English

The Danish Animal Ethics Council is set up according to the Animal Welfare Act (§ 38). The Council produces statements regarding the protection of animals based on ethical considerations. The Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries can consult the Council when drafting animal welfare legislation or when general issues relating to animal welfare arise. Furthermore, the Council provides information to and engage in public debate about animal welfare and ethics.

Structure

The Animal Ethics Council consists of at least eleven members who are appointed for a period of 3 years at a time by the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries. Some of the Council's members are appointed based on recommendations from relevant stakeholders. Two members are appointed on the recommendation of animal welfare organisations, two on the recommendation of farmers' associations and one member is appointed on the recommendation of the Consumer Council. The remaining members are appointed independently of any affiliation with a specific organisation. The minister must ensure that the combination of members covers expert knowledge on relevant subjects. (The Animal Welfare Act (§ 38)).

Working methods

The Animal Ethics Council produces statements on request of the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries or on its own initiative. The Council also makes consultation responses on legislative proposals concerning animal welfare. The Council’s considerations are based on both scientific knowledge, practical experience and ethical concerns. External scientific experts and relevant stakeholders are consulted when appropriate. Activities aimed at the public include participation in conferences, fairs, public debate, and communication through a members’ blog and social media (LinkedIn and X - both in Danish).

Publications

All statements and selected consultation responses can be found on the Animal Ethics Council’s website (Publikationer (in Danish)). Selected publications and summaries of publications in English are listed below. 

Contact

The Danish Animal Ethics Council
Ministry of Nature and Animal Welfare
Holmens Kanal 22
1060 Copenhagen K
Denmark

Email: detdyreetiskeraad@mndv.dk

The Danish Animal Ethics Council first produced a memorandum on various ethical approaches to human obligations to animals and to what is a good animal life in 2015. In the memorandum, the Animal Ethics Council describes the members' positions on animal ethics and animal welfare, as well as the work in general in the Animal Ethics Council. The note is updated regularly – the translated version is from October 2019.

Animal ethics, animal welfare and the Danish Animal Ethics Council

Dyreetik, dyrevelfærd og Det Dyreetiske Råd (the 2026 version in Danish)

The Danish Animal Ethics Council issued a statement on the release of animals for nature management in 2026. The statement is a follow-up to the statement on the use of animals for rewilding in nature management from 2018 (see below) and was prepared at the request of the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries. In the statement, the Council discusses the legal framework, management plans, training requirements, and the public debate.

Statement on the release of animals for nature management - a follow-up to the statement on the use of animals for rewilding (summary)

Udtalelse om udsætning af dyr til naturforvaltning - opfølgning på udtalelse om rewilding (full text in Danish)

The Danish Animal Ethics Council produced a statement on the use of animals for rewilding in nature management in 2018. Rewilding e.g. involves the release of large animals in nature, where they are meant to cope as wild animals as far as possible. In this statement, the Council’s focus is on the welfare of the released animals and human responsibility for them. The Council recommends a number of specific initiatives, e.g. regarding the selection of areas and animals to be released, plans for monitoring and management, collection of documentation, and communication about the projects.

Statement on the use of animals for rewilding in nature management

The Danish Animal Ethics Council issued a statement on pig production in 2025. Since the Council’s first statement on pig production in 1993, there have been ongoing discussions about animal welfare in pig production, but major animal welfare challenges remain. In the statement, the Council presents both general considerations and a number of specific recommendations, including in relation to breeding, legislation, management and control, and consumer responsibility.

Statement on pig production (summary)

Udtalelse om svineproduktion (full text in Danish)

 

The Danish Animal Ethics Council issued a statement on the use of horses for sport in 2023. Sport horses can be under pressure both physically and mentally due to people's ambitions and economic interests. In this statement, the Council discusses, among other things, the horse's soundness and longevity, housing, as well as training and competitions. The Council presents both general considerations and a number of specific recommendations, e.g. in relation to education, age limits for horses' participation in competitions, housing, training, use of equipment and tack, transport, monitoring and inspection at competitions, as well as registration of injuries, medication and surgical interventions.

Statement on the use of horses for sport

The Danish Animal Ethics Council produced a statement on mink production in 2021. Following the Covid-19 pandemic all mink in Denmark were culled and a temporary ban on mink production was introduced. In this statement, the Council discusses whether the purpose of mink production is acceptable; whether mink production in its current form (up to 2020) can be considered acceptable; and, if not, on what animal welfare conditions production should be carried out if resumed.

Statement on mink production

The Danish Animal Ethics Council produced a statement on the Animal Protection Act in 2016, the 100th anniversary of Denmark's first Animal Protection Act. In the light of current knowledge and norms on the keeping and use of animals, the Council discusses a number of issues of principle, e.g. balancing considerations for animals vs. considerations for humans, the scope of the Animal Protection Act in relation to species, stages of development and degree of protection, purposes of animal use and unequal treatment of animals. In 2020 Denmark got a new Animal Welfare Act.

Statement on the Animal Protection Act

The Danish Animal Ethics Council issued a statement on market-driven animal welfare in 2012, i.e. a statement on the initiatives to improve the welfare of farm animals that are not based on legislative requirements. In the statement, the Council discusses a number of challenges, such as different perceptions of animal welfare and globalization, and points to possibilities for development in relation to supply, demand, transparency and prioritization.

Statement on market-driven animal welfare (summary)

Udtalelse om markedsdrevet dyrevelfærd (full text in Danish)

The Danish Animal Ethics Council issued a statement on angling in 2013. In the statement, the Council discusses, among other things, the welfare of fish, including the experience of pain and the killing of fish, and a number of specific problem areas: Put & Take fishing, Catch & Release fishing, precision and shoal fishing, and the use of live bait.

Statement on angling (summary)

Udtalelse om lystfiskeri (full text in Danish)

The Danish Animal Ethics Council produced a statement on the breeding of dog and cats in 1999, more specifically on two kinds of problem: extreme breeding and inherited diseases. In the statement the Council discusses the breed standards and the selection of breeding animals, and makes recommendations for those who share the responsibility for changing the situation, i.e. show judges, breeders, kennel clubs, buyers of puppies and kittens, and veterinarians. The factual information in the report, e.g. regarding specific diseases, may be outdated, but unfortunately some problems e.g. regarding extreme breeding, are still of major concern. Many of the ethical considerations and the recommendations in the report are thus still relevant, and they are often used as a basis for the Council’s responses to legislative initiatives and in public debates.

Statement on the breeding of dog and cats