Retailers are becoming one of the most potent force in setting animal welfare standards and will be the major engine for influencing animal welfare change. They can move faster than Governments, can cut off a supplier’s livelihood by stopping contracts and can ignore international trade agreements.(Spedding C. (2000). – Animal welfare. Earthscan Publications Ltd, London)

While sovereign states are obliged to abide by international agreements and trade barriers such as those set down by the WTO, retailers have significantly more freedom to make decisions based on animal welfare grounds, and thereby influence standards of animal welfare nationally and globally. This is a fact increasingly recognised by many NGO’s rewarding the efforts of businesses who are getting on board with animal welfare initiatives, in addition to drawing attention to retailers whose activites fall short of animal welfare considerations. Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) is one such example of an NGO actively involved in working with retailers to make practical differences in the market place.

CIWF have implemented a “Good Egg Award” engaging and rewarding companies for the efforts made to improve farm animal welfare through the products they sell. Award Winners to date have included Sainsbury’s and Unilever.

McDonalds UK is quoted on the CIWF site as stating: “‘Initiatives such as the Good Egg Award recognise and reward progressive behaviour and demonstrate to both industry and customers that responsible actions can also make good business sense.’

CIWF also run a bad eggs award.

For more information see http://www.ciwf.org.uk