June 30, 2017

 

Tyson Foods launches new animal welfare programme

 

 

As part of its focus on sustainable food production, Tyson Foods has launched a new animal well-being initiative that combines the latest technology with high-touch monitoring and training to improve the care of chickens.

 

The US-based company said it has implemented the US meat industry's most extensive third-party remote video auditing (RVA) system, is fielding what is believed to be the world's largest team of animal well-being specialists and is introducing a pilot project for controlled atmosphere stunning (CAS) at two of its poultry facilities this year.

 

"Ensuring the well-being of the animals in our care is a core part of our broader sustainability journey and these initiatives are the latest examples of our leadership in this important area," said Justin Whitmore, chief sustainability officer for Tyson Foods. "We're also piloting other potential innovations as we become the world's most sustainable producer of protein."

 

To help monitor live bird handling, the company has rolled out the industry's largest third-party RVA program in the US, covering 33 poultry plants. The company is using Arrowsight, a leading provider of remote video auditing technology and data analytics services, which has extensive animal welfare monitoring experience.

 

Video from cameras in Tyson Foods' chicken plants is analysed by trained off-site auditors, and data feedback is provided daily, weekly and monthly to plant management to ensure excellence in animal welfare practices.

 

Innovative RVA pilot projects

 

Tyson Foods is also launching an innovative RVA pilot project to assess on-farm catching of birds for transport to processing facilities. Video will be audited and analysed by Arrowsight for adherence to humane treatment of animals, allowing immediate follow-up if any concerns are identified.

 

Tyson Foods claims to be the first in the industry to employ animal well-being specialists across all its beef, pork and poultry operations. The company has trained and deployed nearly 60 dedicated full-time animal well-being specialists. At least one is deployed at every processing facility that handles live animals, to work collaboratively with the company's Office of Animal Well-Being and its plants to ensure best-in-class training and practices. Half of the specialists are also involved in supporting animal well-being on the poultry farms that supply the company.

 

Tyson Foods will also launch two pilot projects within the next year to test a process called controlled atmosphere stunning. Support of the use of gas as a more humane way to render the bird unconscious before processing has increased over the past several years among scientists, veterinarians and animal-welfare advocates, since it eliminates the handling of conscious birds.

 

Tyson Foods is likewise piloting research into chicken-house lighting and enrichments for the birds (e.g. perches). In addition, the company said it continues to work with its poultry breeding suppliers on the important relationship between breeding and bird health. It has also conducted work on enhanced poultry nutrition and ventilation.

 

Tyson Foods' existing animal well-being initiatives include the Tyson FarmCheck® programme, which involves third-party animal well-being audits of farms that supply the company, as well as an external Animal Well-Being Advisory Panel, which includes animal welfare experts, livestock producers and a physician.

 

The company also operates CARE, which is a risk-based assessment program created by the company, which helps plants identify and audit animal handling points.