MEPs and Animal Health
On November 27th, 2025, FESASS attended the high-level meeting on Animal Health and disease prevention organised by Sustainable Livestock Intergroup, held at the European Parliament in Strasbourg — a very insightful exchange between EU institutions, international organisations and sector experts. A timely discussion on a central question for Europe: How do we reduce the impact of animal diseases — and who should pay for it?
The meeting was opened by Benoit Cassart, EU Deputy and Intergroup Chair, who expressed his concern about the wide differences in disease control measures across Member States and the need for a more harmonised, risk-based approach.
FESASS was represented by its First Vice-President, Stéphane Jeanne. He took the opportunity to emphasise the importance of greater harmonisation of health requirements for animal movements within the Union (See the video).
Experts shared perspectives on biosecurity (Pr. Ilias Chantziaras, Ghent University), culling practices (Dr Eric Cardinale, ANSES) and the growing potential of vaccination as technologies evolve (Jean-Luc Guérin, INRAe et ENVT).
From the institutional side, Francisco Reviriego-Gordejo (DG SANTE) presented current EU rules and emergency tools, while Montserrat Arroyo Kuribreña (World Organisation for Animal Health) emphasised science-based, adaptable global standards.
Anne-Catherine Dalcq, Wallonia’s Minister for Agriculture, raised a key point: farmers are on the frontline, so prevention costs should be more fairly shared across the entire food chain. She also underlined the value of vaccination, provided it is easy to implement.
The meeting concluded with European Commissioner Oliver Várhelyi, who warned about the unprecedented surge in diseases such as HPAI, ASF, PPR, FMD and Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) — and the need for a stronger long-term EU strategy.