Lower Saxony has announced a ban on tethering cattle to improve animal welfare. An RND survey reveals that 14 out of 16 German states support such a ban, but at the federal level. Southern states oppose it, citing potential economic consequences.
The state government in Lower Saxony plans a statewide ban on tethering cattle for animal welfare reasons. In this housing method, cows are tied in stalls, preventing them from moving much or turning around. Early this month, a decree was prepared for local veterinary authorities to prohibit the practice in the future.
An RND survey of all 16 state governments found that 14 support banning tethering. This includes North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saarland, Saxony-Anhalt, Berlin, Saxony, and Bremen. The agriculture ministry in Rhineland-Palatinate states: “The normal behavior of cattle is almost completely suppressed by tethering.”
Other states, however, will not follow Lower Saxony's example with their own regulations. In Thuringia, no general order is planned at present. Instead, the majority advocates a federal solution. Hamburg's environmental authority explains: “A patchwork of different state regulations is not effective here – protection must apply nationwide.” Schleswig-Holstein supports a federal ban but warns against state-level measures causing competitive distortions: “Individual state regulations do not create uniform standards and can cause competitive distortions.”
Lower Saxony's Agriculture Minister Miriam Staudte (Greens) sees opportunities: “On the contrary, I expect the reputation of Lower Saxony's milk as premium milk to solidify.”
A federal tightening is not foreseeable. Federal Environment Minister Alois Rainer (CSU) deems it unnecessary, as year-round tethering of dairy cows is already a dying practice. Southern states like Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria oppose a ban. The practice is widespread in areas like the Black Forest or Swabian Alb and contributes to landscape maintenance. Bavaria warns: “Anyone who works with the ban hammer here risks a structural break, with consequences for the cultural landscape, value creation in rural areas, and tourism.” Both states want to retain combined tethering, where animals get at least two hours of exercise daily.
