(© Regine Revermann, LWK Lower Saxony)
Introduction
In order to comply with the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act (TierSchG) regarding the rearing of Peking ducks, the Council of Europe’s recommendations on Peking ducks are taken into account alongside the general provisions of the Animal Welfare and Livestock Management Ordinance (TierSchNutztV). There are currently no further binding specific legal regulations in Germany.
To put the Council of Europe’s recommendations into practice, an agreement has been reached in Lower Saxony that specifies the husbandry requirements for Peking ducks.
The so-called ‘Peking Duck Agreement’ is an agreement between the Lower Saxony Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (ML) and the Lower Saxony Poultry Industry Association (NGW) on the further development of minimum requirements for the rearing of Peking ducks. It is also used as a guide in other federal states outside Lower Saxony.
Under this agreement, livestock keepers undertake to comply with the minimum requirements for Peking duck husbandry set out therein. These apply to flocks of 500 Peking ducks or more and cover both rearing and fattening.
In accordance with Section 2(3) of the Animal Welfare Act (TierSchG), the animal keeper must possess the relevant knowledge and skills to ensure the animals are fed, cared for and housed in a manner appropriate to their behaviour, and must provide evidence of this expertise to the competent authority upon request.
According to the Peking Duck Agreement, the following are accepted as proof of expertise
- a successfully completed training course as a farmer or livestock manager, with specific focus on poultry farming (e.g. ‘Inter-farm training in poultry farming’ at the Ruthe Teaching and Research Farm of the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover Foundation) or
- a successfully completed degree in agricultural sciences or veterinary medicine, or
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the rearing of Peking fattening ducks for at least one year or eight fattening cycles without any animal welfare objections from the competent authority, involving no fewer than 500 Peking ducks and a veterinary herd management contract.
In cases of doubt regarding expertise in individual cases, the competent authority may require proof of such expertise during a technical consultation. This document is intended to impart expertise in the field of Peking duck husbandry. It may be used as part of inter-farm training or for self-study, e.g. as preparation for the aforementioned technical consultation.