Maturity Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 · Welfare compliance during transport
Your animal transport practices, measured against Regulation 1/2005 and turned into an action plan.
10 themes, a 5-level scale. And the action that moves each level to the next.
The framework’s 10 themes, already written from L1 to L5. One company, one business unit, or 300 at once.
Maturity Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 · Welfare compliance during transport
10 themes, 5-level scale.
Nordhavn Industries
53 / 100
They measure their maturity with Datamensio
An example
This could be your situation.
Take one company as an example: three sites, three spreadsheets, no shared answer.
Nobody can consolidate.
Nordhavn Industries, 2,400 people in Hamburg, Lyon and Porto. A client asks where the group stands. Each site answers in its own spreadsheet, with its own scales.
Three weeks, a single base.
One Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 of 22 December 2004 assessment launched across all three sites at once, from the managers’ interview notes. The framework was already written, its 10 themes and levels L1 to L5 too.
Two costs avoided before being committed.
A score of 53 out of 100, with the gap concentrated on three themes. The AI companion spotted that two actions duplicated those of another audit. The committee report took one sentence to request.
What it saved them
- 3sites measured on the same base, instead of three questionnaires to reconcile
- 2duplicate actions caught before the spend
- 1committee report, with no manual rework
These figures are an example. They could be yours.
The standard imposes processes. Datamensio says where you stand.
01
The framework is already written
Themes, questions and levels L1 to L5, all written. You do not start from an empty spreadsheet.
02
The score lands the same day
Online, by self-assessment link or in interview. Theme by theme, comparable over time.
03
The gap becomes a costed plan
Every step up carries its action. The AI prioritises on expected effect, not on the order of the standard.
04
Progress can be demonstrated
Campaign after campaign, against your target and against your own past. That is what your board asks for.
The maturity scale
One level, the next, and the action that links the two.
It is this mechanism, a level, a higher level, and the action linking the two, that turns a finding into a trajectory.
Is the fitness of animals for transport assessed and recorded before every loading?
- N1
No formalised assessment. Judgement depends on whoever is present at loading, with no written record.
- N2
Fitness criteria exist in a procedure, but application varies between sites and teams, and records are incomplete.
- N3
Criteria are communicated and applied before every loading. Refusals and disputed cases are recorded, with occasional gaps.
- N4
Assessment is systematic and recorded, disputed cases are settled according to a known rule, with documented veterinary support and sample-based checks.
- N5
Fitness data and arrival findings are reviewed periodically, criteria and training are updated accordingly, with documented tracking of revisions.
Action to move from L2 to L3
Build the fitness checklist into the loading form to make it mandatory for every departure, train loading supervisors at each site on the same document, and check the records during the monthly quality review.
« With Datamensio, we meet our objectives far more efficiently. The ERDF inspection services and our supervising ministry particularly appreciated an approach that gives them reliable data. »
Director, CCI 94CCI Île-de-France
« We believe this is the most suitable solution to scale our transformation project and measure impact according to our needs. »
Maja SucekChief Operating Officer, Interreg Danube
Rarely on its own
Frameworks combine. Put several together to cover your business, or have the AI write yours.
Take your first measurement
What this framework covers
Regulation (EC) No 1/2005, applicable since 5 January 2007, governs the transport of live vertebrate animals carried out in connection with an economic activity. It sets out obligations shared between the organiser, the transporter, the keeper and the attendant: transporter authorisation, vehicle approval certificates for long journeys, certificates of competence for drivers and attendants, and journey logs for long journeys. Its annexes fix the technical conditions: fitness of animals, fit-out of means of transport, loading densities, journey times, watering and rest intervals, and separation of categories of animals.
In practice, oversight runs into the chain of actors involved. Responsibility is shared between the originating farm, the journey organiser, the transporter, often subcontracted, and the destination point: slaughterhouse, assembly centre, control post. Who actually decides whether an injured or late-gestation animal is fit for transport, and on what written record? Are attendants’ certificates of competence tracked, or merely filed away once the contract is signed? Are journey logs reviewed after the trip, or filed without a second look?
Two points of context are worth setting out. First, the regulation is subject to a revision proposal put forward by the European Commission in December 2023, as part of the wider review of animal welfare legislation: journey times, densities and temperatures are among the parameters under discussion. Second, a common misconception: Regulation 1/2005 does not apply only to long-distance road transport. It also covers short journeys, with a baseline of general obligations, and extends to loading, unloading and operations at assembly centres.
A compliance audit settles matters: documents are present or missing, density is respected or not. The maturity assessment asks a different question. To what extent are your practices formalised, applied consistently by all your transporters, monitored, and then improved based on findings from actual journeys. It is this scale that distinguishes an organisation that documents its transport operations from one that actually manages them.
In Datamensio, the framework is ready to use and adaptable. The AI adjusts themes, questions and levels to your scope, poultry, cattle or aquatic animal transport, or builds a tailored version from your existing procedures, transporter specifications and journey logs.
Reference standard: Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 of 22 December 2004
The themes assessed
Authorisations, approvals and documentation
Type 1 or type 2 transporter authorisation, vehicle approval certificates for long journeys, certificates of competence for drivers and attendants, validity and deadline monitoring.
Fitness of animals for transport
Assessment criteria before loading, the case of injured, sick, very young or late-gestation animals, decision-making and traceability, the veterinarian’s role, procedure in case of refusal.
Means of transport and fit-out
Vehicle design and maintenance, non-slip flooring, partitioning, ventilation and temperature control, onboard watering, available headroom, protection against adverse weather.
Loading densities and separation
Compliance with space and height allowances per species and category, separation of incompatible animals, handling of horned or unfamiliar animals, effective control at loading.
Journey planning and durations
Determination of maximum durations per species, watering, feeding and rest intervals, choice of routes and control posts, margins allowed for unforeseen events.
Loading, unloading and handling
Design of docks and ramps, handling practices, ban on ill-treatment and use of goads, pace, management of waiting time before unloading.
Journey log and long-duration journeys
Preparation, validation and return of the journey log, advance planning, coordination with competent authorities, use of post-journey data.
Competence and training of staff
Content and updating of training, certification of attendants and handlers, awareness among reception teams, on-the-ground assessment of skills acquired.
Control of the transport chain and subcontracting
Contractual requirements placed on transporters, audits and unannounced visits, checks on arrival, management of non-compliant providers.
Incident monitoring and continuous improvement
Recording of animals dead or injured in transit, root cause analysis, indicators tracked, corrective actions, periodic review of the system and feedback to transporters.
A short version of the framework is available for the online self-assessment.
Frequently asked questions
Can Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 be certified?
No. It is a directly applicable EU regulation, enforced by national competent authorities, not a framework certifiable by a third-party body. The assessment measures the maturity of your practices and prepares you for official inspections as well as client audits that reference these requirements.
What is the difference between this assessment and a compliance audit?
An audit concludes with compliance or a gap against a given requirement. The assessment places your practices on a maturity scale and points to the action that moves you to the next level. The two are complementary: the assessment prepares and prioritises, the audit records the findings.
Does the framework cover short journeys or only long-distance ones?
Both. The themes distinguish the baseline that applies to any transport carried out as part of an economic activity from the requirements specific to long-duration journeys: vehicle approval, journey log, control posts, watering and rest.
How long does the assessment take?
The short version takes 20 to 30 minutes to complete by a quality or animal welfare manager. The full version, run collaboratively with logistics, procurement and the veterinarian, generally spans one to two weeks, most of the time being spent gathering evidence.
Can the framework be adapted to our species and organisation?
Yes. The questions, levels and themes can be modified, and the AI can produce a version tailored by species, site or transporter type based on your procedures and specifications. The framework is yours.
How can subcontracted transporters be evaluated?
The assessment can be sent out to several providers on the same grid, then consolidated. The benchmark compares transporters against each other and each against its own past results, and a cross-cutting roadmap gathers the shared actions.
Does the announced revision of the regulation undermine the assessment?
No. The themes assessed, fitness for transport, densities, durations, competence, control of the chain, remain the core of the subject. An assessment carried out today gives you a starting point, and the framework is updated whenever the text changes.
Where is the data hosted?
In France, with OVH, backed up at Scaleway. No transfer outside the European Union. The AI models used can be selected, including from European solutions.