Debate contributions by Sebastian EVERDING

Mr President! "What we do today decides what the world will look like tomorrow," said Austrian writer Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach. Commissioner, I have a vision where food is no longer linked to competitiveness. In this vision, farmers have a secure income and we are witnessing a partnership on an equal footing; On the other hand, consumers who are willing to buy regional and seasonal products, free of pesticides and genetic engineering. In my vision, these healthy plant-based foods are subject to minimal taxes, while animal products are subject to taxes that do justice to environmental degradation, the threat to human health and the immense suffering of animals. In my vision, factory farming and animal transport come to an end. The citizens’ initiative ‘End the Cage Age’ will be taken into account and no animal will be locked in cages anymore. Both agriculture and industry are fully committed to plant-based meat alternatives and lab-grown meat to change. And yes, no one will call it more milk than a healthy drink.

Mr President! Dear colleagues! How can a lasting peace be mediated in many places around the world when families have no answer to the fate of their relatives? This represents one of the greatest obstacles to the healing, reconciliation and reconstruction of societies. The numbers are more than frightening, with more than 71,000 people missing in Africa and around 42,000 in Ukraine. Not only soldiers, but also many civilians. But we don't have to look so far away, because in Central Europe, too, around 10,000 people are missing whose remains were never found after the violent disintegration of Yugoslavia. The international community, including the EU, urgently needs to take steps to find an effective way to clarify the fate and whereabouts of missing people. Without progress, there can be no lasting peace in many regions because of the pain, loss and perceived injustice. I conclude with the words of George Bernard Shaw, who says: War is a state in which people who do not know each other shoot at each other at the command of people who do know each other but do not shoot at each other.

Dear Mr. Colleague! Thank you very much for the objection, which I cannot understand in any way. It has been scientifically proven that industrial factory farming – animal farming in principle – is a huge emitter of greenhouse gases. And forests are being cut down without end for the cultivation of feed. And if all this were to go away, more land would be free to grow food for starving people. Instead, everything is fed to animals. So here the perspective is very different: Less animal husbandry is good for the environment, for people and for the climate anyway.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen! ‘Forests precede peoples, deserts follow them’. This was already said in the 17th century by the French writer Chateaubriand. Climate change and the massive use of fertilizers are exacerbating soil erosion and species extinction. Groundwater abstraction for mining activities, industrial factory farming and irrigation in agriculture deprives forests of the groundwater that is urgently needed for regeneration in times of drought. They contribute to soil silting, damage the ecosystem and dry CO2-Down like Moore. There is an urgent need to act through more protection zones and more withdrawal restrictions. Another remedy for desertification could be a stronger focus on agroforestry. Droughts are already threatening the livelihoods of around 1.8 billion people worldwide and are pushing vulnerable communities to the brink. In addition, they cost $300 billion per year and threaten key economic sectors such as agriculture, energy and water. Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, as with all other aspects of climate change, the following applies: It is far cheaper to act now than to try to compensate for the consequences later.

Madam President, In Europe, whales have been hunted since at least the 9th century – a very dark time when people were usually unable to read and write, fighting terrible diseases due to lack of hygiene. Fortunately, we have evolved in many areas in Europe. Now it is time to finish one of the last chapters of the Dark Ages. Since 2002, more than 1,500 whales have been killed in Iceland, including endangered fin whales. Harpoons are used with explosive bullets that explode in the animals. The death struggle often lasts up to two hours. The whole thing is done by a single commercial whaling company, and 90 percent of the meat is then exported to Japan. In addition, there are health reasons that speak for an immediate stop to all global whaling activities. It is scientifically proven that people who frequently consume whale or dolphin meat are more susceptible to memory disorders, Parkinson's disease and immune deficiencies. If we can't protect the whales, we won't be able to protect the oceans. And if we can't protect the oceans, we won't be able to save ourselves as humans. – Paul Watson.

Madam President, Dear Commissioner, “It is the anonymity of the animal victims that makes us deaf to their cries” - this is what the writer Luise Rinser said, and she is right. If you want to eat something healthy, you can often find fitness salads on menus. Curiously enough, this does not include vegetable proteins, but chicken meat. In the EU, 6 billion chickens are slaughtered every year. That is thirteen times more than there are residents in the EU. A broiler is usually a patented, fast-growing breed. Their lives are very short – usually 28 to 42 days. They would not last longer under this fast moderation, according to the working group on peasant agriculture. Because the animals can not hold forward due to the strong imbalance, which would result in bone fractures. If a normal-weight baby were to grow so quickly, it would weigh over 100 kilograms after 36 days. The rules governing their keeping have long since become obsolete, as confirmed by EFSA in a recent February 2023 opinion on the welfare of broilers and laying hens. Dear Commissioner, can you confirm that, in addition to the cage rules, you will also propose a revision of the laws on the welfare of chickens for fattening? And will you also commit to include the remaining proposals on kept animals, slaughter and labelling in the Commission's work programme for next year? Millions of citizens are concerned about animal welfare in the European Union, and they are waiting here for more clarity on what will happen next year when it comes to animal welfare.

Mr President! “You can cut one wire, you can cut a second wire, and the net will continue to work. However, if you cut the xth wire, it suddenly stops working.” This is how Bruno Oberle, then head of the World Conservation Organisation, described the loss of biodiversity. And even today, unfortunately, many contributions fail to recognize the dimensions in which we find ourselves. As the colleague rightly pointed out, we are currently in the most rapid extinction of species in Earth's history. Never before have so many animal and plant species died out in such a short period of time, and we are driving the pace ever further. To give just one example: There are currently more chickens in stables than there are wild birds. We urgently need immediate measures such as a reduction and a ban on dangerous pesticides, a massive expansion of nature reserves, away from plastic and garbage, an end to factory farming and overfishing, towards a circular economy and also a massive restriction on hunting. And what do we do with it? Those responsible bow to the pressure of the agricultural and hunting lobby and reduce the protection status of the wolf, despite the obvious lack of scientific evidence. The wolf is considered an important part of biodiversity, which helps to keep ecosystems in a natural balance.

Dear colleague! That's what I was trying to do. Even though I belong to The Left, I am a representative of the German party Mensch Umwelt Tierschutz – Tierschutzpartei. We have no SED past. I therefore ask that this question be addressed to the right addressee. That's not me.

Madam President, Happy birthdayDear Convention on the Rights of the Child! Unfortunately, many recent surveys say that although many children and young people are familiar with the term – children’s rights – there is nothing concrete about it. This needs to be filled with much more tangible content by all educational institutions. In my opinion, children also have a right to a healthy, non-animal diet and to a clean and intact environment. In this context, it is particularly important to mention the right to participate, for which education for sustainable development – GNI – is the key instrument. However, drastic cuts are planned for the German federal budget for 2025. And I say quite clearly: No cuts at the expense of children. Another increasingly important aspect is the mental health of children. This has been steadily deteriorating since the early 2010s. This can lead to anxiety, depression and even suicide at a young age. However, the majority of young people in Europe do not have access to therapies and therefore remain untreated. This is absolutely unacceptable. Finally, it should be mentioned that since 2018, more than 1,500 children have died or are considered missing in the Mediterranean Sea.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen! Tobacco use is the biggest threat to public health, with eight million deaths worldwide each year. Two thirds of smoked cigarettes end up in nature, where they cause massive damage to the animal and plant world, because the stubs contain nerve agents and microplastics. The goal of creating a ‘smoking-free generation’ by 2040 is absolutely worth supporting, but still a long way off. The tobacco lobby continues to advertise with freedom, coolness and independence and currently particularly likes to package its harmful substances in varieties such as Strawberry ice cream or Peach ice tea. Countries such as the Netherlands have already successfully put a stop to this and currently only allow tobacco taste. Nevertheless, with such strategies, it is not surprising that the rate of adolescent smokers continues to rise. Especially with Vapen and in the case of disposable e-cigarettes, which are so popular among young people, the long-term effects of the wet vapor mixed with aromatic substances have still not been sufficiently researched. Smoking is a bit like climate change: You don't die directly from it, but the consequences are all the more serious.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen! Unfortunately, there is little new in the Budapest Declaration. Ambitious targets such as the circular economy, sustainability and social rights are mentioned only incidentally. Particular attention should be paid, however, to the last point, namely the agricultural sector, including the extension of the European Union's own resources. I am strongly in favour of more own resources, as the challenges of the future are getting bigger and bigger and we need to develop our EU in a crisis-proof and competitive way. However, the link between sustainability, agriculture and more own resources must be made much stronger at this point. Due to factory farming, the agricultural sector is responsible for a double-digit share of greenhouse gas emissions. This entails inconceivable risks for species protection, animal welfare and also for health – keyword One health – concomitantly. So if we want to read and implement the best of the Budapest Declaration, we cannot avoid own resources from emissions trading, which explicitly includes the agricultural sector. This rational and ethical possibility must be urgently examined and implemented as soon as possible. Finally, we do not have to compete with the rest of the world in the production of food. Food is not an object of speculation.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen! Rail is still not competitive compared to air and road transport. Yeah, as well? On a partially dilapidated infrastructure, high-speed, goods and local transport compete with each other, which often also leads to security risks. One solution could be a European network of magnetic levitation trains – explicitly not in competition, but as a complement to traditional rail transport. In China, research has been carried out on this topic for many years, and in Europe, too, metropolises could be connected with trains of 600 km/h and faster, if only we wanted to. Operating renewable energies could make intra-European short-haul flights obsolete and thus make a valuable contribution to climate protection. That's why I appealed at a late hour: Europe, let's not forget the magnetic levitation!

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! My sympathy goes out to all the victims. However, we should not speak of floods of the century, but of floods of the century. I read this very appropriate sentence on the Internet a few days ago. And then you hear here on Monday during the debate on the strategic dialogue and again today that the vast majority of MEPs are only calling for improvements in civil protection and civil protection in order to counter terrible flood events and other climate catastrophes – higher dams, thicker walls and, above all, higher compensation. Can we perhaps just work on the causes of climate change instead of constantly messing around with the consequences? Even if some here in the room – especially on the right – would like to displace the connection: Schnitzel and steak, SUVs, cruises – all of these have an impact on climate change. Our consumption and the way we live have a massive impact on climate change and the resulting disasters and loss of life. Another point that is often left out is the surface sealing. As a result, more and more green areas are disappearing, but agricultural areas are also being destroyed in favour of settlement and traffic areas. On the other hand, settlement and traffic areas are growing every day. Instead, let's save human and animal lives together and take on the historical responsibility and do something about climate change! I would like to end with the words of the Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho: “The world is changing by your example, not by your opinion”.

Mr President, Commissioner! In the strategic dialogue we can see some very concise sentences. Among other things, it states: “The time for change is now!” "Switching to a balanced, healthier and sustainable diet is essential". I can fully subscribe to these statements, because it is now time to talk about how we can slowly get out of climate-damaging, polluting and, above all, cruel animal husbandry – of course, with full consideration for farmers within the EU. I would like to point out another point very quickly. It states that there is a trend in the EU towards fewer animal products and, at the same time, an increasing interest in plant proteins. What can we derive from the strategic dialogue? We must clearly move towards net zero area consumption, i.e. less forage crop cultivation. We need a transparent animal welfare labelling system, away from animal fertilisers and financial support for agriculture towards animal welfare-free agriculture. Finally, in this one minute of my speaking time, I would like to point out that 43 cattle, 418 pigs and around 11,000 chickens have been slaughtered.