CONTINUING INVESTOR SUPPORT FOR GLOBAL COLLABORATION ON FARM ANIMAL WELFARE

London, 6 June 2017

ANNOUNCEMENT

 CONTINUING INVESTOR SUPPORT FOR GLOBAL COLLABORATION ON FARM ANIMAL WELFARE

Nineteen institutional investors are now participating in the international global collaboration on farm animal welfare. The initiative encourages major global food companies to continue to strengthen their approach, management systems and processes on farm animal welfare.  

The participating investors - which span Europe, America, Canada and Australia - are: Actiam, Australian Ethical, Aviva, BNP Paribas, BMO Global Asset Management, Castlefield, the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church, Coller Capital, Eden Tree Investment Management, Epworth Investment Management, NEI, Rathbone Greenbank Investments, Robeco, Schroders, Sonen Capital, The Sustainability Group, Trillium Asset Management, Triodos Bank and Walden Asset Management. Combined, they have a total of £1.5 trillion in assets under management.

The investors use the annual Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare (BBFAW) to frame their engagement activities and to assess the effectiveness of this engagement. Now in its fifth year, the BBFAW assesses how the world’s leading food companies are managing risks and opportunities associated with farm animal welfare. The latest report, which assessed 99 companies, reveals that companies are paying increased attention to farm animal welfare within their supply chains, but that there are significant gaps in their management systems, processes and reporting.

Dr Rory Sullivan, Expert Adviser to the Benchmark commented: “This collaboration, the first global investor engagement programme focused specifically on farm animal welfare, provides a practical mechanism for investors to translate their interest in farm animal welfare into real action. The Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare identifies each company’s strengths and weaknesses, provides a clear engagement framework for investors and, uniquely, allows the participating investors to track the effectiveness of their engagement efforts”.

ENDS

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