By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com
Farms that supply Nestlé with its dairy, meat, poultry and egg needs will now have to comply with stricter animal welfare standards.
The announcement was made following a signed deal with the NGO group World Animal Protection, making it the first major food company to form an international partnership with an animal welfare organization.
"Our decision to work with Nestlé is based upon their clear commitment to improving animal welfare and the lasting change this can have on millions of farm animals around the world,” Mike Baker chief executive for World Animal Protection said in a release.
Nestlé currently has more than 7,300 suppliers that buy its animal produced products, which range from milk, yogurt, ice cream, meat, and eggs. The new welfare criteria are far reaching, as it applies to hundreds of thousands of farms around the world. Additionally, the company hopes to have about 40 percent of its key farm product commodities fully traceable by 2015.
Suppliers must adhere to the Nestlé Supplier Code in order to continue doing business with the company. The company has hired an independent auditor, SGS, to perform checks on the farms to ensure the new standards of animal welfare are being implemented at the farm level. Nestlé says that some of the farm visits will be unannounced.
The company says that they know consumers are about the welfare of farm animals, adding that this formal agreement binds their commitment to supporting the highest possible levels of farm animal welfare standards across its global network. If a supplier is found in violation of said code, it will work with the farm in question to make sure standards are being met. And if a supplier is unwilling to cooperate, Nestlé will terminate their contract.