Press release: 30th April 2009
Dining out with animal welfare in mind
RSPCA calls on pubs and restaurants to enter the 2009 Good Business Awards
The RSPCA is calling on pubs and restaurants around the UK to enter the 2009 Good Business Awards, which recognise ethical business approaches to animal welfare.
The RSPCA will recognise restaurants who have set out to source their meat, fish and dairy from providers that maintain high animal welfare, covering living conditions, transport, slaughter methods, labelling or farm inspections. It is free to enter, and companies can go to www.rspcagoodbusinessawards.com to download an entry form.
Research¹ by the RSPCA's food labelling scheme Freedom Food has found that people are choosing higher welfare food produce. 56% of respondents said they regularly choose higher welfare eggs and 39% choose higher welfare labelled chicken. In fact, four out of ten people (41%) who buy eggs and chicken said they are now more likely to let animal welfare influence their choice of food compared to five years ago.
David Bowles, RSPCA Head of External Affairs says: "Our research has shown that consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about the welfare of the meat, fish and dairy produce they eat. The economic downturn doesn't seem to have greatly affected ethical consumerism and there is still a real demand for cruelty-free cuisine."
New for the restaurant category is a pub award to recognise the growing number of pubs across the country whose menus feature animal derived produce, sourced from farms and fisheries where high welfare standards are a priority.
Mr Bowles continued: "As well as the restaurant category, this year we have created a pub award, as we want to reward the efforts being made by pubs around the country that are going the extra mile to promote animal welfare, and recognise that their customers haven't left behind their ethical beliefs in a quest for value."
One of the award judges, TV journalist and presenter, Richard Johnson says: "TV coverage on the plight of chickens and pigs has had a profound effect on the public. From farm to fork, diners want to be informed about the food they are eating, and want to feel assured that the restaurants they choose are using suppliers who rear their animals humanely. Pubs and restaurants that are doing this, or seeking to, deserve our support and recognition. We hope to see more entries than ever before this year."
Last year's winners for achieving higher standards of animal welfare were McDonald's in the restaurant chain category, which was recognised for its improved animal welfare policies; The Norway Inn, Truro, which won best independent restaurant; and Restaurant Alimentum, Cambridge, which also picked up an award for innovation in the field of animal welfare.
All entries for the 2009 awards will be judged by an independent panel of industry experts. 2 Winners will be promoted on the RSPCA Good Business Awards website and achievements will be detailed in an ethical consumer guide to choosing higher welfare companies.
Companies entering the restaurant category will be judged on the basis of their practices in the following areas:
Welfare of beef, dairy cattle, chickens bred for meat, laying hens, pigs, sheep and farmed fish
Live transport of animals
Slaughter methods
Policies to ensure the restaurant does not sell foie gras or white veal
Labelling
Import of meat and eggs from other countries
Farm inspection
Policies to phase out the use of whole cage eggs and cage eggs as ingredients by 2012
Entry questionnaires can be downloaded from www.rspcagoodbusinessawards.com or by contacting the RSPCA Good Business Awards team on 0300 123 0488 or awards@rspca.org.uk. The entry deadline is 5pm on 30 June 2009.
The RSPCA Good Business Awards evening soiree will will be held at One Marylebone, London on 7 October 2009.
For media enquiries, please contact Vaneetha Balasubramaniam or Nicki Akers at 77PR on 0207 492 0977. Email vaneetha.b@77pr.co.uk or nicki.akers@77pr.co.uk or the RSPCA press office on 0300 123 0244 or press@rspca.org.uk.
Find out more about this year's winners.
Find out how your company can be part of the RSPCA Good Business Awards 20010
Notes to editors:
1. Results based on YouGov research carried out amongst 2,000 UK adults in June 2008.
2. The judging panel for the restaurant category (in association with CatererSearch.com) is: Richard Johnson, presenter of the BBC's Full On Food, judge on ITV's Taste the Nation and regular contributor to the Food Programme on Radio 4; Andrew Opie, food policy director, British Retail Consortium; Dr Geoff Spriegel, independent food consultant; Professor John Webster, Professor Emeritus at Bristol University.
About the Good Business Awards
The RSPCA Good Business Awards recognise the achievements of companies in the cosmetics, fashion and food industries to attain higher standards of animal welfare by implementing sustainable policies and practice
Facing Up To The Welfare Challenge
Animal Welfare Can Be Fashionable
