McDonald's asks suppliers to stop using hog crates

DES MOINES, Iowa — McDonald's Corp. said Monday it will require its U.S. pork suppliers to provide plans by May to phase out crates that tightly confine pregnant sows, a move that one animal rights group predicted would have "a seismic impact" on the industry.

The U.S. pork industry generates sales of about $21 billion a year, according to the National Pork Producers Council. McDonald's, with its Sausage McMuffin, McRib sandwich and breakfast platters, is one of the nation's largest buyer of pork products, consuming about 1 percent of the nation's total production.

The fast food chain announced its decision in a joint statement with the Humane Society of the United States, which hailed it as a major victory in its fight against so-called gestation crates. The animal welfare group has been pushing legislation in several states to outlaw the crates that severely limit animals' movement.

"I think it's going to have a seismic impact on the pork industry because it signals to every other major food retailer that this is the morally correct pathway, but it's also an economically feasible pathway," said Wayne Pacelle, the Humane Society's CEO.

Many of McDonald's competitors, including Burger King, Wendy's and Hardee's, have already begun to move away from suppliers who use gestation crates, and the fast food chain's announcement came a day after Chipotle Mexican Grill made a splash with a nearly two-and-a-half minute television commercial aired during the Grammy's and touting its ban on pork produced using the crates.

The commercial, an animated short film featuring the Coldplay song "The Scientist" sung by Willie Nelson, was released online in August. It features a farmer who experiences a crisis of conscience, prompting him to abandon factory-like farming methods and free his pigs, chickens and cows from confinement. It had more than 4.6 million views on YouTube by Monday afternoon.

"We are changing the way people think about and eat fast food," Steve Ells, founder, chairman and co-CEO of Chipotle, said in a statement. "We have always understood the importance of serving food that is raised right, but that is a difficult thing to communicate with the limitations of traditional advertising."

Unlike Chipotle, McDonald's is not ending its relationship with suppliers who use gestation crates.

"We're really looking to see a positive change regarding moving away from gestation stalls, and we think the best way to do that is working with our suppliers," McDonald's spokeswoman Lisa McComb said. "They're the ones that actually have to take action to make this happen."

Some of McDonald's suppliers and other major pork producers have already announced plans to phase out gestation crates.