Page 13 - National Poultry News

Norwegian supermarket chain wins international chicken welfare award
Stop struggling with inferior equipment
REMA 1000 Norway, a large supermarket chain in the country, has worked hard to improve broiler wel- fare.
with 642 stores across the country, to imple- ment the best minimum conditions for broilers in the world.
mitment to chicken well- being is unique.
of fast-growing chickens can’t walk normally.
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Its progress has been recognised by winning the prestigious Good Chicken Award from the organisation Compas- sion in World Farming for its policy.
UK supermarkets such as Tesco have fallen un- der increasing criticism for their inaction on chicken welfare.
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REMA 1000 will be the first retailer in the world to fully implement the industry welfare standard Better Chicken Commitment, embraced across businesses by brands such as KFC and Marks and Spencer.
Open Cages CEO Con- nor Jackson is impressed with REMA 1000’s new policy.
With multiple under- cover investigations pub- lished in 2019 showing the realities of Tesco chicken farming, celeb- rities including Joanna Lumley (actress) and Chris Packham (TV presenter) called for the retail giant to safeguard the wellbeing of these animals by signing the commitment. Significant welfare problems
Furthermore, it lowers the stocking density, giv- ing the chickens more space to move, as well as pecking substrates and perch space.
The producers are now using the Gorman- Rupp U3B60S-B pump to successfully and easily wash dirt from the vegetables and are planning more end- uses for this versatile piece of equipment.
While many brands have committed to the internationally acknowl- edged industry welfare standard, REMA 1000 is far ahead in terms of implementation, having already met the major conditions for all fresh, frozen and processed products.
“We should not under- estimate the potential impact of REMA 1000’s decision to improve the lives of chickens in the entire retail sector.
Fast-growing chickens have become a topic of controversy recently.
Recent commitments from major vendors such as REMA 1000 Norway have resulted in UK su- permarkets falling fur- ther and further behind on animal wellbeing.
Full compliance will be met in 2021.
“The fast-growing chickens are heartbreak- ing to witness, and RE- MA 1000’s bravery in removing them shines like a beacon of light for every retailer to follow.”
Multiple animal pro- tection organisations have called attention to the significant welfare problems pertaining to fast-growing breeds.
Despite being the sub- ject of multiple Open Cages investigations last year, Tesco – the largest supermarket in the UK – has yet to agree to the Better Chicken Commit- ment.
The growers are very happy with the new pump and that it is saving time and frus- tration, and above all is performing beyond their expectations.
This makes REMA 1000 Norway effectively the first large retailer,
According to Open Cages, REMA 1000 Norway’s level of com-
According to a Danish study, about 77 percent
The Gorman-Rupp U3B60S-B pump.
QCA fails to deliver electricity price spark
THE Queensland Com- petition Authority has failed to deliver the spark that farming busi- nesses on transitional and obsolete tariffs need with the release of their final determination on 2020-2021 regulated retail electricity prices for regional Queensland yesterday.
the final determination that will offer highly sea- sonal businesses greater flexibility with tariffs that better match the seasonal- ity of use.
Queensland Farmers’ Federation CEO Dr Geor- gina Davis said the final determination included some good news for re- gional households who would see typical bills fall by 5.9 percent, and small businesses by 3.2 percent.
“It is also disappoint- ing that the new suite of tariffs, required to be suit- able for a range of small agricultural activities and due to commence July 1, 2021, have not yet been priced.
Producers use the Gorman-Rupp U3B60S-B pump to successfully and easily wash dirt from vegetables.
“However, it is very dis- appointing the QCA has maintained price levels for irrigation businesses on transitional and obso- lete tariffs for the third year in a row, particularly during this difficult eco- nomic period,” Dr Davis said.
“As farmers now turn to their economic recovery, what they need more than ever is affordable electric- ity and price certainty to ensure their viability producing Queensland’s food, fibre and foliage into the future.”
“In a further blow to our farming community, there appears to be nothing in
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National Poultry Newspaper, July 2020 – Page 13
This involves stecuring better welfare for what amounts to 12.5 million broilers a year, which equals 32 percent of the broiler retail market in Norway.
It is exceeded only by wholly organic retailers due to the specific re- quirements pertaining to organic products.
The Better Chicken Commitment requires a slower-growing breed, which significantly low- ers the risk of disease and reduces the move- ment problems of the birds.
ian potato and car- rot grower ended one of their processing frustrations recently by switching from a poor quality, unrelia- ble centrifugal pump to a more robust and reliable Gorman- Rupp pump.
are proud to be bring- information, contact ing Gorman-Rupp our pump experts at quality pumps to Aus- hydroinnovations.com.
“This is a milestone for chickens specifically, and a significant step for animal wellbeing in gen- eral,” Mr Jackson said.
Open Cages works to secure Better Chicken Commitments from re- tailers and other vendors across Europe, as part of Anima International.
The pump has been chosen in this size to enable future expan- sion of their plant and will additionally be used for irrigation and transfer from the over- flow dam to the irriga- tion dam.
“QFF calls for the QCA to be directed to price these new tariffs by Octo- ber 1, 2020 to give farm- ers some time to assess the new retail tariffs and decide what is best for their business and if any structural change or new equipment is needed.
Photo: Matthew Henry