EU-Turkish border exposes hell of animal transport – POLITICO

BRUSSELS — On Sept. 12, two trucks carrying 69 heavily pregnant heifers departed from a farm in the German state of Brandenburg on a journey of over 2,000 kilometers to Turkey.

Neither the cows nor their unborn calves ever made it to their destinations. A bureaucratic hurdle at the EU’s external border stranded the animals, in deplorable conditions, for a month. Some died, smeared in their own manure, while the rest ended up being slaughtered after weeks of agony, without anesthesia.

The border of EU member Bulgaria with Turkey is a major crossing point for live animals where repeated incidents of neglect and cruelty have been observed by NGOs for over a decade. Their findings expose flaws in the outdated rules governing livestock transports within the EU and a lack of oversight when they cross its external border.