costs would only amount to a few million euros per year, even for the maximum animal welfare variant.