Bundestag requires large slaughterhouses to install cameras — Der Spiegel

Germany’s Bundestag has adopted amendments to the Animal Welfare Act requiring large slaughterhouses to install video surveillance systems. The new rules are intended to help monitor compliance with animal welfare standards during slaughter, Der Spiegel reports.

Which facilities the requirement will cover

Video cameras will be mandatory for facilities where more than 1,000 cattle, 5,000 fattening pigs, or 150,000 chickens, turkeys, or rabbits are slaughtered annually. According to an estimate cited in the report, this will make it possible to cover more than 90% of all slaughtering in the country with video surveillance.

The law also allows cameras to be required at smaller facilities if there are specific indications of possible violations of animal welfare rules. Agriculture Minister Alois Rainer said that video surveillance should help bring those responsible for improper treatment of animals to account.

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Effective date and reactions

The amendments will take effect on January 1, 2027. Facilities affected by the new requirement will be given one year for the technical implementation of video surveillance systems.

AfD lawmaker Bernd Schattner criticized the law, saying it would create additional costs, documentation requirements, and bureaucratic burdens for businesses. At the same time, the Greens and the Left Party consider the reform insufficient. Greens parliamentary group spokesperson on agricultural policy Zoe Mayer advocated video surveillance at all slaughterhouses, without exceptions for small facilities.