WASHINGTON: American supermarket chain Whole Foods Market Inc. announced it would be implementing a new animal welfare rating system for its meats and other livestock products that officials say will help improve the lives of farm animals. Despite the move, a number of animal rights activists continue to call on the chain to end the selling of animal products on its shelves. According to the company, the five-step rating system, enacted in coordination with the nonprofit Global Animal Partnership, uses a tiered system starting at step 1: “animals aren't kept in cages, crates or crowded,” to the highest tier, “where animals spend their entire lives on the same farm. Color-coded tags will let shoppers know how various products are rated.” But it isn't convincing activists, who told Bikya Masr that “this sort of move continues to ingrain animal killing in American society. It is wrong.” “We must be hard pressed to fight against meat selling at all levels,” said Sandy Johnson, a Washington DC-based animal rights advocate, who says that consumers will be “the only way to change the perceptions and whether or not meat is being sold and animals being killed.” Officials say the system will help shoppers make more informed choices while rewarding producers who have made strides on animal welfare. “Everybody is encouraged to really embrace continuous improvement in animal agriculture, which is really the singular aim of the Global Animal Partnership,” said Miyun Park , the group's executive director. Whole Foods founder John Mackey serves on the board of the nonprofit group, which is made up of farmers, retailers, scientists and animal rights groups to promote animal welfare. The group developed the ratings system and worked on a pilot ratings program with Whole Foods over the last two years. Park said that she's having conversations with other retailers about the ratings system. The natural foods grocer has its own standards requiring that suppliers humanely treat the animals that later end up on dinner tables. For instance, suppliers cannot trim the beaks of chickens, and pigs must be allowed to root freely. But “our customers have long been asking for information on the raising practices on the farms and ranches that provide products to our stores,” President and Chief Operating Officer A.C. Gallo said in a release. He called it “one of the single most impactful programs” the company has ever implemented. BM
