Sow housing statements
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From February through June, at least eight companies announced plans to eventually buy only pork produced without use of gestation stalls, a type of individual housing for pregnant sows. The following statements are from the company announcements:
McDonald’s, Feb. 13: “McDonald’s believes gestation stalls are not a sustainable production system for the future. There are alternatives that we think are better for the welfare of sows.”
Compass Group, March 8: ”Animal welfare is an important issue to our clients, our guests, and our company.”
Wendy’s, March 22: “The Company believes that confining sows in gestation stalls is not sustainable over the long term, and moving away from this practice is the right thing to do.”
Burger King, April 25: ”For more than a decade, Burger King Corp. has demonstrated a commitment to animal welfare and, through our BK Positive Steps corporate responsibility program, we continue to leverage our purchasing power to ensure the appropriate and proper treatment of animals by our vendors and suppliers.”
Safeway, May 7: “Gestation stalls have been criticized in recent years due to animal welfare concerns, and Safeway has been working to address the issue.”
Kroger, June 4: “Kroger believes that a gestation crate–free environment is more humane and that the pork industry should work toward gestation crate–free housing for pregnant sows.”
Cracker Barrel, June 14: “We recognize that gestation crates may not be the best method to meet higher animal welfare goals and are committed to evolving to sustainable alternatives.”
Sonic, June 19: “Sonic is actively working to eliminate gestation crates from its pork supply chain, and intends to reach that goal no later than 2022, although is working toward 2017, the timeframe several large pork producers have set to be fully transitioned to group sow housing.”