Feeling Proud as Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare Ranking Affirms Maple Leaf’s Leadership in Animal Care.
MAPLE LEAF IS ONE OF ONLY TWO NORTH AMERICAN PROTEIN COMPANIES AND THE ONLY CANADIAN PROTEIN COMPANY TO BE RANKED SO HIGHLY
BY KATHLEEN LONG, DVM, VICE PRESIDENT, ANIMAL CARE
Lots of people grow up dreaming of being a veterinarian and taking care of animals. That was certainly my dream – one I declared in Kindergarten — and it actually came true. That dream got even better when I found a position using my skills to do two important things: nourish people and provide care to animals that sets new standards in Canada.
As veterinarians, we take a solemn oath: “I will use my scientific knowledge and skills for the benefit of society. I will strive to promote animal health and welfare, prevent and relieve animal suffering, protect the health of the public and the environment, and advance comparative medical knowledge.”
At Maple Leaf Foods, I’m happy that together with my amazing team, we live the spirit of that oath. We prevent suffering through our forward-thinking and industry-leading programs to grow healthy, well-cared-for animals. And our efforts benefit society by contributing to production of safe and healthy food in the most humane way. Maple Leaf Foods is a North American leader in raised without antibiotics (RWA) pork and Canada’s leader in RWA poultry. This means that we are playing a key role in responding to the public health challenge of antimicrobial resistance.
We’ve long respected the Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare (BBFAW) because they compare our programs and performance to 150 companies in 25 countries, making their ranking of our programs particularly meaningful. This year, we were deeply honoured to move into the Tier 2 ranking category. Only 11 other companies fall into this category. (And only four companies sit above us in Tier 1). In fact, we are one of only two North American protein companies to earn this ranking – and the only Canadian protein company to receive this distinction.
At Maple Leaf, we are committed to living our values through continuous animal care improvement innovation, like our open sow housing and our trucks equipped with hydraulic lifts to ease stress. This is good for our animals and it’s what our consumers expect from us. BBFAW’s report was immensely gratifying because we were measured against our peers and found to be industry leaders. As a veterinarian, I can’t ask for anything better or more satisfying.
