Plans to improve standards for transporting farm animals for slaughter have stalled after talks with EU ministers broke down without agreement.
Britain was among several member states that were seeking shorter journey times, more space and better ventilation in transit across Europe. But a number of countries, including Ireland, complained that time restrictions would seriously harm their meat industry.
The meeting of the EU Agriculture Council, of which the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, is president, failed to agree any basic proposal, and the meeting was abandoned with no agreement reached and no vote taken.
Under current EU rules, pigs can be transported for 24 hours without a break and most other animals - including sheep, cattle and goats - can undergo journeys of up to 29 hours, with just one hour break in the middle.
The European Commission proposed last year that the maximum travelling time should be set at nine hours, followed by 12 hours of rest before a journey can continue.
It also wanted to give animals more space during transit and force operators to upgrade their vehicles.
Mr Walsh said extreme positions maintained by various countries made it impossible to reach a balanced agreement that would meet the objectives of reforming the rules.