
THE ILLEGAL PET TRADE: GAME OVER
THE EUROGROUP FOR ANIMAL WELFARE AND THE EU CROATIAN PRESIDENCY 2020
THE BIOCRIME MODEL OF CROSSBORDER COOPERATION HAS BEEN RECOGNISED AS AN EU BEST PRACTICE

FOR DOWNLOAD THE FULL REPORT
A CONFERENCE ORGANIZED BY THE EUROGROUP FOR ANIMAL WELFARE AND THE EU CROATIAN PRESIDENCY.
Chapter 4, Organised Crime and Tax evasion, page 30
"...The group agreed that a multi-agency approach was required to tackle a trade that was high value, easy to undertake and pan- national. It looked at two existing networks where this is already being trialled. The Biocrime project was first established between the Friuli-Venezia Guilia and Carinthia Regions to prevent illegal trade in animals at the Italian/Austrian border, and focuses on the human and animal health issues arising from the illegal pet trade through a multi-agency approach. Operating under Decision 1082/2013/EU and with EU financial contribution under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), this cooperation operates under a formal agreement with the International Police Cooperation Centre (IPCC) at Thorl-Maglern, allowing veterinarians, public prosecutors and police to collaborate. By providing training and setting up protocols to deliver cross-border cooperation, the project has already established that 53% of pets traded illegally across the Austrian- Italian border had no documentation. As there are 43 IPCCs around Europe, the Biocrime project could be easily scaled up."