Dive Brief:
- Nestle is adopting new standards for the humane treatment of animals in its supply chain -- a move that will have a dramatic impact on the industry given Nestle's global reach. The company uses some 7,300 different companies as suppliers.
- Nestle, which earns more from the sale of food than any other company on earth, will no longer buy hogs from companies that use gestation crates, told the New York Times it won't buy poultry from places that use battery cages, won't buy cattle from ranchers who cut horns and tails without anesthesia, and won't buy any animals that have consumed growth-promoting drugs.
- The new standards will be audited by SGS and monitored by the World Animal Protection activist group.
Dive Insight:
Nestle has says it wants to change its image to something more like a health and wellness company. The announcement that it intends to change how its suppliers treat animals is a step -- a big step -- in that direction. Nestle has learned the hard way in recent months how its brands can be hurt by acts of cruelty in its supply chain.