Harvest Road Group joins The Global Roundtable For Sustainable Beef, furthering its ongoing commitment to animal welfare

The GRSB vision is for: ‘a world where beef is a trusted part of a thriving food system in which the beef value chain is environmentally sound, socially responsible, and economically viable.’

The roundtable includes international leaders in the industry such as McDonald’s, Cargill and Tysons, and Australian industry representatives including Meat and Livestock Australia and the Cattle Council. In addition, membership includes advocacy agencies such as World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Membership of GRSB complements Harvest Road’s already well-established commitment to animal welfare reform through its No Pain, No Fear campaign. No Pain No Fear Pty Ltd (NPNF) was established by Tattarang Chairman Dr Andrew Forrest AO with a challenge to industry to ensure all animals cared for in animal protein supply chains globally are free from all avoidable pain or fear. NPNF’s initial focus is on the welfare of cattle, given Harvest Road’s extensive integrated beef supply chain.

Andrew Forrest said he was pleased that Harvest Road Group has joined the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, along with other industry leaders, and GRSB clearly outlines what a good life for an animal can look like.

“Consumers have a right to know that what is on their plate didn’t come from pain or fear,” Andrew Forrest said. “We want to make it easier for consumers to be able to endorse good animal welfare practices with their own choices at the supermarket or in restaurants.”

“We need a lift in industry standards that aims for far higher levels of welfare than are currently articulated in industry standards, guidelines or legislation and seek to reform industry across the globe,” Dr Forrest said.

Paul Slaughter, CEO of Harvest Road, said animal welfare practices across the Australian industry are generally positive and many companies have invested significant time and money in exceeding current standards.

“Our aspiration is to work across the sector to ensure that the standards articulate the good work that is happening in Australia. This enables continuous improvement,” said Mr Slaughter.

“Animal welfare requirements in Australia are fragmented, with all States and Territories responsible for their own legislation. This makes it difficult to deliver reform that is consistent across the nation but by no means impossible.

“Sustainable reform will be delivered if we do this together with the industry – producers and processors, retailers, governments and consumers,” Mr Slaughter said.

Ruaraidh Petre, Executive Director of GRSB, said: “Harvest Road is a business with values that clearly align with ours and that of our members which is why we are so excited to welcome them.”

“Launching our global goals last year was a key milestone for the organisation and working with partners such as Harvest Road will help us achieve our mission for beef to be more environmentally sound, socially responsible, and economically viable,” he said.