Safeway is an industry leader in animal welfare. We believe animals should be raised, transported and processed using procedures that are clean, safe and free from cruelty, abuse or neglect. Diligently partnering with independent animal welfare experts, Safeway utilizes industry best practices to ensure that farm animals are treated humanely at every step from farm to market.
For over a decade, Safeway has worked with a number of well-recognized experts in animal welfare, including the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) and Regional Animal Welfare Councils. All Safeway vendors must meet a high standard of care for animals. Our dedication to animal welfare includes a vendor review program to ensure the expectations of our company and customers are met.
Safeway is working collaboratively through the Retail Council of Canada on issues we believe must be addressed with other stakeholders, such as humane groups, animal welfare experts, producers and their representatives, processors, veterinarians and government. We understand that there are significant implications and complexities in making changes to how animals are raised, including animal well-being and socio-economic and environmental considerations. This is why we continue to work together through constructive dialogue and shared objectives.
As a member of the Retail Council of Canada’s Animal Welfare Working Group, Safeway is a contributor to and advocate of animal welfare dialogue through the National Farm Animal Care Council. NFACC is a group of diverse stakeholders assembled to develop and revise Codes of Practice for the care and handling of farm animals. The goal is to create a process for the development of animal care assessment programs and to provide a forum for open dialogue on farm animal welfare.
In 2013, Safeway endorsed a Retail Council of Canada resolution to work towards sourcing fresh pork products from sows raised in alternative housing practices, as defined in the updated National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) Codes, by the end of 2022.
