Executive Summary

Since the API was first published in 2014, Denmark has not enacted a new primary source of animal welfare legislation. The Act on the Protection of Animals in Denmark is from 1991 and the latest consolidated version is from 2018. The new Act is applicable to all animals, defined as ‘living beings.’ It is positive that a ban on bestiality was enacted in 2015 and is included in the Protection of Animals Act. Legislation specifically dealing with farm animals has largely been introduced in order to comply with European Union requirements and, in some instances, welfare provisions go beyond EU law, for instance with regards to the welfare of pigs and calves. Moreover, Denmark performs particularly well with regards to the use of animals in experiments, since the country has banned the use of animals for cosmetic testing and has created the 3R-Centre, dedicated to increase attention on the Three Rs principles – Replacement, Reduction and Refinement – and developing alternative research methods than with using animals.

However, there is room for improvement in many domains related to animal welfare. Notably, it is common for pigs to be rendered unconscious before slaughter through Controlled Atmosphere Stunning using carbon dioxide (CO2). However, this method takes a long time and causes enormous animal suffering. Over 98% of piglets have been found to be tail docked, despite the EU prohibiting this mutilation. Moreover, though the majority of political parties have committed to banning the use of wild animals in circuses in 2018, such a ban has still not been enacted. However, a ban will be issued after amendment of the current Protection of Animals Act, which is to be presented to Parliament in November 2019. After amendment of the Act a prohibition on elephants, zebras and sea lions will issued warranted by the Act. Marine mammals are used in public display as a matter of dissemination.

In February 2020, a new Animal Welfare Act was passed in Denmark. However, as it does not come into effect until 2021, it has not been assessed as part of the 2020 iteration of the Animal Protection Index.

Overall, there is a good allocation of human and financial resources dedicated to animal welfare in Denmark. The Protection of Animals Act 1991 gives powers to the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Environment and Food to make secondary legislation related to animal welfare, whilst enforcement powers are given to the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and the Police Director. The Ethical Council for Animals provides the Minister with an ethical assessment of animal welfare issues regarding legislation to be introduced under the Act on the Protection of Animals and other laws. Two members of this Council are appointed following consultation with animal welfare organisations. The Danish Centre for Animal Welfare is also an example of a multi-stakeholder organisation intended to mainstream animal welfare by enabling politicians, industry and other stakeholders to decide on initiatives to improve animal welfare.

The Government of Denmark is urged to outlaw pre-slaughter stunning practices that cause animal suffering, as well as to ban mutilations in farming production systems. Following the examples of neighbouring countries such as the Belgium and the Netherlands, the Government of Denmark is invited to adopt a Positive List of animals who can be kept as companion animals, based on clear criteria including animal welfare. The Government of Denmark is also urged to fully ban fur farming, since the country currently has a large mink fur farming industry. Fur farming is inherently cruel and causes pain, distress and suffering to animals.  The Government of Denmark is furthermore strongly encouraged to totally ban the use of wild animals in circuses as soon as possible, as the majority of political parties committed to in 2018. Further legal and policy recommendations are associated with each Animal Protection Index (API) indicator and contained in the relevant sections of this report.