BERLIN – Calls for better animal welfare in the food system are not limited to a vegetarian or vegan minority. This is one of the findings of the representative Humane World for Animals Animal Welfare Barometer 2026, for which more than 1,500 people in Germany were surveyed at the beginning of the year. According to the survey, 80.7% of respondents say they eat everything, while 8.6% identify as vegetarian and 2.5% as vegan. Nevertheless, calls for greater transparency, improved farming conditions and practices, and binding political action receive broad support even among people who consume meat and other animal products.
Among respondents who eat everything, 77.8% say animal welfare is important or very important to them. Among vegetarians, this figure rises to 97.6%. The national average is 80.5%. While the frequency of meat consumption influences the level of support, it does not diminish the overall importance of the issue. Among respondents who eat meat less than once a week, 86.3% consider animal welfare important or very important. Among those who eat meat two to three times per week, 79.2% say the same. Even among people who consume meat about once a day, 70.4% regard animal welfare as important or very important.
Clear majorities support eliminating cages and increased transparency
The same pattern emerges when looking at specific food system reforms. A complete phase-out of cages for farmed animals is supported by 66.7% of respondents who eat everything. By comparison, support stands at 70.6% nationwide. Agreement is particularly strong when it comes to transparency. Nearly eight in ten respondents who eat everything (79.1%) support mandatory labeling on processed food products indicating whether eggs used came from hens in caged, barn-raised, free-range or organic systems. The national average is 81.5%. A ban on eggs from caged hens in processed food products is also supported by a clear majority of respondents who eat everything (68.9%), compared to 72.3% of people nationwide.
Concern for farmed animals extends beyond dietary choices
Concern for farmed animals is not limited to people’s dietary preferences. When asked in an open-ended question about where the federal government should do more, 33.8% of respondents who eat everything spontaneously identified industrial animal agriculture as an area requiring action. This is slightly above the national average of 33.7% and higher than the share among vegetarians (28%).
“Animal welfare is understandably especially important to vegetarians and vegans. What matters most, however, is that clear majorities of people who eat everything also support a phase-out of cages, the adoption of mandatory labeling and further political action to improve conditions for animals,” says Sylvie Kremerskothen Gleason, country director at Humane World for Animals Germany. “Policymakers cannot dismiss higher animal welfare standards as the concern of a small vegetarian or vegan minority. Animal welfare is not a vegan bubble. It has become a mainstream issue. People in Germany, regardless of how they eat, have delivered a Mandate for Animals to the federal government.”
Majority also supports financial incentives
Support is not limited to labeling requirements and bans. Nearly two-thirds (63.3%) of respondents who eat everything support higher taxes on meat produced under farming systems with lower animal welfare standards, provided the additional revenue is used to support more humane farming practices. Among vegetarians, support rises to 79.0%, while the national average is 66.3%.
The findings show that people do not believe improving animal welfare depends solely on changing individual diets. Most respondents also expect binding political and economic measures that increase transparency, promote higher standards and enable more responsible consumer choices. These expectations extend across the entire food supply chain, from agriculture and animal farming to food production, supply chains, retail, product labeling and consumption.
Additional findings at a glance
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Vegetarianism is not just a niche issue among Green Party supporters. In the survey sample, 10% of CDU/CSU voters (Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union) identified as vegetarian, slightly above the national average of 8.6%. Among SPD voters (Social Democratic Party), the share was 4.8%.
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58.0% of respondents who eat everything want the federal government to do more to protect animals raised for food. Among vegetarians, the figure is 79.5%, compared to a national average of 62.3%.
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Conditions for farmed animals are a concern for 63.7% of respondents who eat everything. Among vegetarians, the figure is 90.8%, while the national average is 67.7%.
Notes to editors
The full Humane World for Animals Animal Welfare Barometer 2026 is available here (German-language only). In early July, Humane World for Animals Germany also launched the Mandate for Animals campaign and petition. The Animal Welfare Barometer 2026 clearly identified a significant government performance gap on animal welfare in Germany. Two-thirds of respondents are dissatisfied with the government's current approach to animal welfare and expect stronger commitment, structural reforms, stronger legislation and greater transparency to improve the lives of animals. Through the Mandate for Animals petition, Humane World for Animals is calling on the federal government to take citizens’ concerns seriously and translate them into meaningful action.