US fast food chain Wendy’s has become the latest company – following the likes of McDonald’s, Nestlé and Subway – to announce that it will transition to 100% cage-free eggs. It plans to achieve this by 2020.

 

 

Wendy's commits to cage-free eggs

US fast food chain Wendy’s has become the latest company – following the likes of McDonald’s, Nestlé and Subway – to announce that it will transition to 100% cage-free eggs. The target applies to its 400 U.S. and Canadian locations that serve breakfast, and the date set is 2020.

 

The announcement represents the next step in Wendy's overarching animal welfare program, the company said, noting that, since the late 1990s, it has worked with animal welfare experts to audit its suppliers' animal handling practices. In 2001, the company established its Animal Welfare Council and adopted a comprehensive animal welfare program covering all meat suppliers. Wendy’s has also committed to eliminating the use of gestation stalls from its pork supply chain by 2022 and says it continues to make good progress against that goal.

"Animal welfare is a core part of our company's role as a responsible corporate citizen," said Liliana Esposito, Wendy's Chief Communications Officer. "We're proud of our commitment to move to 100 percent cage-free eggs for our breakfast items and will continue to incorporate evolving best practices in the areas of animal handling and welfare into our supply chain requirements."

"We appreciate Wendy's leadership over the years in creating a more humane supply chain,” said Josh Balk, Humane Society of the United States Senior Food Policy Director. “The company's cage-free eggs announcement further demonstrates its commitment to ensure farm animals have better lives."