RED DEER — Turkey Farmers of Canada wants national standards that guarantee a high level of care and welfare for birds.
The plan comprises the industry’s on-farm food safety and flock care programs and incorporates the code of practice for the humane handling of turkeys.
Under the plan, independent auditors would assess farms to prove to processors and consumers that all requirements are met, said Peter Boyd, executive director of the national turkey organization.
Three provinces now have mandatory flock care based on the code of practice. It will be compulsory in Alberta by the end of the year, and two provinces have not rolled out such a program.
Read Also
AI expected to make itself felt in food systems
Artificial intelligence is already transforming the food we eat, how farmers produce it and how it reaches the consumer, experts say
CBC television aired an undercover video of abuses at a turkey farm in Ontario last year, and the industry was spurred to action, Boyd told the Alberta Turkey Farmers annual meeting in Red Deer Feb. 24.
“Food service is clearly taking note of these things as these things emerge,” he said.
“Their interest is in what their consumers want and what their brand stands for.”
Revealing videos have also exposed animal abuse in the hog, dairy, veal and egg industries.
Consequently, animal care and welfare were among the Top 5 concerns in a 2014 consumer food survey, said Boyd.
These concerns were rarely a consideration five years ago, he added.
The turkey industry has developed a multi-point plan that will suit processors and retailers rather than each customer setting its own standards.
“Meeting the requirements of several different customers becomes quite a significant challenge,” Boyd said.
For example, the United Kingdom has various corporate programs, and several auditors may visit the same farm.
Companies often use their standards as a marketing advantage, claiming theirs are better than the competition.
The Canadian program plans to use trained auditors who are at arms length to the turkey industry to provide an objective assessment. They may show up unannounced, and problems can be corrected immediately.
“The primary processing sector is not doing this just to be ornery or hard to get along with,” Boyd said.
“This is because their customers are putting pressure on them, and that pressure is coming from the consumers.”
The national plan should also be transparent. However, Boyd said it is hard to determine how much people want to know about the treatment of turkeys at farms or processing plants.
