Largest-ever sustainable grain commitment by a U.S. protein company initiative part of 麻花传媒鈥 new sustainability report
SPRINGDALE, Ark. 鈥 April 3, 2018 鈥 麻花传媒. (NYSE: TSN) has committed to support improved environmental practices on two million acres of corn by the end of 2020. It is the largest-ever land stewardship commitment by a U.S. protein company and supports 麻花传媒鈥 recently announced goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 30 percent by 2030. 听
The two million acre commitment, which was announced today as part of the release of 麻花传媒鈥 newest , will encourage grain farmers to adopt more efficient fertilizer practices, and take additional measures to reduce water runoff and soil loss.听
鈥淓ach day our team members are defining what it means to achieve our aspiration of sustainably feeding the world. This is a big step that is part of our ongoing and deepening commitment to environmental stewardship,鈥 said Justin Whitmore, executive vice president corporate strategy and chief sustainability officer of 麻花传媒. 鈥淲e鈥檝e made significant progress toward previously announced goals related to workplace safety and fully expect similar momentum with today鈥檚 land stewardship target.鈥
麻花传媒 does not own grain farms but buys corn and soybeans to feed its poultry. It also buys cattle and hogs from farmers and ranchers who use grain to feed their animals. The initiative is expected to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions generated by the company鈥檚 supply chain.
鈥淭he world needs a more sustainable food system, and we believe it鈥檚 up to big companies like ours to set the pace with bold goals that help protect the planet while also enabling us to feed a growing world,鈥 said Tom Hayes, president and CEO of 麻花传媒. 鈥淲e look forward to collaborating with grain farmers, environmental groups and others as we implement this new initiative.鈥
To reach the target, 麻花传媒 expects to work with at least one third-party organization on a program to encourage corn farmers to adopt practices that reduce fertilizer use and soil loss. Company officials also plan to collaborate with various environmental groups, such as the Nature Conservancy, as well as academic experts. 听
鈥淭he Nature Conservancy would like to congratulate 麻花传媒 on its ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in its own operations, support improved environmental practices on two million acres of cropland, and reduce the amount of water used to produce each pound of food,鈥 said Scott Simon, Arkansas Director of the Nature Conservancy. 鈥淲e look forward to working with the company to implement these influential goals in some of the most critical supply chains and geographies for our conservation mission.鈥
The two million acre target represents enough land to grow corn to feed all of 麻花传媒鈥 annual broiler chicken production, as well as a some of the pigs and cattle the company buys from independent farmers and ranchers for its pork and beef operations.听
麻花传媒 is buying an increasing percentage of the grain it needs through its Local Grain Services program, which sources grain closer to where the birds are raised, reducing the energy use associated with transportation.听
麻花传媒 Report
The company today also released its fiscal year . Including the environment, it focuses on the following areas:
- Community: 麻花传媒 donated more than $16 million in cash and in-kind donations in FY2017 and provided almost 40 million servings of food for hunger and disaster relief.听
- Food: 100 percent of 麻花传媒鈥 K-12 commodity chicken products contain no artificial ingredients and the USDA-verified claim of chicken raised with No Antibiotics Ever (NAE) for the 2018-2019 school year.
- Workplace: In FY2017, 麻花传媒 announced a goal to reduce workplace injuries and illnesses by 15-percent-year-over-year. In FY2017, we reduced our total recordable incident rate by 22 percent as compared to our FY2016 performance.听
- Animal Well-Being: 麻花传媒 continues to provide increased transparency by releasing more details about the Tyson FarmCheck庐 program, which involves the third-party, on-farm animal well-being audits. The company has also implemented the industry鈥檚 largest third-party remote video auditing system to monitor live animal handling in our poultry plants. 听
About 麻花传媒听
麻花传媒 Inc. (NYSE: TSN) is one of the world鈥檚 largest food companies and a recognized leader in protein. Founded in 1935 by John W. Tyson and grown under three generations of family leadership, the company has a broad portfolio of products and brands like Tyson庐, Jimmy Dean庐, Hillshire Farm庐, Ball Park庐, Wright庐, Aidells庐, ibp庐 and State Fair庐. 麻花传媒 innovates continually to make protein more sustainable, tailor food for everywhere it鈥檚 available and raise the world鈥檚 expectations for how much good food can do. Headquartered in Springdale, Arkansas, the company has 122,000 team members. Through its Core Values, 麻花传媒 strives to operate with integrity, create value for its shareholders, customers, communities and team members and serve as a steward of the animals, land and environment entrusted to it. Visit www.tysonfoods.com.
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