"SUPPORTING STATEMENT: Since 2017, RBI has been publicizing its work to improve animal welfare in its “broiler” chicken supply chain, promising to “improve broiler welfare by 2024 through a combination of outcome- based and practice-based metrics that are shown to demonstrably increase animal welfare.” 1

The problem, though, is that the commitment is short on specifics.

For example, RBI says it developed a set of “key welfare indicators” (KWIs) which “will be used to measure farm-level welfare outcomes.” But with its 2024 deadline here, RBI doesn’t disclose what, exactly, those KWIs or “outcome-based and practice-based metrics” are.

Beyond its social significance, animal welfare is also a material matter.

As RBI itself says, the company’s very “ability to serve safe, quality food depends on a foundation of responsible care for the health and welfare of the animals in our supply chain.” [Emphasis added.] And as its recent annual reports state, its “[b]rand value is based in part on consumer tastes, preferences and perceptions on a variety of factors, including…with respect to animal welfare.”

Moreover, animal welfare transparency is specifically important.

The 2023 “Transparency Trends” report from FMI (a leading food industry trade association) found that it’s “extremely important” to the vast majority of shoppers that brands are “transparent” with 74% saying that specifically means providing “values-based information such as animal welfare.”

And a 2023 Merck study found that for 66% of consumers, both “transparency in animal proteins” and “animal care/treatment” itself are “extremely or very important.”

Since the company’s been promising to improve the treatment of broiler chickens in its supply chain since 2017, we think it ought to finally disclose the fundamental details about what that means.

Indeed, more disclosure on how RBI is measuring its commitments would allow shareholders to better assess the effectiveness of the company’s animal welfare commitment and management of related risks."