This week, over the course of 3 days, the High Court is hearing a claim for judicial view brought by The Animal Law Foundation (‘TALF’) in relation to the decision of the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (‘SSEFRA’) not to accept that her statutory Codes of Practice (for the Welfare of Meat Chickens and Meat Breeding Chickens, and for the Welfare of Laying Hens and Pullets) contained unlawful guidance which indicated that poultry may be lifted by their legs in an inverted manner during transport operations when that conduct was an offence contrary to a prohibition contained in domestic assimilated law following Brexit (specifically the Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 of 22 December 2004 on the protection of animals during transport and related operations etc.)
TALF is a registered charity whose purposes include promoting humane behaviour towards animals and the prevention of cruelty and suffering among animals by promoting compliance with laws for the protection of animals.
The central issue in this case is of wide importance given the public interest in animal welfare and the conclusions in expert opinions published by the European Food Standards Agency in 2022 and the Animal Welfare Committee in 2024 that lifting poultry by the legs generally has worse welfare outcomes due to the increased occasions of injury and pain, and the heightened stress from inversion.
Following the commencement of TALF’s judicial review proceedings, DEFRA launched a consultation on a proposed change to the law to remove the prohibition on inverted lifting of poultry by the legs and subsequently issued The Welfare of Animals (Transport) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 to that effect on 30 June 2025. TALF was granted permission in August 2025 to bring three additional grounds of challenge alleging that the consultation was not lawfully carried out, failure to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty, and ultra vires or irrational decision-making in issuing the Regulations.
No5’s Philip Rule KC and Jessica Allen appear for TALF, the Claimant, and are instructed by Edie Bowles of Advocates for Animals, a specialist firm for animal law.
The matter has been reported in the press:
Labour faces legal scrutiny after allowing chickens to be carried by legs – The Guardian
Animal welfare battle over chicken handling – The Grocer
Ministers to face High Court over chicken leg handling – The Scottish Farmer
Animal welfare law change to be challenged in court – Poultry News
Judicial review of animal welfare law changes granted – Food Manufacture
Cruel chicken handling in the UK – The Animal Law Foundation
Legal action launched over ‘cruel’ chicken farming practice – Food Manufacture
Labour to legalise harmful practice of carrying chickens by legs, say charities – The Guardian
