Source: European Parliament
1. The Commission is consistently working to identify tools that can help farmers transit to rearing undocked pigs. In parallel, the Commission is engaging in discussions with Member States to facilitate the exchange of information and best practices to rear undocked pigs. The Commission has established an animal welfare working group under the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed — Section on Animal Health and Welfare, which met in September 2024 and in May 2025, with the topic of tail docking on the agenda of both meetings[1].
2. The results of the assessment of each Member State’s action plan will be addressed to their respective competent authorities.
3. The Commission has a range of options as regards its enforcement efforts and has certain discretion in deciding on launching infringement procedures against Member States. In the case of tail docking, enforcement options are currently being examined in the context of the new Commission mandate.
- [1] https://food.ec.europa.eu/animals/animal-welfare/animal-welfare-expert-group_en.