McDonald's sees animal welfare gaining ground in UK

By Nigel Hunt

OXFORD (Reuters) - Animal welfare will become of growing importance for British consumers and restaurant chain McDonald's wants improved standards from its suppliers, the head of the company's UK business said on Friday.

"Animal welfare across the next couple of years will become a mass topic of discussion in the general public," Steve Easterbrook, chief executive officer of McDonald's Restaurants told delegates at the Oxford Farming Conference.

Easterbrook noted that an upcoming British television documentary to be aired this month was looking at chicken farming and such programmes would encourage customers to look more closely at food and at food and farming practices.

McDonald's in Britain has served only free range eggs during the last 10 years and Easterbrook said the company was currently looking at providing canopy cover for chickens to encourage hens to range more.

He said the company also was working to improve pig rearing practices to allow them to behave more naturally so as to reduce tail biting ant to remove the need to routinely dock tails.

"We don't mind paying a fair price for that (higher animal welfare standards) and will pass it on appropriately if we believe it has provided added value (for customers)," he said.

EUROPEAN SPREAD

Easterbrook said McDonald's British restaurants had led the move towards improved animal welfare but said such practices would spread across the company's European restaurants.