The European Union spent €52 million last year subsidising meat and dairy advertising: €32 million for meat promotions and €20 million for dairy, according to research by Stichting Dier & Recht. This while the EU already slaughters 27 million animals every single day. That adds up to nearly 10 billion animals per year: cows, sheep, horses, rabbits, pigs, poultry, goats and another 1.5 billion fish. In the Netherlands alone, 1,000 animals are killed every minute, according to animal welfare organisation Wakker Dier.
In this sharp opinion piece for Het Financieele Dagblad, economist Sophie van Gool asks the obvious question: what exactly is a government doing when it hands millions in taxpayer money to commercial companies to sell people more dead animals, while simultaneously claiming to care about climate targets, public health, and nature? The EU's answer, it turns out, is a campaign budget and a rugby sponsorship.
Read the full article (in Dutch) in Het Financieele Dagblad, 4 August 2025.
