This announcement is hugely welcomed by the animal welfare community who have worked to end the transport of animals from Rosslare, Ireland to Cherbourg, France. We joined other NGOs who have been putting pressure on the Ferry company for the past few years. Stena Line has now announced it will withdraw from this route, calling it a ‘strategic decision’. This route has transported over 260,000 cattle alone in 2025, with over 200,000 of those being unweaned calves.  

Last year, our UK team met with Stena Line’s Chief People, Communications & Sustainability Officer to raise serious animal welfare concerns. Thanks to this dialogue, and through joint efforts with a coalition of NGOs opposing the transport of unweaned calves, which included petitions and open letters, it’s clear our voices have finally been heard.  

Is this the end of live exports from Ireland? Sadly, not. 

The pressure now builds to convince Brittany Ferries to take the same steps. As a company that only entered this trade earlier this year, we remain determined to reverse their decision: we will not stop until they too end their role in transporting unweaned calves for often over 19-hour journeys to be fattened and slaughtered in other countries.  

These ferry companies are not only complicit in this cruel trade, but they are also violating EU law by transporting unweaned animals beyond the legal time limits, without the required rest, feeding, or watering. As major players in the live export chain, ferry companies are pivotal to its continuation, and therefore exponential animal suffering. Removing them from the equation makes the trade less viable and less attractive to those who profit from it.