In July 1983, the Members of the European Parliament who took part in the inaugural meeting of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals requested that, to help them in their considerations, an analysis should be undertaken of major areas of concern for animal welfare in Europe. This task was taken on by the Eurogroup for Animal Welfare, which published the first such analysis in 1984. This review has been revised regularly and the sixth edition was published in July 1999.