The Compassion Mandate - by Neil Dullaghan (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

For decades, the European Union set the world standard for protecting farmed animals. Today, that leadership has stalled, even though 84 percent of EU citizens say they want stronger protections for animals currently raised for food. The Compassion Mandate: Remaking the European Union's Leadership on Farmed Animal Welfare explains how Europe arrived at this turning point and what it must do to recover its role as a global leader.

Political scientist Dr. Neil Dullaghan traces the long arc of EU farmed animal policy, from early pioneering reforms to the current era of delay and retreat. He shows how ambitious legislation, public opinion, and market trends briefly aligned to deliver major gains for animals, then fell out of sync. Drawing on original research, case studies, and public opinion data, he explains why broad voter support has not translated into sustained political action, and how institutional gridlock, trade rules, and industry lobbying have blocked change.

The Compassion Mandate offers a clear roadmap for renewed progress. Dr. Dullaghan outlines how the EU can improve enforcement of existing laws, close loopholes that allow low-welfare imports, and create transparent conditions for consumers who want higher welfare products. He argues that a coordinated EU-level strategy will achieve far more than scattered national reforms, securing meaningful welfare gains for billions of chickens, pigs, cows, and fish while positioning European producers for long term economic advantage.

Readers will learn why Brexit placed billions of animals at risk, how fish and other aquatic animals are central to the welfare debate, and what the stalled update to the EU's animal welfare legislation reveals about the future of the Green Deal and related reforms. Policymakers, advocates, analysts, and concerned citizens will find both a diagnosis of Europe's current failures and a practical agenda for change.

Written by a researcher whose work has informed leading NGOs and decision makers, The Compassion Mandate is a timely call to close the democratic gap between citizens and institutions and to restore Europe's credibility as a champion of humane progress.