Asia's biggest food companies silent on the welfare of farm animals
Asia’s biggest food companies silent on the welfare of farm animals
Even as a pandemic threatens food supply chains, most firms, including China’s top pig and poultry producer, have shed no light on how they are managing risks and opportunities linked to farm animal welfare.
By Neo Chai Chin April 15, 2020
Major food companies in Asia must improve the welfare of farm animals that they produce, supply or use, an annual benchmark of 150 of the world’s largest food companies has shown.Out of 17 Asian companies in the benchmark, 15 emerged in the bottom tier for being virtually silent on how they are managing the risks and opportunities associated with farm animal welfare. The 15 Asian companies—which made up half of the bottom tier—included China’s top pig and poultry producer Wens Foodstuff, feed and meat manufacturer and distributor New Hope Liuhe, retailer China Resources Vanguard and Japanese food producers Meiji Holdings and Maruha Nichiro.
The Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare (BBFAW) 2019, released earlier this month, comes at a time when the Covid-19 pandemic is highlighting the fragility of global food supply chains and the need to do more to stop the spread of diseases from animals to humans.
“In a world where farm animal welfare is an increasingly important driver of both business value and investment risk, maintaining and improving animal welfare standards must be a focus,” said Dr Rory Sullivan, co-author of the 2019 report and chief executive of Chronos Sustainability, which serves as the BBFAW’s secretariat.
Pig production is big business for Asian companies, but there is also a focus on poultry and seafood.
Companies should begin by publishing commitments to improve farm animal welfare throughout their business operations, state how they will implement these commitments, and report on their performance, said Nicky Amos, managing director of Chronos Sustainability and executive director of BBFAW.
The BBFAW expects corporate policies on issues such as the avoidance of genetic engineering or cloning, avoidance of growth-promoting substances, and reduction or avoidance of the routine use of antibiotics. Companies should also declare their policies on pre-slaughter stunning for all animals, limiting long-distance live transportation and the provision of effective enrichment for farm animals (such as outlets to perform their natural behaviour), she said.