French Company Brittany Ferries Announces Its End of Live Animal Transports

Decision follows 18 months of intensive advocacy work by animal welfare organisations

From 1st September onwards, the French company will no longer transport live animals on its vessels.
Every year, over 200,000 unweaned calves are transported from Ireland to mainland Europe for fattening and slaughter. During such transports, the EU animal transport legislation is often breached and requirements such as mandatory feeding and resting times are ignored.
FOUR PAWS calls on Irish Ferries, the last remaining company transporting live animals on this route, to follow suit and end animal transports.

Vienna, 4 August 2026 – French company Brittany Ferries has decided to end live animal transports from 1 September 2026 onwards after resuming animal transport services in 2025. This decision follows 18 months of continuous campaigning efforts by global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS and other NGOs, including Compassion in World Farming, Ethical Farming in Ireland, and Welfarm. It involved protesting and meetings with the company’s CEO and senior representatives aimed at highlighting the great suffering calves endure during transport. FOUR PAWS urges the company Irish Ferries to follow this good practice and act in favour of animal welfare.

“With one less ferry company transporting live animals, this is a major victory for animal welfare in Europe. By choosing to end this practice, Brittany Ferries put animal welfare over profit. While we celebrate this development, it must also be seen as a wake-up call for others. Both the European Union and private companies, such as Irish Ferries, that still transport animals, must follow suit. EU decision makers must realise that transporting live animals by sea is an outdated practice that causes unnecessary animal suffering,”

Corinna Reinisch, responsible for live animal transport campaigns at FOUR PAWS

Not only do these transports by sea pose severe animal welfare problems, but they are also a source of worry for citizens across the European Union. A recent survey by Eurogroup for Animals revealed that eight out of ten (82%) EU citizens are concerned about animal welfare during transport, with 80% agreeing that long-distance journeys cause unnecessary suffering. “People across the European Union care about the wellbeing of animals. This should not be ignored by decision-makers and private transport companies,” concludes Reinisch.