Brittany Ferries Ends Live Animal Transport Following NGO Pressure

Following over a year of sustained international campaigning by animal welfare organizations, ferry operator Brittany Ferries has confirmed it will stop transporting live farmed animals from Ireland to France by September 2026 at the latest.

The announcement is a major victory for animals and campaigners across Europe, who have been working tirelessly to bring an end to the practice. The transport of live farmed animals has been a contentious issue, with many arguing that it is inhumane and poses significant animal welfare risks.

Brittany Ferries was at the centre of controversy after it resumed the transportation of live farmed animals from Ireland to France in March 2025, reversing a policy of 30 years. On these journeys, calves are kept inside trucks for an 18-hour ferry crossing, exposed to prolonged hunger, distress and lifetime health consequences. Following the crossing, some animals were transported onwards to Netherlands, Spain and Poland, with journeys lasting up to 50 hours.

The transport of unweaned calves is in direct breach of the EU Transport Regulation, noted by a European Commission audit. Animal protection organisations have coordinated campaigns, collected over 100,000 signatures from citizens and held regular demonstrations in Ireland, France and the UK to bring attention to the issue.

A survey released in January found that 82% of EU citizens expressed concern about the transport of very young and unweaned animals, with only 22% convinced that current protections were adequate.

### Animal Welfare Organizations Call for Change

Animal protection organisations are now calling on the EU to prohibit the transport of unweaned animals over long distances, introduce strict journey-time limits and replace the export of live animals for slaughter and fattening with a trade in meat and carcasses.

Over 60,000 citizens have already signed an open letter asking policy-makers to ensure that a revised EU legislation adequately protects animals during transport.

### Irish Ferries Under Pressure

Irish Ferries is now the only operator continuing the trade from Ireland to France, and animal protection organisations are calling on the company to urgently follow suit.

The announcement by Brittany Ferries is a landmark victory for animals that shows the power of mobilising NGOs and citizens, while sending a clear message to EU policy-makers who are negotiating the revision of the EU's 20-year-old animal transport legislation.

### Table of Comparable Figures

| | | | --- | --- | | | | | EU citizens expressing concern about the transport of very young and unweaned animals | 82% | | EU citizens convinced that current protections were adequate | 22% | | Number of citizens who have signed an open letter asking policy-makers to ensure that a revised EU legislation adequately protects animals during transport | Over 60,000 |