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advocate for the forgotten animals in factory farming

Wakker Dier

Wakker Dier is an animal welfare organization founded in 1997 and based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Supported by over forty thousand loyal donors, our team works tirelessly to improve the life of animals in factory farming. On this page, you can learn more about our mission, our campaigns, and how you can contribute to our work for the animals.

Wakker Dier's mission

a dignified life for all farm animals

A dignified life for all animals in livestock farming: that is our dream. Read more about Wakker Dier's dream and mission.

Wakker Dier's mission - Wakker Dier

our campaigns

our three most important campaigns

Wakker Dier Wakker Dier is currently running several campaigns for the animals in factory farming. Learn about our main campaigns here.

our campaigns - Wakker Dier

What is factory farming?

high production at the expense of animal welfare

Factory farming is high production at the expense of animal welfare. Read more about factory farming in the Netherlands.

about factory farming - Wakker Dier

Our dream: a dignified life for all animals in livestock farming. An animal is not a lifeless product. But the food industry thinks differently. In this sector, animals serve only one purpose: making a profit. But producing meat, eggs and dairy on a mass scale and as cheaply as possible causes a lot of animal suffering.
Most of the animals that are sold for rock-bottom prices have had a short and horrible life, in a world of concrete and steel with barely any space or daylight. Many don&#8217;t even make it to the finish line and die prematurely. Their death is often slow and painful.
Even so, suppliers continue to use cheap meat to lure in customers and to maximize their revenue. And consumers keep buying these &#8216;cheap deals&#8217; precisely because they are so cheap. This dynamic perpetuates animal suffering.
Curious to know more about how animals live in the farming industry and what we want to change? Keep reading <a href="https://www.wakkerdier.nl/wakker-dier-english/our-campaigns/">here</a>!
Our objective for **2030**This sick system in which not every animal, but every cent counts, has to change. That&#8217;s why Wakker Dier fights for a drastic reform of the food industry. We see less and better quality meat, eggs, and dairy as the key to ending mass animal suffering. Based on this conviction, we have set ourselves the following objective:
<h2>By 2030, Dutch supermarkets will sell 25% less meat, and all meat, dairy and eggs they sell will carry at least one star according to the ‘Better Life’ animal welfare label.</h2>
The Wakker Dier methodWakker Dier points out the culprits in the supply chain and holds them accountable. We do this publicly, through naming and shaming. That&#8217;s the fastest way to change the system. Our method has proven its success time and time again. For instance, the battery cage egg and the plofkip (a fast-growing breed of broiler chicken) have disappeared from almost all Dutch supermarkets. Sales of products with a welfare label are also rapidly increasing.
Our efforts are always focused on the following pillars: improving the lives of the animals in factory farming, better legislation and enforcement of animal welfare standards and reducing meat consumption. Each of these themes contributes in its own way to our dream. You can read more about our campaigns here; or read on for a summary in English.
We'll achieve this __together with our supporters__Since our foundation in 1997, Wakker Dier has grown into a social movement supported by over forty thousand loyal donors. We have become a well-known and influential organization that continuously makes itself heard in the national media. Wakker Dier works independently and without subsidies, with a determined team. Our relentless dedication and vigilance make Wakker Dier heard and feared within the food industry. Together with a strong base of supporters, we continue to advocate for animals in the factory farming industry.
If you agree that an animal is not a ‘bargain item’, then join us.
__help the animals__ in factory farmingAnimals in factory farming have a terrible life. Will you help put an end to this?
Would you like to know more about our dream? In our <a href="https://admin.wakkerdier.nl/app/uploads/2024/07/Wakker-Dier-jaarverslag-2023.pdf">annual report</a> (in Dutch), you&#8217;ll find everything about our dream and how we aim to achieve it. Also covered are: a comprehensive environmental analysis, side effects of our campaigns and how we measure impact. In the <a href="https://admin.wakkerdier.nl/app/uploads/2021/12/211202-Driejaarplan-2022-2024-Vastgesteld.pdf">policy plan</a> for the period 2022-2024 (in Dutch), you&#8217;ll find our plans for the coming years.
We must have patience to make a positive impact for the animals. There are so many interests at play in factory farming! But as long as it's necessary, I'll continue to donate to Wakker Dier. Thea Aartsdonor

Our three most important campaigns are focused on improving the lives of dairy cows, better legislation and enforcement regarding animal welfare, and reducing meat consumption. Each of these themes contributes in its own way to our dream.
A better life for __dairy cows__The life of an average dairy cow is gruelling. She is pushed to her limits to produce more and more milk, often in poor living conditions. Consequently, many cows fall ill. While a cow can naturally live up to twenty years, on average, a Dutch dairy cow is sent to slaughter around the age of six. By then, she&#8217;s worn out, exhausted, and depleted.
We envision a future where cows produce much less milk, have ample space for natural behaviour, and spend most of their lives where they belong: in the pasture. Step by step, we&#8217;re working towards this dream. Step one: supermarkets and leading brands must stop selling sloopmelk, our term for milk without proper animal welfare certifications. All dairy in supermarkets should carry at least one star of the ‘Better Life’ welfare label or come from Dutch organic farms. This way, cows won&#8217;t have to produce as much milk, and they&#8217;ll enjoy better living conditions, such as more room to move, more time in the pasture, and/or better resting areas.
To effectively address supermarkets and leading brands, we need broad public support among the Dutch population. However, many people still associate cows with beautiful green pastures and believe that animal welfare is adequate. That’s why our focus has been on revealing the abuse in the dairy industry.
Better __legislation and enforcement__The massive animal suffering in factory farming proves that we can&#8217;t entrust animal welfare solely to the industry. Both Dutch and European laws provide avenues for better animal welfare protection. However, there&#8217;s often a lack of concrete implementation, or the emphasis is on aspects other than the animals&#8217; welfare. Even where clear and specific legislation exists, enforcement often falls short.
Wakker Dier advocates for better lives for animals to be explicitly defined in legislation and rigorously enforced by the authorities. We do this through legal procedures.
<h3>Crammed chickens</h3>
After two years of our insistence on transparency, the evidence finally came to light last year: the Netherlands has been violating the law for years by allowing the cramming of too many (factory farmed) chickens into a barn. The regulatory authority NVWA has been turning a blind eye. Wakker Dier initiated multiple legal proceedings, after which the NVWA and the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality now acknowledge the “error” and are discussing a policy change together. In addition, a motion has been submitted to the lower house of the Dutch Parliament to abolish the highest stocking density category in barns.
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignleft" src="https://d1s9filwlitqj9.cloudfront.net/scaled/2560x1707/app/uploads/2023/05/09131947/website-stal-plofkippen-2-scaled.jpg.webp" width="488" height="286" />
Reducing **meat consumption**Almost everyone now agrees that we should eat less meat, dairy and eggs—for our health, for the environment and especially for the millions of animals that end up on plates after short and miserable lives in factory farming. Yet meat consumption in the Netherlands is decreasing very slowly and dairy (cheese) consumption hasn&#8217;t decreased at all.
Wakker Dier aims for a swift reduction in the consumption of animals. Our campaigns are focused on companies with the most power and potential for change. Supermarkets are by far the largest meat sellers, and they have the means to influence what their customers buy. That&#8217;s why we encourage them to actively promote less meat and more plant-based alternatives. Our goal is that by 2030, at least 60 percent of the proteins sold by food retailers are plant-based, while ensuring that the total amount of protein they sell doesn&#8217;t increase.
Currently, sixteen caterers and the supermarkets Albert Heijn, Aldi, Crisp, Dirk, Ekoplaza, Jumbo, Lidl, Odin, Plus have committed to our goal.
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="" src="https://admin.wakkerdier.nl/app/uploads/2022/10/Vleesconsumptie-Tegeltje-1200x630px.jpg" width="581" height="305" />
support our campaigns and __help the animals__We will never give up our fight for the animals. Will you help make our campaigns possible?

The Netherlands “produces” approximately 500 million animals each year, under horrific conditions. Animals are bred, fattened, and processed in a factory-like manner. Every day, 1.7 million animals are slaughtered. This is what we call factory farming.
Animals are kept close together in barns, often on a large scale. Everything is skimped on: space, feed, labor, etc. This comes at the expense of animal welfare. Animals suffer because they are forced to produce or grow as much as possible in a short period. This way of rearing animals is also known as intensive animal farming.
The origins of __factory farming__How did factory farming originate? After the food shortage during World War II, the Dutch government declared: &#8220;Never again hunger!&#8221;. Everyone was to be able to buy cheap and sufficient food, including meat. To achieve this, livestock farming was increasingly intensified and animals were treated more and more as lifeless objects. Factory farming was born.
<h2>Wakker Dier: improving animal welfare</h2>
Wakker Dier advocates for the vulnerable animals in factory farming. The key areas for improvement are:
<ul>
<li>Stop painful procedures – To adapt them for a life in small spaces, piglets’ tails are docked; turkeys&#8217; beaks are cut short, and calves&#8217; horn buds are burned off.</li>
<li>Mother care for newborn animals – Calves are usually separated from their mothers immediately after birth. Piglets are only allowed to stay with their mother for 28 days. Chickens never get to see their mother.</li>
<li>More space, enrichment, and outdoor access – Most animals in factory farming never see daylight or go outside. Packed closely together, they live in an unnatural environment of concrete and steel, with hardly any straw or other enrichment.</li>
<li>No breeding for higher production – A dairy cow now produces twice as much milk as in 1950. A broiler chicken grows from 50 to 2300 grams in just six weeks. A mother pig gives birth to 29 piglets annually, instead of 10.</li>
<li>No international animal transports – Every year, millions of animals are transported in overcrowded trucks to save a few cents per kilo by having them slaughtered in a different country. Their journey can last up to 24 hours and happens in all weather conditions, from Spain’s hot summers to cold Polish winters.</li>
<li>Vaccination instead of culling – Animals in factory farming live closely together and have a low resistance. An epidemic is always a risk. Instead of preemptively vaccinating the animals, the Netherlands currently culls all healthy animals in the vicinity during an outbreak.</li>
</ul>
**Organic** livestock farmingIn organic livestock farming, animal welfare is better regulated. Organically raised animals have more space and are allowed outdoor access. There is less emphasis on selectively breeding animals for specific traits, and other measures to optimize production. Many painful procedures, such as tail docking in piglets, are prohibited. 
help the animals in factory farmingAnimals in factory farming have a terrible life. Will you help put an end to this?

about factory farming

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Animals in factory farming have a terrible life. Will you help put an end to this?

help the animals in factory farming

advocate for the forgotten animals in factory farming

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Wakker Dier English - Wakker Dier

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