Today, the pursuit for sustainability has been the topmost agenda for many in the food industry — from large-scale corporations to growing businesses. Of these, animal welfare has been a major aspect of the conversation. Studies show that consumers’ concerns about farm animal welfare are preventing them from purchasing certain products. Some even indicate that consumers are willing to pay more for products with an animal welfare label.
Enter Rich Products (Rich’s). As one of the most successful family-owned companies in the world, Rich’s creates a variety of bakery and dessert products for commercial kitchens. Today, the company operates in more than 100 countries across the world, with over 13,000 associates generating USD $5.8 billion in annual sales.
As the corporation behind many leading brands in the bakery industry, such as Tres Riches, Whip Topping, and Gold Label, Rich’s utilizes animal products in many of its offerings. However, the company has recently come under fire by NGOs for its sourcing policies, particularly in regard to animal welfare and food safety.
Rich Products: Farm animal welfare under question
In recent years most global packaged foods, such as Nestle, PepsiCo, Unilever, Mondelz, General Mills and others, as well as most global bakery brands, such as Associated British Foods, Bakkavor, Aryzta, an Baker&Baker, have made a pledge to end the use of “caged eggs” in their supply chains. This refers to eggs produced by hens confined in barren metal cages. These and many other brands are instead opting for cage-free eggs, which studies show are higher in food safety for customers and highly preferable for animal welfare.
Rich’s online sustainability policy does highlight that it views animal welfare as an important commitment area for the company. “We’ll continue to build a resilient supply chain based on animal welfare and more sustainable practices,” the company’s website states.
However the company does not have any policy regarding cage-free eggs or other key animal welfare matters, which appear to have led it to come into the crosshairs of animal protection and consumer protection NGOs unhappy with the company’s failure to keep up with peer companies on this issue. In recent months, NGOs have launched an online campaign calling on the company to commit to shifting to cage-free eggs in its supply chain.
Other commitments to sustainability
Rich’s has further detailed a number of sustainability initiatives on its website. They are as follows:
- Working on creating more sustainable packaging – 75% of plastics packaging in the US and Canada is technically or widely recyclable
- Developing circular water systems that recycle and reuse water, and partnering with local communities to ensure water preservation
- Committing to cutting food waste in half by 2030 as part of its partnership with the 10x20x30 initiative
- Setting a goal to lower carbon emissions intensity by 25% by 2025. Since 2016, Rich’s has reduced its carbon emissions by 18%
Despite this, the company falls behind competitors that are setting ambitious sustainability targets. In its most recent ESG report, Marks and Spencer has committed to achieving net zero by 2039/40, with a near-term target of 34% reduction by 2025/26. PepsiCo has notably achieved its 2025 goal of enhancing operational water-use efficiency by 25%, reaching this two years early.
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