Carl Icahn, a feared corporate raider, is pushing McDonald’s fast-food chain to immediately require pork suppliers to ban sow housing in gestation crates.
McDonald’s is pushing back, saying it has made progress towards that goal but can’t move faster without losing pork supply.
McDonald’s pledged in 2012 that it would move to crate-free pork, a pledge that the Wall Street Journal said Icahn pushed.
"Since making this commitment, McDonald's has led the industry, and today an estimated 30 to 35 per cent of U.S. pork production has moved to group housing systems," the company's statement said.
The company expects to source 85 to 90 per cent of its U.S. pork volumes from sows not housed in gestation crates during pregnancy by the end of 2022 and expects all of its U.S. pork to come from sows housed in groups during pregnancy by the end of 2024, the company said.
