EDMONTON – Large corporations rather than governments are setting the
standards for farm animal welfare, says a Canadian adviser to the
American fast food industry.
David Fraser, an animal welfare professor from the University of
British Columbia, told the Alberta Farm Animal Care association
conference that provincial and federal governments have backed away
from setting housing and care standards for farm animals, especially
animals that are housed in barns, such as chickens and hogs.
“The social policy of farm animal welfare has passed from the
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government sphere to the corporate sphere. And the result is that
change can happen far more rapidly, but the down side is there is much
less transparency and accountability,” he said.
“If a few corporations insist on certain animal welfare standards, that
can have far more impact than an act passed by a state legislature or a
national law that will be indifferently enforced.”
In Europe, strong government involvement has created tough farm animal
legislation, but in North America fast food companies such as
McDonald’s and Burger King have driven the change.
“The corporate world has become far more centralized and accessible, so
much buying power is concentrated in a few corporations.”
Chet England, senior director of product safety and regulatory with
Burger King, said the corporation’s decisions could be far reaching,
considering it has 11,400 restaurants worldwide – 368 in Canada.
“The Burger King system is a very, very large one with a global reach
with global accountability,” said England.
Each year the company buys $500 million worth of beef, $300 million of
chicken, $78 million of pork, $93 million of cheese, $40 million of
other dairy products and $40 million of eggs.
“It’s a lot of money, a lot of commerce and in our mind a lot of
accountability.”
With pressure from animal rights groups, Burger King has set standards
that its suppliers must follow if they want to continue supplying meat
and eggs to the company.
In the United States, suppliers must follow guidelines laid out by the
American Meat Institute for pork, National Chicken Council for broiler
hens and the United Egg Producer group for laying hens. Guidelines for
pork and dairy are being developed. In Canada, suppliers must follow
the codes of practice for animal care and handling.
Burger King will also inspect all slaughter plants that supply meat to
its restaurants to ensure they meet humane standards. A Burger King
representative is to inspect IBP’s Lakeside plant in Brooks, Alta., on
July 23 to ensure it is complying with humane and safe animal practices.
England said while animal rights groups prompted the company to look at
where its meat came from, it quickly took over the assurance programs.
“We are not puppets whose strings are being pulled by the advocacy
groups. For rightly or wrongly, we are doing this because we think
it’s the right thing to do.”
