End of farmers' CVR trick to avoid animal welfare inspections: The government strengthens oversight with 15 initiatives
Økologisk NuIt will be prohibited to use the so-called CVR trick to avoid animal welfare inspections, and in the future, there will be two inspectors instead of one during inspections. These are some of the 15 main points in the emergency plan for animal welfare that the government has just presented. A farmer can divide their farm into several companies, each with its own CVR number. According to the National Audit Office, only the CVR numbers receiving EU support are inspected, so if the farmer places pigs under a CVR number without EU support, that part escapes inspection. The National Audit Office has seen examples of pig producers who previously had their support withdrawn due to poor animal welfare and who have since disappeared from inspections. The Ministry of Justice admits that the inspection area has had too few resources and points to both the National Audit Office’s report from April 2026, which painted a serious picture of animal welfare in Danish pig barns, and the cash review ordered by Justice Minister Nicolai Wammen when he took over the responsibility for animal welfare inspections. It showed that 1,500 follow-up inspections from 2025 to mid-2026 had not been carried out as planned. "We have seen far too many rule circumventions regarding animal welfare—and far too much that is hidden from view. When those who keep animals do not live up to their responsibilities, the hammer must fall. It is not acceptable to have ambitious rules on paper for how animals should be treated if the inspections do not work well enough in practice. The control of our animal welfare has not had the necessary resources and staff," says Justice Minister Nicolai Wammen (S) in a press release. "With the emergency plan, we now look forward to a very significant strengthening of animal welfare control in Denmark. Among other things, we will more than double the number of employees checking that everything is as it should be, send two inspectors on each inspection, and increase inspection pressure by 50%," he continues. The expenses for the emergency plan will amount to approximately 120 million DKK in 2027, rising to about 160 million DKK annually from 2029 onward. Most of the costs will be fee-funded, which has led Agriculture & Food to criticize the plan. "Overall, we are in favor of animal welfare because that’s what we live on, but this is a massive intervention in the industry in the form of fees," says Hans Christian Gæmelke, chairman of the Pig Sector in Agriculture & Food, to TV 2. He does not believe that having more inspectors visiting farms will be beneficial. "What it’s about is more uniform control and providing the correct guidance," he says. More staff With the emergency plan, the government will also hire over 130 additional employees for animal welfare inspections across the country. This is more than a doubling of the current number. Furthermore, the government will increase inspection pressure for pigs and cattle by 50%, and even more for poultry. Inspection pressure indicates the proportion of Danish farms expected to receive an inspection visit per year. Currently, the politically agreed inspection rate is 20% for pigs and cattle, and it will be increased to 30%. The most high-risk farms will be inspected more frequently than low-risk farms, as inspections are based on a range of risk factors such as herd size, production type, and previous sanctions. Particular attention will be given to producers with poor compliance with regulations. "It’s a great victory for the animals. Inspections have for years been calling for more resources and measures to ensure much stronger protection for the animals. We will get that with the emergency plan, which can truly address one of the major failures in animal care," says Britta Riis, director of Animal Protection, in a press release. Higher penalty levels The emergency plan will also implement significant increases in penalties in the animal welfare area, stemming from the animal welfare agreement 'Together for the Animals' under the previous government. The penalty increases will raise the level of sanctions and expand the possibilities to revoke individuals’ rights to own animals. Among other things, the maximum penalty for the most serious violations will be tripled to up to six years in prison. The stricter penalty level is expected to come into effect on July 1, 2027. Additionally, the government plans to establish a new, independent agency called the Animal Welfare Control at the beginning of 2027, which will ensure the necessary professional and political focus on implementing effective and consistent animal welfare inspections. The requirement for two inspectors and an inspection rate of 30% for pigs and cattle is expected to be phased in from July 1, 2027. For poultry farms, it is expected to be phased in from January 1, 2028.
There will be an end to the so-called CVR trick to avoid animal welfare inspections, and from now on, there will be two inspectors instead of one during inspections.
These are some of the 15 main points in the emergency plan for animal welfare, which the government has just presented.
A farmer can divide their farm into several companies, each with its own CVR number. According to the National Audit Office, only the CVR numbers receiving EU support are inspected, so if the farmer places the pigs under a CVR number without EU support, that part escapes inspection.
The National Audit Office has seen examples of pig producers who previously had their support withdrawn due to poor animal welfare and who have since disappeared from inspections.
The Ministry of Justice admits that the inspection area has had too few resources and points to both the National Audit Office's report from April 2026, which painted a serious picture of animal welfare in Danish pig farms, and the cash audit ordered by Minister of Justice Nicolai Wammen when he took over the responsibility for animal welfare control. It showed that 1,500 follow-up inspections from 2025 to mid-2026 have not been carried out as planned.
"We have seen far too many circumventions of the rules for animal welfare – and far too much that does not see the light of day. When those who keep animals do not live up to their responsibilities, the hammer must fall. It is not acceptable that we have ambitious rules on paper for how animals should be treated if the inspection does not work well enough in practice. The control of our animal welfare has not had the necessary resources and staff," says Minister of Justice Nicolai Wammen (S) in a press release.
"With the emergency plan, we now look forward to a very significant strengthening of the control of animal welfare in Denmark. Among other things, we will more than double the number of employees who will check that everything is proceeding as it should, send two inspectors on each inspection visit, and increase inspection pressure by 50%," he continues.
The expenses for the emergency plan will amount to approximately 120 million DKK in 2027, rising to about 160 million DKK annually from 2029 onwards. The majority of the costs will be fee-funded, which has led Agriculture & Food to criticize the plan.
"Overall, we are in favor of animal welfare because that is what we live on, but this is a massive intervention in the industry in the form of fees," says Hans Christian Gæmelke, chairman of the Pig Sector in Agriculture & Food, to TV 2.
He does not believe that having more inspectors visiting farms will be beneficial.
"What it’s about is more uniform control and correct guidance," he says.
More staff
With the emergency plan, the government will also hire over 130 additional employees for animal welfare inspections across the country. This is more than a doubling of the current number.
The government also plans to increase the inspection pressure for pigs and cattle by 50%, and even more for poultry. Inspection pressure indicates the proportion of Danish farms that can expect a visit per year. Currently, the politically agreed inspection rate is 20% for pigs and cattle, and this will be increased to 30%.
The most risky farms will be inspected more frequently than low-risk farms, as inspections are based on a range of risk factors such as herd size, production type, and previous sanctions. Particular attention will be paid to producers with poor compliance with regulations.
"This is a great victory for the animals. For years, inspections have been crying out for more resources and measures to ensure much stronger protection of the animals. We get that with the emergency plan, which can really address the root of one of the major failures in animal care," says Britta Riis, director of Animal Protection, in a press release.
Higher penalty framework
With the emergency plan, the government will also implement the significant penalty increases in the animal welfare area, which stem from the animal welfare agreement 'Together for the animals' under the previous government. The penalty increases will raise the level of sanctions and expand the possibilities to revoke people's rights to keep animals. Among other things, the penalty framework for the most serious violations will be tripled to up to six years in prison.
The increased penalty level is expected to come into force on July 1, 2027.
The government also plans to establish a new, independent agency called the Animal Welfare Control at the beginning of 2027, which will ensure the necessary professional and political focus on implementing effective and consistent animal welfare inspections.
The requirement for two inspectors and an inspection rate of 30% for pigs and cattle is expected to be phased in from July 1, 2027. For poultry farms, it is expected to be phased in from January 1, 2028.