Page 12 - Australian Pork Newspaper

Coles and Aussie
farmers raise over half a
million dollars for MND
Industry leaders rewarded for higher welfare of pigs
FUNDS raised from pork sales increased by a massive 57 per- cent this year.
Coles and its pork producers have raised nearly $520,000 to fight motor neurone disease following a national campaign on pork sales.
The fundraising result for FightMND repre- sents a 57 percent in- crease on last year, mak- ing Coles once again the biggest corporate donor to the charity.
Over nearly six weeks, Coles donated 10 cents from the sale of each pack of fresh pork – from spare ribs, sirloin steak, scotch fil- let, loin chops, schnitzel and mince at over 800 Coles supermarkets.
In addition to Coles’ donation, Coles’ Aussie pork farmers donated to the FightMND founda- tion during the appeal.
Coles chief operating officer Greg Davis said the response of custom- ers to the FightMND appeal had been fan- tastic.
“Australian pork is one of the most deli- cious, versatile meats to enjoy at this time of the year and it was great to see so many custom- ers buying Coles Brand fresh pork while also
supporting such a wor- thy cause,” Davis said.
FightMND CEO Jamie Howden thanked Coles as well as their customers and pork producers for their gen- erosity.
“The partnership be- tween Coles, Australian Pork Limited, Aussie pork farmers and Fight- MND has gone from strength to strength this year,” Howden said.
“Through the gen- erosity of Coles, the farmers and the Aus- tralian public who pur- chased fresh pork prod- ucts during the cam- paign, FightMND will now commit the money raised to more world- class research projects to find effective treat- ments and a cure for MND.”
Every day, at least two Australians die from MND, while another two are diagnosed with the debilitating illness.
The fundraising ap- peal at Coles coincided with FightMND’s Big Freeze at the MCG, which has been held on the Queen’s Birthday holiday each year since 2015, raising awareness and funds for MND medical research to find effective treat- ments and a cure for the disease.
FARM animal welfare is gaining huge momentum across the global food industry, as highlighted at Compassion in World Farming’s latest Good Farm Animal Welfare Awards ceremony in Brussels, Sweden on June 27.
The awards were hosted this year by vet, TV pre- senter and author Emma Milne, celebrating com- panies committed to im- proving the lives of farm animals.
“I’m hugely honoured to have been asked to host this year’s Good Farm Animal Welfare Awards,” Milne said.
“All the time we use animals for food, it’s es- sential we keep striving to improve their welfare, not just in life but in death too.
“The awards recognise those who embrace this,” she said.
This year there was a total of 50 awards cel- ebrating market-leading food businesses for their higher-welfare policies and practices, which are set to benefit the lives of over 39 million animals each year.
The second-biggest re- tailer in Sweden with 650 stores, Coop Sweden was the only retailer to receive a Good Sow Commenda- tion in recognition of the high welfare standards in its pork supply chain.
All sows are reared in groups throughout life, with straw bedding and enrichment and farrowing crates are never used.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (US) also received a Good Sow Commendation for its conviction to ensure sows are never confined to gestation crates or far- rowing stalls.
Chipotle Mexican Grill animal welfare manager Yael Cypers said, “We are dedicated to serving food with integrity and ensur- ing our real ingredients are responsibly sourced.”
“Our pork is raised out- doors or in deeply bed- ded open barns, and our sows are never in cages or crates.
“We have been serving humanely raised meat in all our restaurants (2500) for more than 20 years and are dedicated to maintaining high animal welfare standards.
“We look forward to continuing to work with Compassion in World Farming and our supply partners to drive further progress in our collective efforts to cultivate a better world.”
Compassion’s awards program in China has con- tinued to flourish, work- ing with the International Cooperation Committee of Animal Welfare to rec- ognise the higher-welfare achievements of Chinese pig and poultry producers.
The Chinese producer awards are based on cri- teria that equate to stars, with five being the highest accolade.
This year there were eight Good Pig Produc- tion Award winners (with two five-star winners)
who have made signifi- cant commitments to improving the welfare of pigs.
This year also saw the return of the biennial Retailer Awards, which stem from Compassion’s Supermarket Survey re- sults and feature the Best Retailer Innovation and Marketing Awards, which are selected by an expert panel.
This year, Waitrose & Partners was awarded both the Best Retailer Award – beating competi- tion from 27 other retail- ers from the UK, France, Italy, Germany and Scan- dinavia – and Best Re- tailer Marketing Award for the second time for its consistent and high-level consumer-facing commu- nications on farm animal welfare, with its recent ‘Waitrose & Partners’ re- brand campaign.
Waitrose & Partners Ag- riculture Manager Duncan Sinclair said, “It’s a huge honour to receive these awards, and to win the Best Retailer once again is a particularly proud ac- complishment.”
“It takes a lot of pas- sion, dedication and hard work to maintain the high standards we have be- come famous for over the past 30 years and we owe a considerable amount to the longstanding relation- ships we have with our farmers for building that reputation.
“Without their loyalty and commitment, our pursuit and retention of such pioneering animal welfare standards would not be possible and we share these accolades with them.”
The Best Retailer In- novation Award was pre- sented to leading French retailer Casino Group, who partnered with three animal welfare NGOs, including Compassion, to launch the very first animal welfare labelling scheme in France in De- cember 2018.
Compassion’s director of Food Business Dr Tracey Jones said, “While change is being driven by myriad stakeholders concerned about the welfare of farm animals and the need to look after our planet, it
is the food industry that makes this change a real- ity.”
“Addressing the major welfare issues in pig pro- duction is challenging at the best of times.
“It’s particularly encour- aging therefore to be able to award eight winners from China this year, and to have a previous winner, Fumagalli, speak at our awards on its progress to- wards free farrowing and higher welfare pig pro- duction.
“We hope by sharing ex- periences, more producers will gain the confidence needed to invest and trial new systems.
“Our awards are a great way to recognise and con- gratulate those doing their part to better the lives of farm animals and we were pleased to be able to rec- ognise Coop Sweden and Chipotle for their com- mitments.
“We hope others will follow in their footsteps to help drive change, for the sake of the millions of pigs reared for food each year.”
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Page 12 – Australian Pork Newspaper, July 2019
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