MIAMI - Burger King pledged earlier this week to work with suppliers of cage-free eggs and gestation crate-free pork by 2017, Supermarket News reports, a decision applauded by animal rights organizations.
"With this announcement explicitly disapproving the extreme confinement of farm animals, Burger King has set a new standard for animal care in the food retail sector," wrote Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), on the association€™s blog.
Jonathan Fitzpatrick, chief brand operations officer for Burger King, said the decision was part of the company€™s social responsibility policy. He said the company has actually been increasing the use of cage-free eggs and gestation create-free pork as supply was able to meet demand.
HSUS has targeted shareholder votes and executive-level meetings at Burger King, McDonald€™s, Wendy€™s, and other QSRs, urging them to be more selective of suppliers.