Wendy’s Announces New Requirement To Ensure Crate-Free Pork Production By Suppliers
(afagan)
On Monday, Wendy’s International Inc. announced the next step in its animal welfare standards program by requiring pork suppliers to submit quarterly progress resorts detailing their efforts to stop the use of the controversial gestation crates, the Los Angeles Times reports.
In Monday’s statement, Wendy’s officials said they hope to end the use of crates entirely by 2022. The company first announced in 2012 that it would work to eliminate the crates.
As a part of this commitment, we now require every raw material and finished product supplier to submit quarterly progress reports that reflect the percentage of stall-free pork supplied to Wendy’s. Additionally, as a result of recent announcements by two suppliers who currently make up the majority of our raw materials (pork) business, we are confident we will continue to make progress towards our goal of eliminating the use of sow gestation stalls in our supply chain by the end of 2022. We maintain our commitment of achieving gestation stall-free sourcing, and welcome the ongoing and expanded cooperation from our suppliers.
The use of gestation crates has been criticized as cruel, but proponents of the practice say it is to protect the pregnant animals from other aggressive pigs.
In recent years, several companies have denounced the used of the crates.
In 2012, Burger King and McDonalds vowed to stop the use of gestation crates. Both companies said they hoped to entirely quit the practice by 2017.
Later in 2012, Safeway, the second-largest grocery store in the U.S., joined the ranks saying they would stop buying from suppliers employing gestation stalls.
Wendy’s requiring reports on gestation crates from pork suppliers [The Los Angeles Times]
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