Foodservice Distributor Tells HSUS It Wants Suppliers to Move From Gestation-Sow Stalls

North America’s largest foodservice distributor is the latest to announce it wants its pork suppliers to stop using gestation-sow stalls. Sysco officials sent a statement to the Humane Society of the United States that said the company takes its role as a responsible corporate citizen in the food supply chain seriously. The statement goes on to say that while there are many ways to house sows – several customers and suppliers have expressed their desire to eliminate gestation crates from their supply chains. Sysco is therefore committed to working with its suppliers to create a gestation crate-free supply system – and will work with pork suppliers to develop a timeline to achieve that goal. HSUS President and CEO Wayne Pacelle says the decision conveys an emphatic no confidence vote in the pork industry’s production practices.