Perdue makes progress toward animal welfare goals

Jeremy Cox

The Daily Times

Perdue Farms said Monday it is making progress toward meeting the animal welfare standards it announced a year earlier.

Under pressure from animal activists and many of its customers, the Salisbury-based agribusiness company vowed last year to treat its animals, including its signature broiler chickens, more humanely.

In its first report on the changes, Perdue described the progress it is making. The advances include:

Completing an earlier initiative to raise all chickens without the aid of antibiotics
Installing 200 windows on growers' chicken houses to allow the birds to bask in sunlight
Implementing a six-hour "lights off" resting period for all poultry
Financing research on enhancements that liven up chickens' day-to-day routines
Increasing overall bird space by 3 percent
Studying the prospect of adopting slower-growing breeds of chicken

Broiler chickens at L and J Organic Farms near Harrington, Delaware.

While the changes are tailored toward giving chickens what they "want," they also are a reflection of shifts in customer preferences, said Jim Perdue, Perdue's chairman.

More:Perdue aims to raise chirpier chickens

“We know that trust is earned by responding to consumers and other stakeholders, and that includes a willingness to make significant changes,” Perdue said. “It’s not easy, and it requires commitment, resources and time. But people expect more from Perdue, and we have to keep improving.”

Several animal welfare groups applauded the report, saying Perdue's example sets a standard for other poultry companies to follow.

More:New Perdue CEO takes over amid industry shifts

Chicks clamber up a wooden "enhancement" placed inside a chicken house. Perdue Farms is trying to give its chickens more of what they "wants" in addition to what they "need."

“Major food companies are increasingly committing to treating chickens in their supply chains better. Perdue, with this announcement, becomes the largest poultry producer to ensure that this demand will be met,” said Josh Balk, vice president of Farm Animal Protection at the Humane Society of the United States.

The country's fourth-largest poultry producer could go further, though, one group said. Perdue hasn't extended its pledge to 100 percent of its chickens, the group Compassion in World Farming said.

But “with Perdue’s commitment to meet demand for higher welfare chicken, transformation of the market is unstoppable,” said Leah Garces, the organization's U.S. executive director. “Now that the supply for better chicken is guaranteed, there are no more excuses for food companies attempting to delay the inevitable."

Perdue Farms has pledged to give more room to its poultry, including these day-old chicks.

The company is grounding its efforts on standards widely embraced in Europe, known as the "Five Freedoms."

Under the code, farmers must ensure that animals are "free" from hunger, thirst, discomfort, fear, distress, pain, injury and disease. They also emphasize allowing animals to express normal behaviors despite their captivity.

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