Message 001
Communication from the Commission - TRIS/(2026) 1294
Directive (EU) 2015/1535
Notification: 2026/0234/DE
Notification of a draft text from a Member State
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MSG: 20261294.EN
1. MSG 001 IND 2026 0234 DE EN 11-05-2026 DE NOTIF
2. Germany
3A. Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie, Referat EB3
3B. Bundesministerium für Landwirtschaft, Ernährung und Heimat, Referat 321 (Tierschutz)
4. 2026/0234/DE - C00A - AGRICULTURE, FISHING AND FOODSTUFFS
5. Draft of a Third Act amending the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act (Tierhaltungskennzeichnungsgesetz)
6. Service affected: Pig farming; Products affected: Pork as fresh meat, as prepared for human consumption, and ready to eat
7.
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers: Articles 40, 43, 44 and 45
Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, Articles 40, 43 and 45
8. The Third Act amending the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act, which is currently under consideration for a vote, fundamentally reforms the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act. The amending act introduces various simplifications designed to reduce the administrative burden on businesses and administrative authorities. In addition, animal husbandry labelling will be extended to include food service establishments and certain processed foods. Another substantive change is the mandatory labelling of imported food products, replacing the previous voluntary participation by foreign market participants. This means that foreign market participants must partake in the animal husbandry labelling system if they wish to place their products on the German market.
Simplifications:
Pig farmers based in Germany, who only use the "barn" husbandry method do not need to submit a notification to the competent authority, as it can be assumed that domestic operators comply with German minimum standards. This measure will ease the administrative burden on the agricultural sector and on the administration.
Furthermore, it will allow the food industry to implement a practice known as ‘downgrading’. This means that pork can be labelled as coming from a less humane farming system than the one actually used during the fattening phase. Within this framework, food businesses themselves decide which farming system is stated on the labelling. This practice-oriented regulation results in more flexibility for food businesses when marketing food of animal origin. This therefore allows food businesses to react flexibly to changing market conditions, in particular with regard to supply and demand. At the same time, final consumers are always provided with information about the (minimum) husbandry standards, since it is now mandatory to label both domestic and imported food products.
Foreign market participants:
The act includes an obligation to label pork in accordance with the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act whenever this pork is intended to be offered on the German market, regardless of whether if it was produced in Germany. This replaces the previous voluntary participation for imported products.
Expansion of the scope to include sow and piglet husbandry:
The Third Act Amending the Animal Husbandry Labelling Regulations introduces an obligation for the husbandry methods ‘barn and space’, ‘fresh air’ and ‘outdoor/pasture’ to comply with the essential minimum requirements of German animal welfare law for sow and piglet husbandry. This includes, amongst other things, the German requirements concerning non-curative interventions (prohibition on piglet castration without anaesthesia), as well as the restrictions concerning the use of gestation crates for sows in breeding centres and farrowing areas. Accordingly, pork from animals that were not kept according to German animal welfare standards when they were piglets (or their sows) will be labelled with the lowest husbandry category "barn", regardless of how the animals were actually kept during the fattening phase.
Food services sector:
Food prepared for human consumption and ready to eat is also subject to the labelling requirement. In particular, this means that animal husbandry labelling can also be found in out-of-home catering, e.g. in restaurants, canteens and at snack stands.
9. Mandatory animal husbandry labelling addresses consumers’ desire for more information about the living conditions of the animals used to produce food. This allows consumers to make informed purchasing decisions and to consciously choose between different animal husbandry methods. At the same time, mandatory labelling highlights the efforts of farmers to improve animal welfare. The amending act aims to reform and expand animal husbandry labelling to ensure comprehensive consumer information. The amendment also aims to guarantee an application that is practical and free from unnecessary administrative burdens.
9a. The amending act aims to introduce mandatory labelling for imported food products, and to extend this requirement to the food service industry and certain processed foods. This will achieve the goal of providing comprehensive information about animal husbandry methods. 71 per cent of consumers report eating at a restaurant, pub or tavern at least once a month (see BMLEH Nutrition Report 2025, p. 24). In the food service industry, there is typically little or no information available about the living conditions of the animals from which the food is sourced. In particular, there is no mandatory labelling in this sector. To meet consumers' desire for more information and transparency also in this sector, this amending act aims to extend animal husbandry labelling to this sector.
The amending act provides simplifications for owners of livestock farms and food businesses (e.g. full downgrading and simplifications to the notification procedure and the labelling of ready-to-eat foods). These regulations aim to implement labelling requirements in a way that is both practical and minimises bureaucracy.
9b. The Animal Husbandry Labelling Act introduced the mandatory labelling of food products of animal origin, indicating the husbandry methods used for the animals from which they originate. To make adjustments to this, an amending act is necessary.
Consequently, this amendment to the existing Animal Husbandry Labelling Act is necessary to achieve the goals of comprehensive consumer information and an implementation that is practical and minimises administrative burdens. These goals cannot be achieved otherwise.
The coalition agreement for the 21st legislative period includes a provision for a fundamental reform of the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act. The resolution on the First Act Amending the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act (BT-Drs. 21/555) reaffirmed the necessity of such a reform.
9c. Given that the expansion of the labelling requirements also entails simplifications for stakeholders along the food chain, the burdens resulting from the mandatory labelling obligation are not disproportionate to the goal of providing comprehensive consumer information.
In particular, the possibility of ‘downgrading’ the labelling requirements, as well as simplifications in the notification procedure and to the labelling of ready-to-eat foods, contribute to minimising administration in the implementation of the labelling, ensuring that stakeholders along the food supply chain, as well as the administrative authorities, are not disproportionately burdened.
Furthermore, existing regulations build upon already established structures (e.g., for traceability and information-sharing), so that no parallel structure or similar needs to be created as a result of the Animal Husbandry Labelling Act. This also contributes to an implementation that is practical, efficient and minimises administrative burdens.
10. Reference to the basic texts: 2022/0693/D
Basic texts have been forwarded under a previous notification:
2022/0693/D
11. No
12.
13. No
14. No
15. No
16.
TBT aspects:
The draft is a technical regulation or a conformity assessment
The draft has significant impact on international trade
SPS aspects: No
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European Commission
Contact point Directive (EU) 2015/1535
email: grow-dir2015-1535-central@ec.europa.eu
