Animal welfare row erupts as major food firms exit science-backed chicken pledge

Eight major food companies have ditched a science-backed commitment to improve chicken sourcing standards in favour of an industry-led initiative, sparking backlash among animal welfare campaigners.

The firms, which include the owners of KFC and Wagamama as well as Burger King and Nando’s, announced the formation of the Sustainable Chicken Forum (SFC), which will work to improve chicken welfare while balancing environmental concerns and pressures on supply.

Simultaneously, they are pulling out of the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) – a framework informed by more than 150 independent scientists to drive the food industry towards higher welfare standards.

The new forum excludes the key BCC policy to move away from sourcing fast-growing birds by adopting slower-growing breeds that have a higher level of well-being.

Fast-growing meat chickens are often dubbed “frankenchickens” because of concerns over issues such as lameness, higher mortality rates and muscle disease.

Campaigners said abandoning a commitment to source higher welfare birds is “letting down not only millions of animals but a nation of animal lovers”.

Announcing the new industry forum on Thursday, trade body UKHospitality said: “Businesses no longer believe the BCC is the right framework to drive the next phase of progress on welfare due to the requirement to source only slower-growing breeds.”

The trade body argued that focusing just on slower-growing breeds, which make up a small percentage of UK production, would hinder efforts to cut environmental impacts.

Slower-growing breeds would produce more greenhouse gas emissions and require more water than faster-growing birds, UKHospitality argues.

It also highlighted that shifting to slower-growing breeds that require more space would dramatically reduce poultry production across Europe, compounding current pressures on UK and global supply chains.

Allen Simpson, chief executive of UKHospitality, said: “Our restaurants and food-to-go brands are critical parts of the high street and we know that consumer demand for chicken continues to soar.

“However, this demand comes at a time of acute chicken supply pressures and operators rightly have to ensure consistent and secure supply chains, while continuing to improve welfare standards and cut their environmental impact.

“I’m pleased that businesses are committed to enhancing their ongoing work across welfare and the environment, and the Sustainable Chicken Forum will play a vital role to make even more progress, as well as overcoming this shared supply challenge.”

But animal welfare groups challenged their argument, claiming the decision is “about money and nothing else”.

Connor Jackson, chief executive of Anima International, said: “Any other explanation is BS. Frankenchickens pose the most serious animal welfare problem in the UK.

“These commitments created hope to resolve these issues, and abandoning these commitments is letting down not only millions of animals but a nation of animal lovers.

“Their commitments might have disappeared from these companies’ websites, but the animal welfare crisis in their supply chain has not gone anywhere.”

‘Unfounded’

Tracey Jones, director of food business at Compassion in World Farming, said claims that adopting higher welfare breed compromises food security or environmental outcomes were “unfounded”.

She said: “It is deeply disappointing to see 18 hospitality brands, including Burger King, Nando’s, The Big Table, The Restaurant Group and KFC, step back from their Better Chicken Commitments (BCC), at a time when we are seeing progress and it’s being fully supported by consumers when given the choice to buy higher welfare chicken.

“Failing to address breed means failing the animals — it is not ethical to breed chickens in a way that makes them suffer.”

Ms Jones argued that BCC-compliant chicken is available and volumes will increase further as retailers, such as M&S, expand their BCC fresh chicken supply.

“The food service sector should be capitalising on this rather than stepping back from the BCC,” she added.

Claire Williams, campaigns manager at The Humane League UK, said: “Let’s be crystal clear about why the Sustainable Chicken Forum has been set up.

“Major food companies, with the combined worth of many billions of pounds, have decided that their profit margins cannot be threatened.

‘PR-stunt’

“The Better Chicken Commitment was designed by scientists to help animals – the Sustainable Chicken Forum is a welfare-washing, PR-stunt designed to deflect criticism, and let these companies claim they are doing enough.

“The result will be the continued use and abuse of hundreds of millions of birds who grow so big, so fast that often their legs are wracked with lameness, their organs collapse in pain and their bodies are burned black with excrement.”

The eight companies, which own or franchise 18 brands in total, includes BKUK Group Limited (Burger King), Lemon Pepper Holdings (UK franchisee of Wingstop), Loungers UK Limited (Brightside Roadside Dining, Cosy Club, Lounge Cafe Bars), Nando’s UK & IRE, PLK Chicken UK Ltd (Popeyes), The Big Table Group (Banana Tree, Bella Italia, Las Iguanas, Frankie & Benny’s), The Restaurant Group (Bar Burrito, Brunning & Price, Wagamama, trgc) and Yum! Brands (KFC UK & Ireland, Pizza Hut UK, Taco Bell UK).