While animals wait and suffer, lobbyists get meetings
Millions of EU citizens are calling for an end to cages and the killing of male chicks, yet top decision-makers still meet the industries linked to these practices.
Citizens ask for change.
Animal farming industry gets access.
For years, European citizens have been asking for clear actions for animals, an end to cages in farming, a ban on the killing of male chicks, and many more.
These demands have been formally recognised through public consultations and the European Citizens’ Initiative End the Cage Age.
Yet while these issues remain unresolved, EU decision-makers have continued to meet representatives of the industries connected to these practices.
The question is not what was said in those meetings but who is consistently in the room.
What the data shows
We analysed publicly available data from the EU Transparency Register and official meeting disclosures.
The data refers to meetings held by: the cabinets of Commissioners, Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi, and Commissioner Christophe Hansen.
Across these meetings, a clear pattern emerges:
A small number of animal farming industry actors appear consistently in high-level discussions.
who is behind these meetings?
Discover which political leaders are shaping decisions affecting millions of animals and who they choose to meet.
Olivér Várhelyi
Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare (since 2024).
Before taking on his current role, Olivér Várhelyi served as EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement (2019–2024) and Hungary’s Permanent Representative to the EU
As Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare, his mandate includes modernising EU animal welfare legislation and addressing issues such as cages and animal treatment in farming.
Meeting records show multiple engagements with stakeholders, including representatives from sectors linked to animal farming.
These meetings are part of standard institutional processes. However, they provide insight into which stakeholders are most frequently present in discussions.
Christophe Hansen
EU decision-maker involved in agricultural and food policy.
Christophe Hansen plays a key role in shaping EU agricultural policy, a policy area directly connected to farming practices and animal welfare.
Meeting disclosures show regular engagement with stakeholders across the sector, including industry groups.
Among these stakeholders are organisations that have historically taken positions on animal welfare legislation.
THE FOIE GRASS INDUSTRY
Among the associations identified in the data, several are directly linked to the foie gras sector. Foie gras production relies on force-feeding, a practice widely criticised by scientists and animal protection organisations.
Despite ongoing public debate and calls for reform, these stakeholders continue to have access to high-level meetings.
Olivér Várhelyi and the cabinet of Christophe Hansen met twice with Euro Foie Gras to discuss “animal health and welfare”.
A conversation about animal welfare shaped by an industry that profits from animal suffering. Foie gras is produced by inserting a tube of around 30 centimetres into the throats of duck and geese to enlarge their livers unnaturally.
Force-feeding is banned in several countries, but it remains legal in some countries such as France and Hungary, Várhelyi’s home country.
Following these meetings, in October 2025, the European Commission adopted a delegated act on poultry marketing standards that did not remove liver weight criteria linked to force-feeding. This is not a technical detail. Liver weight is used to define and market foie gras.
Keeping these standards means continuing to legitimise force-feeding within the Union states.
ORGANISED INDUSTRY INFLUENCE
The pattern goes beyond foie gras.
Meeting records show repeated engagement with organised industry groups, including actors connected to European livestock production.
Among them are stakeholders who have taken clear positions on animal welfare legislation – including opposition to restrictions on cage systems.
These are not isolated meetings.
They are part of a broader network of industry voices that consistently appear in high-level discussions.
The same actors show up again and again – in the rooms where decisions are shaped.
Meanwhile, the reforms citizens have been asking for – ending cages, stopping the killing of male chicks – remain delayed.
Yet these demands are not marginal. Over 1.4 million citizens supported the End the Cage Age initiative, and more than 190,000 people took part in the European Commission’s public consultation in 2025, which once again confirmed the European citizens’ strong support for banning cages, as well as a ban on male chicks killing.
Animal protection is not a niche issue.
It is a clear, documented demand from across Europe.
What’s missing from the agenda?
Hundreds of meetings. No concrete results for animals.
Animals are missing from the agenda, even though they are the ones paying the price.
Transparency matters.
Accountability matters.
These are publicly available data.
They offer a window into how decisions are shaped and who has access to decision-makers.
Write to Commissioners Hansen and Várhelyi and demand immediate action.
EVERY DAY, WE MAKE CHOICES
Animals have emotional lives and strong family bonds. Animals exploited in farming deserve protection.
You can help build a more compassionate world by choosing plant-based foods.
All data presented on this page is based on publicly available information from the EU Transparency Register and official meeting disclosures.
The analysis reflects observed meeting patterns and does not imply the content or outcome of individual meetings.
Commissioners’ photos © European Union, 2026