The McDonald’s journey in Ireland started 45 years ago, when it opened its first restaurant in 1977 on Grafton Street, Dublin. Today, McDonald’s spends over $2 billion on its supply chain for food and packaging across the UK and Ireland. 23,000 British and Irish farmers are supplying the brand with quality ingredients.

Where and how McDonald’s sources its ingredients is essential to how it addresses climate challenges. Back in 2021, the company launched Plan for Change, its agriculture and sustainability strategy to reach net zero by 2040.

A high-level overview of the company’s pathway to net zero was shared at Alltech ONE Dublin by Nina Prichard, head of sustainable and ethical sourcing for McDonald’s UK and Ireland. She also oversees Plan for Change.

The demand for change

Customer expectations, legislation and the cost of inaction were key drivers for McDonald’s to embark upon the net zero journey.

“As a business, in the long term, we have to be able to look ahead 10, 20 years to see what’s coming down the road to mitigate risk and to assure supply for the four million customers that we serve every day,” Prichard said. “And that’s quite a challenge to think that far ahead and be able to put action into practice today. But it’s something that we have to do, working together in collaboration.”

In the future, McDonald’s plans to continue serving its iconic Big Macs and McNuggets, as long as customers demand them. What needs to change, to address climate challenges, is how the company sources its ingredients. To achieve this, McDonald’s relies on government interventions, financial expertise and, most importantly, collaboration with farmers.

Accelerating net-zero ambitions

McDonald’s has made significant progress in achieving net-zero sustainability over the past decade without compromising customer experience. In fact, customers welcome the changes. While they still want tasty food in convenient packaging, there is an increasing demand for both food and packaging to be sustainably sourced and produced. McDonald’s carries out a lot of research to listen to their customers’ needs, then make corresponding changes in their menus and restaurants. Through this research, the company has identified three major areas of customer expectations: quality food, environmental improvement, and positive impact in communities.

Recently, McDonald’s eliminated 1,000 metric tonnes of plastic in their supply chain by substituting paper straws and paper-based cutlery for plastic. The company also now turns all of its used cooking oil into biodiesel for its delivery fleet. In addition, this year McDonald’s launched its second Net Zero Carbon location, where both building construction and restaurant operations meet the net-zero standard.

With the scale of a big brand, McDonald’s restaurants are also a place to educate people, especially the climate-conscious Gen Z, about sustainability across the supply chain and how McDonald’s is meeting that challenge.

Leveraging the power of the supply chain

When it comes to beef, McDonald’s has been scrutinized by the public, NGOs, stakeholders and media around issues of performance and sustainability.

“Beef is always a hot topic,” Prichard said. “How we source it, where we source it from, how it’s produced, the animal feed that goes into it, and also our future ambition around this particular category, given the data that’s out there from an emissions perspective.”

A turning point for McDonald’s in terms of measuring agriculture performance and sustainability came in 2017. The company started working with E-CO₂, an accredited service that helps measure and improve environmental performance, to show British and Irish farmers how they could reduce their carbon footprint. Understanding the data means farmers can manage what they measure.

Through the program, McDonald’s saw a 23% reduction in its carbon footprint and £23,000 worth of savings, on average, for supplier farms.

“That was just a metric we captured to demonstrate that sustainability, moving in the right direction, doesn’t necessarily mean that it has to add cost to the system,” Prichard said.

McDonald’s has also invested in research on regenerative farming with farmers near Oxford, who have been transitioning entirely to regenerative farming practices over the past four years. Through this research, McDonald’s assessed farm profitability when farmers have to potentially destock to transition into other types of grassland management. The company could then start to educate and share practical knowledge with farmers to help them move toward sustainability without sacrificing profitability. This involves not just beef production but also land use and carbon sequestration.

This process is one of McDonald’s focus areas as the company continues to support farmers by demystifying environmental initiatives and mitigating some of the negative narrative around agriculture’s impact on the planet.

Change a little, change a lot

There are complexities in the way people look at sustainability. Prichard is confident that McDonald’s, through its strong brand and marketing prowess, can continue to simplify the subject for consumers and farmers alike.

“It’s so important to us that we work together to showcase what we can do and to collaborate,” Prichard said.

Through its continuing focus on improving sustainability across the supply chain, combined with its dedication, global reach and influence, McDonald’s is creating real change and inspiring other companies to do the same.

Related ONE content

Alltech ONE Dublin focused on collaborative solutions to the challenges facing the agri-food industry as it confronts the “4 Cs” — the major forces of climate, conflict, consumer trends and rising costs.

Explore our other content, including photos and videos, from Alltech ONE Dublin at one.alltech.com/Dublin.

Agriculture is at the heart of many important conversations in 2023. And whether the issue at hand is environmental concerns, the production of enough nutritious food for the global population or one of many other contentious topics, agricultural producers are often seen as anti-heroes — when, in reality, the agriculture industry has the greatest potential to make a positive impact on the world.

Proof of this positive impact was on display during the opening keynote addresses at Alltech ONE Dublin, the second stop on the Alltech ONE World Tour. Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech, opened the conference with an assertion that the widespread image of agriculture as a villain makes it more important than ever to tell the story of how animal and food production benefits our planet.

“Bad news is out there, and it does get the eyeballs,” he said. “That’s why I think it's critical for every business to be dedicating resources to communicating. And to me, that's the headline: ‘We need our animals. We capture more carbon with them than we would without them.’”

Lyons was joined onstage by Dr. Vaughn Holder, ruminant research director at Alltech, and Nikki Putnam Badding, director of human nutrition initiatives at Alltech and managing director of Acutia, who both illustrated how agriculture plays a vital role in both protecting the environment and ensuring the health of all people.

“We have two of the most important jobs in the world: We have to nourish our population and we have to preserve our planet for future generations,” Lyons said. “The challenge to all of us is to come up with the solutions that are going to help us."

“This is about ideas,” he continued. “It's about inspiration — and, I think, taking some risks, because we all know what the challenges are. And we need to think about them in a different way.”

Cattle: The secret weapon to sequestering carbon

Climate change is widespread and will only continue to intensify, placing a great strain on the world’s resources. Agricultural production is often cited as a significant factor in climate change — but in reality, as Holder outlined in his address at Alltech ONE Dublin, agriculture is one of the only industries with the ability to not only reduce its own greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions but to capture and sequester emissions released by other industries.

“We exist at the interface between the world's biggest carbon-capture and machinery industry, and that's agriculture,” he said.

Alltech has been studying the agriculture industry’s ability to sequester carbon through a research alliance based on the 10,000-acre Buck Island Ranch in Lake Placid, Florida. During their research at Buck Island, the Alltech team has seen first-hand that cattle can help sequester carbon through grazing — which counters the popular argument that eliminating cattle production will also reduce emissions.

“We have more than enough capacity to put this carbon away,” Holder said. “So, this is what we're focusing on as a research group, is trying to understand this entire carbon cycle so that we can design interventions and identify levers that can allow us to use this cycle to ameliorate not only the methane side of carbon cycle but the big elephant in the room, which is CO2.”

As Holder referenced, much of the general conversation about agricultural — and, specifically, livestock — production focuses on the issue of methane, but the data has borne out that carbon dioxide is a much more dangerous foe.

“Carbon dioxide is the problem,” Holder said. “And if we don't figure out a way to suck carbon dioxide out of the environment, no matter what we do to methane, it's not going to make a difference."

“I think methane is important; don't get me wrong,” he added. “But we have to look at it in a little bit of a different framing. Fossil fuels are one-way highway.”

To explain this concept further, Holder argued that the methane produced by cows is fundamentally different from carbon dioxide, which accumulates in the atmosphere. “It stays where it was; it goes nowhere,” he said. Methane, on the other hand, can be mitigated and cycled out much more quickly.

“Methane has some pretty cool characteristics that allows it to be somewhat of an opportunity for us, rather than a threat to the industry,” he said.

To start with, contrary to popular belief, methane isn’t just produced by cows; it’s produced by “things that ferment,” Holder explained, including the feeds eaten by cattle herds. “And whether that's in a cow’s rumen or whether that's in the field, you're still going to be getting methane out of that.”

So, what would happen to these feeds and their byproducts if cattle production was eliminated? The consequences would be dire, Holder warned.

“Eighty-six percent of global livestock feed currently goes through livestock,” he said. “And that does two things for us: It allows us to actually get some of that food back to our food systems, but it also prevents that feed from fermenting out in the field and causing their own source of greenhouse gases. And if you put it into compost, which is what a lot of people would have you do, five times the amount of greenhouse gases will come off of those byproducts.”

This is the kind of fact that Holder wishes made headlines, as it is somewhat counterintuitive to what the average person might believe.

“When we are making recommendations on changing our food systems to save the environment, we've got to be thinking about these types of things,” he said. “The systemic effects of what we are doing are probably much more important than the direct interventions that we are trying to make in the first place.”

Holder has seen first-hand the positive impact of agriculture on the planet — and he hopes the rest of the world can see it, too, so that ag producers can get back to their original mission.

“We have a massive role play in climate change, and I don't think there's another industry that has a similar position,” Holder said. “But we can't lose sight of what our primary purpose is, and that's feeding people, sustaining the world. That's the most important component, in my opinion, of sustainability. We have to keep food production primary when we are thinking about changing these systems.”

Producing nutritious food for all

In her opening remarks, Putnam Badding directly echoed Holder’s comments about the broader definition of sustainability — but also took them a step further by expanding on the notion of what it really means to maintain a healthy populace.

“Sustainability doesn't begin and end with environmental impact,” she argued. “We must look after the long-term health of the planet and the people who share it. But providing enough food is not enough. We must change the dialogue from providing enough food to providing enough nutrition.”

One in ten people in the world are undernourished, and one in four are considered malnourished — equaling over 2 billion people worldwide. As Putnam Badding explained, malnutrition comes in many forms, including “undernutrition,” or a lack of calories, protein and micronutrients. As a result, the ag industry must start focusing on more than simply producing enough food for the world; we must also ensure that we are providing the most nutrient-dense food possible. And, as Putnam Badding explained, the journey to producing truly nutritious food begins right under our feet.

“Nutrition, for humans, starts in the soil,” she said. “More nutrient-dense soil produces higher yields of more nutrient-dense crops. The more nutrient-dense the soil is — through use of regenerative agricultural practices or micronutrient-enriched fertilizers — we can actually produce more nutrient-dense and greater yields of crops.”

Putnam Badding was quick to assure the attendees at Alltech ONE Dublin that she was not downplaying the role of animals in nourishing the planet, as animals provide humans with nutrition that we would not be able to access otherwise.

“Animals are the original up-cyclers,” she said. “They take that biomass that Dr. Holder mentioned is unsuitable for human consumption — we can't eat that; we can't pull nutrients from it — and they create packages of highly bioavailable protein and micronutrient-dense pieces of delicious food for us to consume. And often, they're using land that is not suitable for intensive food production.”

Although animal-derived products and plant-based foods are sometimes pitted against each other, Putnam Badding sees both as critical in the effort to nourish the world.

“This is not a ‘plants versus animals’ discussion. The end goal is nutrition for all, and to truly achieve that, we will rely on both plants and animals,” she said. “Animals provide us with essential nutrients that plants do not, and vice versa. Nutrition security requires all food sources. As we work together to nourish 10 billion people and beyond, we must remember that soil, plants, and animal, environmental and human health are all deeply interrelated.”

Considering the vital role of animal and crop production in helping the global population thrive, Putnam Badding posited that it’s time to give agriculture its due — and for the rest of the world to see it in a new light.

“Our purpose is more than farming. It's more than food production. It's more than environmental sustainability,” she explained. “It's sustaining healthy people and a healthy planet for generations to come. By placing nutritional quality at the heart of agricultural practices, we can truly achieve zero hunger and good health and well-being for all.”

As Putnam Badding, Holder and Lyons all made clear, agriculture does not deserve the bad rap it sometimes receives.

“We see this industry as having the greatest potential to positively shape the future of our planet,” Lyons said.

But it won’t be easy, as all three speakers acknowledged. There are many hurdles ahead — but then again, there always have been for farmers and the agriculture industry. We will be able to cross them together if we see them as a chance to change the world for the better.

“We've got to make sure we embrace the opportunities that are in front of us. Because it is a huge responsibility, but it also is a tremendous, tremendous opportunity,” Lyons said. “This is a time that calls on us to do much more. But isn't that an exciting thing to be a part of?

“Agriculture can really transform things in ways that other industries cannot,” he continued. “Ag truly is at this interface of nourishing the present and preserving the future. And that's tremendously inspiring.”

The time has come for biotechnology to address the challenges of 21st-century agriculture. After decades of research, the scientific community around the world can now confirm the enormous potential that could be realized by fostering soil health and promoting beneficial relationships between microorganisms and plants to achieve higher and better yields. Alltech Crop Science (ACS) takes this idea a step further with precision fermentation.

Soil biotechnology harnesses beneficial microorganisms to produce healthier and more sustainable food. As such, it has the potential to be one of the most beneficial tools for a new model of agriculture, allowing us to balance food security with environmental respect.

"There is one thing stronger than all the armies in the world,” the famed author Victor Hugo once said, “and that is an idea whose time has come." Agustín Murillo, sales manager for Alltech Crop Science (ACS) in Iberia, drew on this quote and the idea behind it in his presentation at the annual Congreso Microbioma, or the Microbiome Congress, an international event that brought together more than 1,000 attendees from 32 countries in 2023 — including researchers, scientists, engineers, producers and biotechnology industry representatives — to discuss the present and future use of microorganisms in agriculture.

For scientists from around the world and pioneering companies like Alltech, this “idea whose time has come” is the result of decades of research on the concept of fostering soil health and promoting beneficial symbiotic relationships between microorganisms and plants to achieve higher and better yields. That research has established a comprehensive understanding of the soil microbiome — and, more specifically, the important roles that soil microorganisms play in nutrient cycling, disease suppression, symbiotic relationships, soil structure and bioremediation. These many functions highlight the major significance of soil microorganisms for sustainable agriculture and the optimization of crop productivity.

Over its 40-plus-year history, Alltech has conducted numerous studies and gained practical experience that now bolster its fermentation expertise, making it one of the most innovative and expert authorities on soil health and microbial diversity in the world. As a result, Alltech strives to develop products that foster more drought- or saline soil-resistant crops — as well as microorganism-based products that contribute to nitrogen fixation in the soil or phosphorus and potassium solubilization. These microorganisms are strong crop allies, optimizing nutrient absorption and utilization and promoting stronger and healthier plant growth.

Taking it a step further

Alltech’s pioneering research is now progressing with a new concept: precision fermentation.

The concept of precision fermentation refers to the cultivation and use of microorganisms (such as bacteria or fungi) through advanced biotechnological techniques to produce specific agricultural products. It involves designing and engineering beneficial microorganisms under a controlled fermentation process.

Precision fermentation offers several advantages over traditional agricultural methods. For example, it allows for the more efficient and sustainable production of high-value organic compounds, such as proteins, enzymes and other biochemicals.

“It's not just about multiplying beneficial microorganisms,” Murillo said in his presentation at Microbioma, “but also about promoting the generation of hormones, enzymes or secondary metabolisms that we know will benefit and improve crops when used in the field.”

A targeted fermentation process also allows producers to control different variables, such as temperature, time and heat source, enabling the microorganism to produce enzymes, for example, which are well-known to be essential in all plant nutrition cycles.

“We can, through precise fermentation, provide farmers around the globe with beneficial live microorganisms or microbial compounds that deliver both immediate and longer-lasting effects,” Murillo added.

Precision fermentation has the potential to revolutionize agriculture and the food industry by providing more sustainable and efficient methods for producing a wide range of agricultural products, thereby reducing the environmental impact of traditional farming while also addressing food security challenges and contributing to the development of a resource-efficient and sustainable food system. It could also transform the microorganism production process, enabling the development of biotechnological solutions that enhance crop nutrition, disease control, plant growth promotion, soil health and overall sustainability. All of these benefits would allow the agriculture industry to become more efficient, environmentally friendly and resilient to changing environmental conditions.

How the microbiome responds to microorganisms

The microbiome’s response to microorganisms is highly dynamic and can vary depending on numerous factors, including the characteristics of the introduced microorganisms, the specific environment and the existing microbial composition. Understanding these responses is crucial for comprehending the dynamics of microbiomes and their implications in numerous fields, including human health, agriculture and environmental sustainability.

When a new microorganism is inoculated into the soil, one of the most important next steps is to examine the enzymatic activity as a response of the overall soil microbiome to that inoculation. Monitoring and managing enzymatic activities is an objective indicator of microbiological activity.

Soil enzymatic activity can support more optimal soil fertility, improved nutrient cycling, enhanced disease suppression and the promotion of sustainable agricultural practices. With this in mind, gaining a better understanding of this concept is crucial for being able to adequately assess soil health, nutrient availability and overall crop productivity.

Selecting the right microbes: A headhunting process

As illustrated above, the rigorous and precise multiplication of beneficial microorganisms is crucial when it comes to taking care of the health of our soils.

However, the selection of these microorganisms is just as important. This crucial preliminary work could be compared to headhunting, argued Pedro Palazón, CEO of Ideagro, the Research&Development arm of Alltech Crop Science, in his presentation at Microbioma.

“You first define what you need and what you are looking for through a selection process where you search for the candidate, interview them to assess their qualities and how they can contribute to your team, and finally incorporate and develop them,” he explained.

The microorganism selection process emphasizes the importance of conducting targeted selection to obtain a new microorganism with specific capabilities and understanding its mode of action and potential effects. The entire process is conducted through lab- and fieldwork, all of which aims to obtain objective, quantifiable and replicable results — along with indicators of the microorganism’s mode of action. The selection process must be precise and requires time and investment "to obtain a stable, effective and guaranteed product for use,” Palazón said.

The interpretation of the results of this work is essential, and Ideagro achieves this through its own algorithm, which analyzes more than 12,000 samples from different crops, soil types and climatic seasons.

“We observe microorganisms for their effects as biofertilizers, biostimulants, bioprotectors, bioremediators, or how they enhance the nutraceutical properties of food,” Palazón explained.

Having already been engaged in the study of this topic for years, Alltech Crop Science and its family of companies, including Ideagro, is leveraging its fermentation expertise to meticulously select and multiply microorganisms. Undertaking this work has equipped the company with a comprehensive knowledge of the wide range of microorganisms that exist, laying the foundation for collaboration with producers to foster a more sustainable and productive future for agriculture.

World Pork Expo panel led by Dr. Mark Lyons explores strategies for using technology to transform challenges into opportunities

Sustainability, animal health and technology took center stage last week at World Pork Expo in Des Moines, Iowa, the largest pork-specific trade show in the world. Hosted by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), World Pork Expo is a hub for groundbreaking innovations in pork production, unique networking opportunities and immersive education.

Free educational seminars covering all aspects of the pork industry are a cornerstone of the three-day event, which typically attracts up to 10,000 pork producers and agriculture professionals each year. The seminars are designed to help “attendees take their operations to the next level,” said NPPC board president Scott Hays.

A panel discussion led by Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech, explored strategies for transforming obstacles into opportunities.

In “Turning Agriculture’s Toughest Challenges Into Our Biggest Opportunities,” Dr. Lyons and his guests highlighted the role of digital technology in animal agriculture — including sensors, artificial intelligence and cloud-based programs — and identified approaches for creating environmental and economic sustainability amid labor shortages and profitability and pig health challenges.

The current landscape of digital technology in agriculture

Artificial intelligence (AI) and on-farm sensors are increasingly being used in the field to monitor animal health and productivity. They can provide real-time access to crucial livestock insights and allow proactive management practices and the early detection of potential health issues, which can lead to enhanced efficiency on the farm. There is a gap, however, in the infrastructure required to fully implement these technologies and bring these advantages to the producer, said B.J. Brugman, co-founder and CEO of a precision livestock farming company called Distynct.

When he founded the company, he wanted to identify and count animals on-farm so producers could get real-time visibility of their facilities.

“What we found was a complete lack of infrastructure when we got out to the market,” Brugman said. “That forced our business to change. I think the reality of the pork business hit us in the face, where you can win pitch competitions, but when you get it out to the farm, there’s no internet [access].”

New technology must not only get everyone in the room excited, but it also needs to have a practical application. Starting with infrastructure improvements will ease the friction of adopting new technologies, he said.

In cases where infrastructure and connectivity are available, digital technology can make a big difference in monitoring animal health and eradicating diseases. That only works, however, if most farmers are OK with sharing their on-farm data, said Dale Stevermer, co-owner of Trails End Farm in Minnesota and a member of the board of directors for the National Pork Board.

“The National Pork Board really didn't go in this to be a software company at all, but we ended up developing a very powerful piece of software that all producers can use to be able to record movements of animals, site to site and then site to market,” Stevermer said. “And the most important reason for this is in case of a foreign animal disease outbreak — that data will be able to be submitted right to the appropriate animal health organization at your state.”

Livestock producers have a lot to deal with when it comes to a disease outbreak. Monitoring and reporting software can help facilitate the essential next steps.

“If the state veterinarians have the information at their fingertips, and the combination of all the farms at that point and all the movements in that area, they get a lot better sense of what has happened,” Stevermer said.

A vision for the future of on-farm technology

Over the next five years, “I envision [that] we’ll be able to take data from the farm all the way through processing and report it regionally,” said Jamie Burr, chief sustainability officer of the National Pork Board.

Then, consumers will know in which region of the country their pork originated, as well as its social and environmental footprint, he said.

Brad Priest, wean-to-finish manager at TriOak Foods, a pork production, feed manufacturer and grain marketer that serves Iowa and Illinois, said he thinks the use of GPS to track movement will have a tremendous impact on livestock performance.

Brugman envisions a future where everything on-farm is connected digitally.

“I think it’s so exciting to think about laying that groundwork, like laying the infrastructure right now to rapidly scale and deploy precision technology,” he said.

Microsoft’s recently released Azure Data Manager for Agriculture collects and combines data from various sources on-farm, allowing producers to analyze the information more effectively and more quickly develop precision agriculture solutions, said panelist Riyaz Pishori, principal program manager at Microsoft.

And perhaps five years from now, he said, this data can be communicated to farmers via AI in a conversational way, similar to ChatGPT.

“If a farmer’s knowledge could be augmented with some of the other data [from AI] so that he or she can make a better judgment, it’s probably where we will go,” Pishori said.

Confidence in data privacy — the assurance that an individual farm’s data will not be seen or passed on to others — will motivate and inspire farmers to adopt technology, Burr said.

Farm information is personal, Brugman said, and customers need to be reassured that they are the owners of the data. The role of tech companies is simply to guide their customers in how to use the data to make better decisions, he said.

Balancing technology with user profitability

The ability to make precise decisions on-farm will reduce production costs, Pishori said.

Cost-savings is a driving factor.

Investments in technology are more difficult for smaller producers, Stevermer said, but it is necessary to enhance efficiency, profitability and sustainability.

“I have to do it because every acre of corn that I grow and every acre of soybeans I grow has to produce the most profit possible,” he said. “I have to monitor more closely for that so that I can show that my bottom line, the total dollars, is high enough. It becomes one of those tough balances and it takes it takes a sharp pencil, but it works.”

Pishori acknowledged that some technologies can be expensive and not as accessible right now to smaller farms. However, researchers are finding ways to democratize technology, such as using smart phone applications to determine soil quality or measure carbon in the soil.

Leveraging digital technology for sustainability

Digital technology helps farmers measure their sustainability, both economically and environmentally.

The use of technology has dramatically decreased land-use requirements and decreased water use, Stevermer said.

By harnessing the data captured by We Care, the National Pork Board’s initiative to promote responsible and sustainable pork production, producers have been able to report an 80% reduction in soil erosion, he said. The U.S. pork industry has made significant strides in sustainability over the past 60 years, and the use of technologies has played a major role.

Digital technology can predict sustainability efforts, increase efficiency and allow for continuous improvement.

Pishori and his team are working on creating computer simulation applications for measuring carbon sequestration on-farm that give farmers results from different inputs of activities.

“Our perspective is how do we get that new learning into our hands to apply as fast as possible. And again, it goes back to the digitization of data,” Brugman said.

Streamlining technology is going to be key to getting farmers to take advantage of it, Priest said. Then, we must assist them with scalability.

“There’s still a lot of excitement in the pork industry,” Stevermer said. “We can harness that power now. There is strong potential for what can be done.”

Learn more about technology's potential to transform agriculture. Click here to watch the entire panel discussion.

As responsible pet owners, we must ensure the well-being of our beloved companions while also considering the environmental impact of their care. In recent years, the concept of sustainability has gained significant traction in various industries, including pet food production.

Let’s explore the importance of the concept in pet foods, specifically highlighting the benefits of incorporating Yucca schidigera, a natural ingredient, and shedding light on farming practices that sustainably harvest this powerful plant.

Sustainability in pet foods

Pet food production carries its own unique ecological footprint, from sourcing ingredients to packaging and transportation. Embracing sustainable practices in pet food manufacturing not only reduces environmental impact but ensures the long-term health and vitality of our pets. By opting for sustainably sourced ingredients and employing eco-friendly production methods, we can contribute to a greener future for our furry companions.

What is Yucca schidigera?

Yucca schidigera, also known as Mojave yucca, is a plant native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico that has gained recognition for its numerous health benefits in pet food. The plant contains natural saponins, which possess anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

Incorporating Yucca schidigera into pet food has been found to alleviate joint pain, promote healthy digestion, reduce fecal odor, and support overall well-being.

It’s important, though, to recognize that not all yucca products are the same. How yucca is farmed and harvested can vary. Sustainability starts at the source, and regenerative agricultural practices are needed to ensure that yucca production is both environmentally and socially responsible. Working with trusted suppliers assures pet food producers that their ingredients are from safe, reliable and sustainable sources.

Companies such as Alltech understand the importance of regenerative agriculture. Alltech’s state-of-the-art production facility in Serdán, Mexico — where Deo-Pet®, a yucca-based pet food ingredient, is produced — is leading the way.

A responsible harvest

Alltech’s yucca harvest management system enables us to ensure the long-term continuity of the species. The planting area, harvesting methods and cutting plans are determined following the regulations established by the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) of Mexico.

Alltech Serdán, located about 120 miles southeast of Mexico City, supports and advises potential suppliers, mostly local families, as they learn to harvest the yucca responsibly. These suppliers only cut plants that are at least 15 years old, and they cut carefully to ensure rapid regrowth.

Alltech also trains them to collect, store and remove the yucca in a way that avoids environmental damage to surrounding flora and fauna.

Reforestation and beyond

According to the reforestation rules of SEMARNAT, for every yucca tree harvested, one yucca seedling must be planted. Alltech goes above this requirement: for every yucca tree harvested, three trees are planted by local farmers. Alltech supplies the seedlings and provides training and annual programs to review these reforestation efforts. In 2022, the Serdán facility planted 80,046 seedlings in its nursery and reforested 61,113 seedlings.

Alltech Serdán also uses Yucca waste to produce compost and improve yucca seedlings growing in the nursery, reducing the total waste taken to the landfill by a full 88% from 2019 to 2022. The facility as a whole uses compressed natural gas, which reduces its CO₂ emissions by 17% annually. It’s also home to Alltech’s first global renewable energy project, a photovoltaic solar energy system that further reduces the plant’s carbon footprint.

Commitment to the community

At Alltech Serdán, our commitment to a better world goes well beyond responsible yucca production. We also plant seeds of hope and connection.

Alltech Serdán has been certified by Empresa Socialmente Responsable (ESR) as a socially responsible company. This prestigious endorsement is given to businesses in Mexico that are committed to policies, programs, decision-making and actions that benefit the business and have a positive impact on people, the environment and the communities in which they operate.

The ESR certification requires companies to meet expectations in five pillars: quality of life for employees, business ethics, community involvement, environmental awareness and corporate management.

The Serdán production facility, which started with 15 employees, now has 200, making it the only significant employer in the town. It also generates employment for the 50–70 local families who supply yucca plants.

Alltech Serdán participates in numerous social projects that benefit local children, including its support of a primary school, a special-needs school, the Casa Hogar orphanage, and several other local organizations.

Nourishing pets and protecting the planet

Sustainability means taking positive action today for the success of tomorrow, and supporting companies and suppliers that prioritize responsible farming practices encourages the future adoption of sustainable approaches throughout the pet food industry.

As we move forward, there’s always room for innovation and improvement. New ideas in pet food production, like Alltech’s incorporation of sustainably sourced Yucca schidigera, are a vital step toward a greener and healthier future for our pets, our communities and our planet.

How can businesses in the agriculture industry remain profitable and efficient while also actively improving their sustainability and fostering a world of abundance for all? It’s a difficult proposition — but it can be done, as Graham Atkinson, the agriculture director at Noble Foods, illustrated during his presentation at Alltech ONE Budapest, the first stop on the Alltech ONE World Tour.

Noble Foods is the largest egg producer in the U.K. and the third-largest egg producer in all of Europe, with 7.2 million layers across 400 farms, 240 of which are owned by contracted producers. The company has its own logistics fleet, milling business unit, egg-packing centers, and liquid-egg, boiled-egg and hen-processing facilities. 

RELATED CONTENT: Graham Atkinson was featured recently in an episode of our Ag Future podcast. Click here to listen now.

Such a successful and far-reaching agricultural business has the potential to have a major impact on the environment — either positively or negatively. As Atkinson explained in his presentation, Noble Foods is committed to making sure its impact on the world is for the better.

“Our vision, our strategy,” he said, “is to better nourish people, animals and the planet.”

Tangible steps toward sustainability

Noble Foods is working hard to make its vision of a more sustainable world a reality. Some of the steps the company has taken to make both itself and the agriculture industry at large more environmentally friendly include: 

• Investing in renewable energy, such as solar power
• Switching to low-carbon alternatives like LED lighting and more efficient boilers
• Committing to achieving 100% cage-free production by 2025
• Complying with the Water Roadmap and joining the Wye Agri-Food Partnership to help prevent waterway contamination
• Launching Purely, the first organic egg brand in the U.K., which has been certified carbon-neutral by the Carbon Trust

Noble Foods also established its company-wide Environmental Sustainability Programme (ESP) in 2018, which strives to include everyone on the journey to improved sustainability.

“If we want to move the dial on our sustainability journey, engaging people … is absolutely critical in getting them on board,” Atkinson said. “Every single person on every one of our sites is involved in the work that goes on from an ESP perspective.”

This idea of collaborating on the common goal of protecting the Earth aligns perfectly with Alltech’s vision of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™, which is what led Noble Foods to become a Planet of Plenty™ partner with Alltech.   

Through this partnership, Alltech and Noble Foods are working together to determine how to improve the performance of poultry flocks and increase the profitability of poultry production in ways that are good for the planet. Toward that end, Noble Foods has conducted several trials studying various ways that the poultry industry could become more sustainable. These trials have included:

• A study with EnviroPak, which combines multiple Alltech Gut Health technologies into one solution
• An assessment of the efficacy of soya-free rations
• A comparison of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of white and brown chickens

Improved efficiency and quality with EnviroPak

The main goal of the EnviroPak trial was to determine whether providing birds with solutions that support their gut health, like those from Alltech, can lead to more efficient production — or even better-quality eggs.

The results of the trial, which was conducted on one of Noble Foods’ major hen operations, were overwhelmingly positive. Thanks to the improved bioavailability and absorption of the solutions included in EnviroPak, hens in the trial group exhibited a dramatic decrease in mineral excretion and an increase in efficiency. The hens being provided with EnviroPak were also able to produce more eggs than the control group over the same period of time — and the eggs were of a higher quality, with better weight and shell strength. This was particularly notable, as being able to sell more class-A eggs shows producers that sustainability is not only achievable but profitable.

“Nothing’s more engaging than telling someone that they’re going to make money,” Atkinson noted wryly.

Assessing soya-free rations

While soya has traditionally been a prominent ingredient in poultry rations, there’s a marked difference in the GHG emissions of rations that include soya and those that don’t. With that in mind, Noble Foods wanted to show producers that they can still remain profitable and produce high-quality eggs and meat while feeding soya-free diets.

The trial studying soya-free rations was completed on the farms of Noble Foods’ contracted producers. The results were overwhelmingly positive: No major difference was detected in the egg production of birds who received soya and those who did not, and the number of eggs produced was also much the same. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, a reduction in the carbon footprint per kilogram of egg produced was observed in the soya-free group.

Through its Planet of Plenty partnership with Alltech, after the completion of the trial, Noble Foods worked with Alltech E-CO₂ to analyze all of the data collected and compile it in a form that will be most useful for producers looking to implement soya-free rations in their own operations.  

Comparing white and brown hens

Noble Foods also partnered with Alltech E-CO₂ to explore the data captured through a trial that studied the differences between white and brown chickens — of which, perhaps surprisingly, there are many. White hens have longer laying cycles (meaning fewer hens are required to produce the same amount of eggs) and are more docile than brown hens, leading to improved performance and manageability — and, as a result, a lower environmental impact.

While many other countries have already begun favoring white hens in egg production, the U.K. is still holding fast with its beloved brown birds.

“The U.K. consumer is in a deep love affair with brown eggs, and we’ve been in that love affair for decades,” Atkinson said.  

The results of Noble Foods’ trial of egg production in white vs. brown birds might convince some U.K. producers to make the switch, as the carbon footprint of white birds per kilogram of egg produced was lower than that of brown birds.

“At every metric, white birds are a winner,” Atkinson said.

Working Together for a Planet of Plenty

As Atkinson noted at ONE Budapest, 95% of households in the U.K. eat eggs. With such widespread popularity, the poultry industry will likely only keep growing — making it more imperative than ever to boost the sustainability of poultry production. Noble Foods is dedicated to making sustainable operations the norm for poultry producers and, in turn, fostering a world of abundance for all.

“That’s our ultimate goal: improving the health and longevity of our planet,” Atkinson said.

Related ONE content

Alltech ONE Budapest explored the strategies for remaining resilient amid the significant challenges facing our industry. It offered captivating insights from industry experts on topics of production efficiency, risk management, the power of data, and partnerships — all through the lens of sustainability.

Explore our other content, including photos and videos, from Alltech ONE Budapest at one.alltech.com/Budapest and the links below.

Opening keynote: Turning agricultural challenges into global opportunities

Blog: Harnessing data for sustainable profitability in agriculture

Podcast: Sustainability in the poultry business

Key dairy industry trends to watch in 2023

The following blog is a summary of the Ag Future podcast episode with Muzaffar Yunusov hosted by Tom Martin. Click below to hear the full audio or listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

To explore strategies for success in 2023 for the dairy industry, we invited Muzaffar Yunusov, lead of key account management at the IFCN Dairy Research Network, to speak at Alltech ONE Budapest.

Globally, almost 970 million tons of milk was produced in 2022, 55% of it processed for further dairy commodity production. The other 45% is “informal market,” which means consumed by households or sold to traders. During the past 10 years, milk production has grown 2% annually, Yunusov said.

Milk consumption is also on the rise. The average person consumes 123 kilograms of milk per year. In richer economies, the average is 300 kilograms, he said.

From the economics of dairy farming to the labeling dilemma of alternatives to cow milk, here are six trends dairy producers should keep an eye on right now:

1. The impact of macroeconomic developments on the industry

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, countries with slowed GDP growth experienced high inflation rates, leading to a decline in global purchasing power that also affected the dairy sector. 

These fluctuating macroeconomic trends have had implications for farmgate milk prices, which are weighted averages of cheese and butter, skim milk powder, whole milk powder, and whey. A price increase of 30% to 60% was observed during 2021 and 2022, creating a mixed outlook for the industry.

Additionally, the Russian invasion of Ukraine emphasized the necessity for strategic adjustments in macroeconomic policies, especially in a globally integrated industry like dairy. 

2. The influence of inflation on milk pricing

From 2017 to 2020, the average farmgate milk price stood at around US$40 for 100 kg of milk. However, as demand surged in 2020, the milk price underwent a significant surge as well, reaching an all-time high in mid-2022. Consumers found it challenging to sustain their purchasing power, and this ultimately led to a decline in milk prices.

“If you are trading a lot in the global market, it means that your national farmgate milk prices are also declining quicker if you are not in this global trade,” Yunusov commented on the role of global trade in shaping national farmgate milk prices. “You may have this downgrading effect after eight to nine months.” 

These intricate dynamics highlight the complex relationship between inflation, demand and affordability, all of which hold substantial implications for the dairy industry and its stakeholders.

3. High input costs and their effect on investments

Yunusov highlighted the shock situation triggered by factors such as increased energy and fertilizer costs, along with supply chain disruptions, which have led to higher farm input expenses. This escalation in costs, coupled with a temporary reduction in milk production in several net exporting countries, has imposed significant pressure on farmers. 

It is important to reassess margin calculations, considering not only feed costs but also energy and fertilizer expenses. Results of such assessments have revealed that farmers' margins have been strained due to these elevated input costs. While many farms were able to generate satisfactory profits through efficiency and good management, smaller-scale farms with lower efficiency faced the risk of profit losses. 

4. Food insecurity and unmet demand

According to Yunusov:

• One billion people are living in net exporting countries of dairy.
• Three billion people are living in net importing areas of dairy.
• Four billion people cannot afford to buy dairy.

For example, in Western Europe, people consume one liter of milk per day on average, whereas in China that number is less than one glass of milk per day.

When considering the future of net exporting countries, we must consider the unintended consequences faced by those unable to afford dairy products. Addressing the decline in affordability, and effectively tackling food insecurity, are emerging as critical tasks within the dairy industry.

IFCN predicts that by 2030, over 14% more milk will be produced and consumed, Yunusov said — reaching about 1.1 billion tons. Milk production will grow mainly outside the current top exporting countries, he said, and unsatisfied demand is expected to increase.

5. Enhancing efficiency through strategic actions

A key efficiency indicator highlighted by Yunusov was milk yield per cow, and he emphasized the need to adapt farming systems to suit the specific requirements of different countries and regions. 

In low-income countries with small-scale farming operations and a limited number of cows, improving efficiency in feeding becomes crucial not only for providing nutrition to families but also for generating an income source.

Conversely, high-income countries with larger economies of scale need larger herd sizes and advanced farming systems to optimize efficiency.

“Optimization and robotization are extremely important, because at the end, once you have this high-income situation in the neighborhood, you definitely automatically will have an issue of this labor shortage,” Yunusov said.

6. Labeling dilemma: Nut- and plant-based milks in the dairy industry

Yunusov contended that non-dairy liquids, like soy milk, should not be bestowed with the term “milk,” as they do not originate from mammals. Notably, legislation in Europe has already implemented restrictions on the usage of terms such as “soya milk,” mandating designations such as “soya drink” instead. 

Yunusov noted the significance of offering consumers, particularly the younger generation, an accurate perspective by educating them about the nutritional merits of dairy products.

“Dairy alternatives are there, but we should not forget that the dairy business has a tremendous opportunity to grow,” he said. “It's important to review all of your strategies until 2030, because we are in a fast-changing world. You need to learn fast; you need to adapt fast.”

Related ONE content

Alltech ONE Budapest explored the strategies for remaining resilient amid the significant challenges facing our industry. It offered captivating insights from industry experts on topics of production efficiency, risk management, the power of data, and partnerships — all through the lens of sustainability.

Explore our other content, including photos and videos, from Alltech ONE Budapest at one.alltech.com/Budapest and the links below.

Opening keynote: Turning agricultural challenges into global opportunities

Blog: Harnessing data for sustainable profitability in agriculture

Podcast: Sustainability in the poultry business

Biotechnology is helping to combat the effects of climate change and extreme weather events on crop production

Climate change is a pressing concern for farmers, as crop production and climate are interconnected. The extent to which climate change affects crop production could disrupt our global food system and compromise food security.

Biotechnology-based solutions can help farmers nourish plant defense mechanisms in dealing with the impacts of climate variability.

Adverse weather conditions affect agricultural systems globally — repeated heat waves, droughts or rainfall pattern variations put added pressure on plants as they try to overcome recurring environmental stressors.

Weather-related disruption of plants’ natural growth and production cycles, along with pests and diseases, compromise crop yields, all aggravated by the high concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to greenhouse gas emissions.

Agricultural systems must become more resilient in anticipating and adapting to the impacts of this changing weather scenario.

The growing frequency and intensity of disasters, along with the systemic nature of risk, are jeopardizing our entire food system. —FAO. 2021. The impact of disasters and crises on agriculture and food security: 2021. Rome.

Plants are already facing extreme weather conditions

Multiple studies attest to the impact of fast-paced climate change on crop production.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States anticipates that corn yields may decrease by 24% in 2030 as a result of the increasing difficulties in growing this crop in tropical regions. On the flip side, by expanding its area of influence, wheat could grow by 17%.

According to a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) analysis of 78 post-disaster cases in developing countries from 2003 to 2013, agriculture accounted for 25% of all economic losses and damages caused by medium- and large-scale climatic hazards in those nations.

A 2ºC (35.6ºF) increase in the global temperature of the planet would lead to a reduction in both quantity and quality of crop production. Controlling global warming below 2ºC will only be achieved by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from all sectors, including agriculture, according to a special report by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

A reality that forces us to redouble the efforts of this decisive sector, as stated by Dr. Vaughn Holder, Alltech’s ruminant research director: “Agriculture has gone from having the most important job in the world to having the two most important jobs in the world: feeding the world and reversing climate change.”

Resilient agriculture in the face of climate change

Farmers can improve production systems’ resilience with balanced crop management practices that support their crops in the face of unfavorable weather and environmental stressors. 

With increasingly frequent extreme weather events, soil-applied biotechnology using beneficial microorganisms becomes an essential ally to activate effective climate resistance.

Improving soil health allows us to increase organic matter to make more nutrients available to the plant, enhances soil structure favoring water and nutrient retention, improves fertility and reduces soil erosion.

Crop diversification and rotation, low- to no-tillage techniques, and the use of plant covers that increase soil moisture and reduce thermal stress conditions are just some of the sustainable practices that favor biodiversity and increase agricultural production.

Restoring soil health and fertility brings more immediate benefits not only to farmers but to the ecosystem as a whole, because healthy soil has a greater capacity to retain greenhouse gases, thus helping to mitigate climate change.

Climate resilience under our feet

Many of the biological and physical processes between the atmosphere and the lithosphere are mediated by soil, making soil health integral to agricultural sustainability against the backdrop of climate change.

Carbon management within the soil system plays a major role in addressing global warming and the pressure it poses to agriculture production. Soil microbes are an active part of the carbon cycle, decomposing organic matter and breaking it down to dissolved organic carbon (DOC) molecules that can bind to soil particles, thus originating long-term carbon sequestration or releasing carbon back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.

The rise of global temperature is accelerating the decomposition rate of organic matter in the soil, affecting its water storage capacity, nutrient balance and aggregate stability, all important factors for good soil structure and fertility, which enhance productivity and sustainability.

Higher temperatures can alter microbial populations, creating stress and setting off soil ecosystem imbalances. Fostering a thriving and vibrant soil microbiome to overcome the negative effects of global warming is an essential step toward significant resilience under adverse weather conditions.

I want to learn more about crop biologicals.

Can egg production be both sustainable and profitable? Graham Atkinson, agricultural sustainability manager at Noble Foods, joins the Ag Future podcast to explore this fascinating question. Discover how Noble Foods is leading the way in sustainable practices by reducing food loss, transitioning to cage-free production and enhancing water quality — all while maintaining profitability. Explore the pivotal role of Noble Foods' partnership with Alltech's Planet of Plenty™ program in driving these innovative practices and the transformative power of collaboration.

The following is an edited transcript of the Ag Future podcast episode with Graham Atkinson hosted by Tom Martin. Click below to hear the full audio or listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

Tom:                      I'm Tom Martin, and joining us is Graham Atkinson, agriculture director for Noble Foods, a Planet of Plenty^TM partner producing about 60 million eggs annually. Graham, we want to talk with you about the word "sustainability" and actually putting sustainability into practice. And we would also like to get your insights about British poultry business strategies. But first, though, some background for our listeners who might not be aware of Noble Foods' history in the egg business. What can you tell us about that?

Graham:                  Well, hi, Tom. Firstly, thanks for inviting me along. Noble Foods has a fair heritage across here in the U.K., in the egg industry. It started back in the 1920s, so (we have) over 100 years of pedigree. (It’s) a family-owned business (and is) still owned by the same family who started that all that time ago.

                               We are focused on eggs. We are a vertically integrated business. So, we go right from the day-old chick on our company-owned rearing farms through to company-owned or contracted producer farms — some 240 contractor producer farms across the U.K. We have a milling business unit supplying feed into both of those facets. And then we have two egg-packing centers across here in the U.K. as well.

                               We have a dedicated logistics business from the perspective of both the collection and delivery of eggs to our retail partners. And we also have a hen processing facility. And equally, we deal with both shell egg — so, in part, on the retail shelf — but also, we deal with egg from a liquid and boiled perspective as well.

Tom:                      Okay. The term "sustainability" — we hear it so much these days, but take us back to basics, if you would, Graham. How do you define it? 

Graham:                  Oh, where to begin on that one? That's a great question, Tom. I think, for me, personally, there are three pillars to it. And I think, also, I would reiterate (that) you're quite correct. We hear the word "sustainability" so often nowadays, and rightly so, but I do worry sometimes whether that's a little bit misinterpreted or treated quite lightly.

                               For me, (there are) three pillars to that one. One is the planet, because clearly, sustainability means everything towards the welfare, the future and the prosperity of our planet. But to enable us to get anywhere with this sustainability journey that we must collectively go on, I feel that the people are (also) a huge part of this. If we just look at our business here at Noble Foods through that supply chain — this is about engaging people into this sustainability project, if you like, right the way through that supply chain. So, getting everybody energized around the good that we can do.

                               But equally, we can't walk away from the fact that we have to think about this being profitable as well. So, again, within our supply chain, we must consider that when we're working with what is predominantly a contracted producer base — so, independent, predominantly family-owned farms and businesses — we do need to consider that any of the practices that we're trying to explore or put in place must retain profitability for their business.

                               So, they would be the three main facets of it for me: planet, people, and profit. 

Tom:                      You've set some pretty ambitious sustainability goals there at Noble Foods. I think making efforts to meet those challenges is the main company driver. And you've been tasked, Graham, with making that happen. Tell us about those goals.

Graham:                  We're certainly trying to do the right things within the agricultural facet. And look, it's much wider than that. It's at a group level, but at a group level for our business. If we look at carbon reduction, it has been one of those areas that we're focused on. But two of the things that really touch, from an agricultural perspective, (at the core of our business are) sustainable agriculture and operations and raw material sustainability.

                               So, we've embarked on a number of projects, really, to look at that.  And I suppose, to highlight a couple, if we look at encompassing two of those areas — so, agriculturally and raw material supply — soya is obviously a rather large and somewhat contentious issue. So, we've embarked down the route of development of soya-free rations, and we've trialed that. So, we've done that firsthand with our contract producer base.

                               We took that on as a full flock trial, so (we were) taking those birds right through to end of life at 76 weeks. And we had a trial and control flock running. Our thrust of that, really, was replacement protein through sunflower and, then, extruded field beans. (It was) quite a successful trial. That was version one of the ration, if you like. And we wanted to look at that from all aspects and, obviously, get to, at the end, what that meant from a sustainability perspective.

But obviously, if we go back to the people and the profit side of things, as well as the planet, then we needed to make sure that our change of ration — and that's a, you know, that's a huge step, to remove soya from poultry rations that have always included good volumes of soya. We wanted to check, both from a performance and a profitability perspective and, equally, from a bird welfare perspective, that there were no negative impacts.

I'm delighted to say that we, overall, were really, really pleased with how that flock came out at the end of the test. Certainly, from a productivity perspective, all was good. Egg weights, etc. Egg numbers. From a welfare perspective, the mortalities, etc., all came out really well. And what we saw there was a reduction in terms of the carbon footprint per kilograms of egg, which was absolutely fantastic. And we used E-CO₂ to develop all the (analyses) and crunch all the data in that as well. So, we are really encouraged by the fact that we got that one off the ground and running.

So that was one. And I think, from one of the other main headlines of where we're going and what we're looking at, as you might be aware, across (the pond) in the U.K., the brown bird and brown egg is the thing that resonates with our consumers over here.

                               So, we have been a predominantly brown layer flock in the U.K. for a good number of years now. Obviously, just across the water in Europe, in the Netherlands and in Germany, historically, they've used a much larger percentage of white birds. There are a great deal of benefits to that white bird — so, longer laying cycles, improved performance. From a manageability perspective, the birds are more docile. But overall, when you look at that longer laying cycle from the same kind of feed inputs, etc., you are looking at a much lower environmental impact. So, again, we've done those on trial, fairly substantial trials, and looked at the outputs from that, again, using E-CO₂ to run through the data with us. And once again, we've seen successes there in the footprint reduction per kilogram of eggs.

                               So that's just two of the projects, agriculturally, that we've been working on of late. And yeah, (I’m) delighted to say that we've had some positive outcomes from both.

Tom:                      Just as an aside here, I'm kind of curious: Has there been any research into why consumers prefer brown eggs over white? And is there any difference?

Graham:                  Materially, no, there's no difference. There has been some research done and some consumer reviews done on that. There are varying different reasons, Tom. One of the reasons is consumers perceive — in the U.K., specifically, I think — (that) because of the nature of the fact that they've been used to the brown egg, they have a perception of that wholesome, rural kind of feel around a brown egg. The sudden shock of a white egg on the shelf — (there are) all sorts of different reactions on there around the method of production that may be used, whether the eggs have been cleaned or washed, or (whether) they're a cheaper version of the quality egg that they've been buying.

                               So, there's a huge education piece to do here with the consumer around white eggs. What we have found — and it was actually through the COVID pandemic, where there was a huge spike in egg sales (as) an essential and popular protein, and that gave us an opportunity to put a little bit more white egg on the shelf in retail, and it got a positive reaction that that white egg sold. And that's led us on a little bit. So, it's growing in its momentum, but no doubt, there is an ongoing education from a consumer perspective around white eggs.

Tom:                      Okay. Well, back to what you're doing there. I know that you've tightened your focus to four main areas. And you touched on carbon footprint, but also food loss, land use and animal welfare. And I thought we would look at each of these, beginning with moves to reduce the industry's carbon emissions. How is this being accomplished, and what have been the results so far?

Graham:                  Oh, again, Tom, another really great question. From an industries carbon-emissions perspective, again, I would go back to (one question): Where is our industry putting its focus first? And I think that's definitely around soya use in diets. If you look at the sourcing of soya and the huge footprint that that leaves, it's essential that we try to tackle that problem first. So, I think that's definitely the first cab off the rank.

                               The rest, I suppose — well, not the rest; (that) is a strong statement — but what we've done from our perspective is to measure our emissions and look at where that sits and where the split is. And if we look at that from a Scope 1 and 2 emissions perspective, (it’s) no great shock that that's not the huge contributor, but certainly, the Scope 3 — so our bought-in goods, if you like — and again, you come back to that raw material portfolio and the highlight of that being soya. But anything that's a bought-in good is where we see our highest impact. So, our areas of focus are maintained around there, but then that's drilled down.

                               For us as a business, we have what we call the ESP, Environmental Sustainability Program, and that's involved across the whole of our group. It's on every site that we own within the U.K. Each of our sites has an ESP (or) Environmental Sustainability Program lead. And all the projects across the group are completed under that banner. The projects then are developed and reviewed on an annual basis, and then the deliveries (are) tracked again through an ESP committee. So, we do have a really strong focus on it.

                               As I say, you can't avoid or get away from the fact that our bought-in goods and raw-material sourcing is a strong area of focus. So that's huge. We've also done an awful lot of work, as I guess you would expect, around our sites on renewables. So, there's an awful lot of solar going in around the sites, and that's both from (us as) a company and, also, our aligned contract producer base. (We have) lots of renewable energy projects going on out there. Our own electricity within the company is 100% sourced from green electricity tariffs now.

                               And then, we're trying, as I say, the low-carbon alternatives within animal feed projects, such as the moves to LED lighting and submetering, efficient boilers, etc. So, it's a long, long list of different things we're doing and also working (on). If you look at our logistics business, we cover just shy, I think, of 13 million kilometers a year in moving eggs around the U.K. So, (we are) mapping the emissions that we're causing there, using the right technology to make the most efficient route, and also looking at our vehicles and ever increasing the efficiency of that fleet.

Tom:                      Another of your concentrations is on food loss. What is meant by “food loss,” and how are you addressing that? 

Graham:                  Well, that leads us in — specifically, the food loss part of that came from a really exciting partnership with Alltech and the development of what we call the EnviroPak.

                               So that's a project that’s spanned almost three years now, from conception through to practice. What we found through trialing that product — we did extensive trials over time with this product. But what we found there was that we were losing an awful lot of, if we focus on shell eggs and getting a class-A egg out of those birds — so the egg that we're going to put into packs and sell to the consumer — what we found through the use of EnviroPak was that we were retaining an awful lot of egg out of second-quality. So, (those are) the eggs that you couldn't put in packs, moving that quality into first class. So, therefore, we were retaining more usable egg in a shell-egg form from the same amount of inputs. Thereby, we saw a food-loss reduction, which was a fantastic result. 

Tom:                      And what exactly is the EnviroPak? 

Graham:                  So, the EnviroPak is a mix of Alltech's Gut Health platform products. And what we were looking for there was — we set some slightly ambitious targets or challenges to Alltech, the business, and that was to look at food loss. That was to look at a reduction in carbon footprint, to look at increased bird welfare (and a) reduction in land use. We also came out of that with a reduction in mineral leaching, as well, from the bird. So, there were some fairly punchy pillars for Alltech to aim at. But using their products from their Gut Health platform, that's specifically what we've added into the rations, and (we have) called that EnviroPak. So, that's where the focus was, and that's what led us to it.

Tom:                      And you mentioned animal welfare (as) another goal. And I know that Noble has committed to (achieving) 100% cage-free production very soon, by 2025. What are the business sustainability challenges of such a transition? 

Graham:                  Well, I think the difficulty there — and again, I mean, this is a huge, huge subject. So, we've got a lot of areas to focus on there. And I think that this is about partnerships. So this, again, is where we go back to that “people” thing. And the “people” thing here is around working with our producers, obviously, but also working with the breed companies, the global breed companies, in their advancements into providing the bird (that is) capable of working efficiently within these commercial production units non-trimmed. And that is a huge step.

                               However, I'd link that back into the work that we're doing with the white bird, where we know, from the performance data and the welfare data that we get out of those trials — what we see across in Europe, what we see from producers who have been using the white bird for a while now — is that (it) does seem to be a much more docile breed (and is), perhaps, more adept at being able to cope in a commercial environment non-trimmed. So that's another route of exploration as well.

                               But we've certainly got some fairly big steps to take. Now, the 2025 piece that you referenced, I think, is probably more akin to the cage-free 2025 (goal), which all of our retail partners in the U.K. signed up to as well. So, there's another challenge for us as we transition from the enriched-colony cage production and through and into barn production, predominantly, as a means for providing value eggs.

Tom:                      Noble also has committed to help protect and enhance water quality. You've signed on to comply with something called the Water Roadmap. Tell us more about that. 

Graham:                  Yeah, that's correct. Across in the U.K., certainly, the protection of our waterways is a huge national subject. And one specific area of the U.K., for ourselves, that is an intense area of focus involves the Rivers Usk and Wye catchment, which runs through Wales and down into Herefordshire on the west of the country. So, there's been a huge focus on the pollution of that river, (which is) multifactorial, without a shadow of a doubt. And it would be easy for me to sit here and say that agriculture — and specifically poultry, and drill that down even further to egg production — had a very small impact upon that, but that would be remiss.

                               So, we feel that everyone — whether it's ourselves, whether it's the wider agricultural sphere, whether it's industry, etc. — all has a responsibility to look after that waterway. So rather than sit and say, "Well, we're not in any way, shape or form the biggest contributor," we felt (that) being proactive and signing up with a Water Roadmap in that area — specifically, the Wye Agri-Food Partnership, which has a poultry subgroup, the roundtable for Wye Agri-Food Partnership, the wealth roundtable — we've joined up with all of these people, specifically, to focus on what we can do in that area. And again, you can reference that back to various different projects that we're working on there from a biodiversity perspective — so whether that be buffer zones, whether that be reed bed catchments. And indeed, what we found, through the use of EnviroPak through our trials, (is that) there was a reduction within, specifically, phosphates, which is a huge area of focus within the pollution of the waterway.

                               So, (that’s) something we're very much engaged with. And I think that what we will see is, whilst that's a very specific area of focus, currently, in the U.K., it's most definitely going to spread to a far, far wider audience in different areas. So, being proactive and trying to be — not ahead of the game, but be, absolutely, at the forefront, both in terms of what we're trying to do but also, most importantly, knowledge-sharing with other businesses and other industries to scope out what their solutions and their ideas may be, I think, will lead us, collectively, to be able to cope with these issues and rectify the problems going forward in a far, far speedier response, if you like.

Tom:                      I'm wondering what sorts of challenges or obstacles that you have identified or encountered that you're now striving to overcome to achieve that greater sustainability in the company's practices in production. Can you elaborate on that for us a little bit? 

Graham:                  For me, I think it starts with education. So, whilst you may have specific levels of expertise within your business or out there in the wider industry — which is always a great starting place, but we know full well that you've got to get everybody involved in this. And I'd say there's a distinct difference between being involved and being engaged. So, for me, education is a huge part. So, we take that very seriously within our own agricultural sphere.

                               To rewind back, I guess, from a group perspective, the Environmental Sustainability Program launched in 2018, (and) that's obviously filtered down and through the business from our own agricultural perspective. We've just recruited an agricultural sustainability manager. And again, from there, we've gone, really (to saying), “Let's start with a blank page. Let's go out there and look at what we are doing, what our contract producers are doing. Let's take those learnings, let's pull that together, and then we can start to look at (the question): What are the best ways to move that forward?”

                               So, we've got lots that is happening along the way through bits that I've been describing, with trials on soya-free diets, etc. And then we've taken that forward — specifically, if you look at one of our brands, which is an organic brand called Purely. We've got that one in partnership with the Carbon Trust now. So that's a project that we've moved on at pace. But again, throughout the whole of that process, (there have been) an awful lot of learnings there that we've taken and, then, we can apply to further things that we do.

                               So, I think that we've got good progress. There'll be many a hurdle. Those hurdles will be probably born out of the fact that we don't have the answers, collectively. And therefore, it's back to that education and everybody coming on this journey with us. 

Tom:                      I am imagining, Graham, that in the pursuit of long-term, consistent sustainability, you can't cut corners — and yet, Noble Foods has made the practice of sustainability profitable. How do you do that? 

Graham:                  Well, back to your first point, Tom: You don't cut corners. I think, if you go down the route of looking for speedy solutions with, perhaps, the ability of or the want for us to hit the headlines, that's probably the wrong path to go down. We've certainly taken the stance that we will do it once, but do it right. So, you have to look at the end goal of profitability. That sounds rather single-tracked or single-minded, but that has to be an outcome of whatever sustainability project that you're taking on.

                               From there, I think, you build backwards, and you build the blocks from there. So definitely, having the patience to realize that you will set out your store correctly, you'll gather all of the relevant information in, and then you'll throw that in the mixing pot to come out with your solutions — and if that takes time, yes, there will be people along the way, myself included, who may get frustrated by the length of time that it's taking, but when you get the results at the end of it and you know that you can stand behind it and it's substantiated, that's very rewarding.

Tom:                      In the introduction, I mentioned the Noble Foods partnership with the Alltech Planet of Plenty program. And I'm wondering: How does that partnership turn challenges into opportunities for you?

Graham:                  I think that comes through a few of the things that I've mentioned. One's the education piece, and the other is knowledge-sharing. And I think that to be able to sign up as a Planet of Plenty partner with Alltech has been a fantastic opportunity. And for myself, if I go back to October 2020, when the concept of what turned out to be our EnviroPak trial started — and along that journey, we signed as a Planet of Plenty partner — but if I go back then to my own knowledge, obviously, I had a knowledge of Alltech at that point, but it was only then, really, and opening that door that I got a sense of the global scale and the knowledge base that that business contains.

                               So, for me, it's a prime example of — that may sound like a bit of a one-sided affair, in some ways, but I guess, for Alltech, that's also been an ability to partner with a sizable egg business within the U.K. and also, hopefully, (gain) some learnings, from their perspective, as to how that business operates (and) some of the hurdles that we've encountered along the way. But at every turn, we've been able to sit down collectively as a group, pull in the right people to provide us with the knowledge that we may have been lacking within that group, and then overcome the problem.

                               So, it's been an incredibly enjoyable journey. It's certainly been a journey, if you look at what we've just discussed, right back to October 2020. So, this has been about patience and getting there and doing the right things and making sure that we've got everything behind it. But (it is) absolutely rewarding to be able to then substantiate all of that data, (which is) science-backed, and be able to stand up and say that this does what it says on the tin. (It) brings me — and us, I think — to the beginnings of a really exciting partnership.

Tom:                      Well, I also mentioned in the introduction that we hope to get your views on British poultry business strategies. What can you tell us about it?

Graham:                  I think, when we look at the poultry industry — and perhaps this resonates for many other industries as well — I would say that within the last three to four years (or), possibly, five years, the focus on sustainability (and) the regularity with which we discuss sustainability has come to the forefront, whereas prior to that, I would say that it was a subject that was touched upon and then, possibly, not dismissed, but parked.

                               Now, I think every poultry business within the U.K. has a focus on sustainability. They will all be at varying different levels of intensity as to where that focus is, but what we're starting to see now is different businesses coming out with their sustainability strategies. And again, I would go back to (the fact that) the poultry industry in the U.K. is, on the one side, a big industry and, on the other side, seems quite small in that lots of people know lots of people within that industry.

                               So, the ability to knowledge-share across species (and) across businesses is actually quite encouraging. So, I think everyone has their different roots, because there are different methodologies and different poultry productions, etc., but there's definitely a thrust within the British poultry industry to develop, grow and drive sustainability aims, for sure, which is encouraging.

Tom:                      What do you think it is that has managed to bring everybody aboard (and) onto the same page?

Graham:                  Oh, that really is a big question, Tom, isn't it? I think that, now, we, as an industry — I don't think there's just been a sudden epiphany where, collectively, everybody has seen the light. What I think is that this has gathered momentum over a period of time. It's certainly become a very hot topic at every turn. So, I suppose it's hitting every age group, whether that be through the news, whether that be through specific programs that they're watching, whether that be for a younger generation than myself. I hasten to add the use of social media, etc.

                               But I think that thrust has come through. And what I've seen — I mean, I've been with Noble Foods for 13 years. And if I look at that, the younger generation that are starting to come into this business, and if I look at my own section of it, my own function of it (in terms of) agriculture — there's a real drive, thrust and passion around sustainability there as well. And I think that propagates and that permeates up through the system and amongst everyone else. I think there's a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy within that piece.

                               But I think, overall, as an industry, it is the fact that, at every turn, at every headline, at every article you read, somewhere, there is a reminder that we need to take this subject seriously. And collectively, it's everyone's responsibility to work towards a better vision of sustainability going forward.

Tom:                      All right, that's Graham Atkinson. He's agriculture director for Noble Foods, talking to us from near York in the north of England. And we thank you so much, Graham.

Graham:                  Thank you, Tom. Thank you very much. 

Does data hold the key to unlocking profitability in sustainable agriculture? How can we work together to harness its potential? Speakers at Alltech ONE Budapest answered these questions and more this week as they explored the ways in which data can unlock new levels of growth in agri-food.

Three Alltech executives — Robert Walker, European growth officer; Tara McCarthy, global vice president for ESG; and Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO — examined the transformative role of data science in agriculture, as well as the future of sustainability in agri-food and the science of sustainability.

Data science in agriculture paves the way for growth

Customized data can provide food producers with a deeper understanding of their business, allowing them to optimize operations, identify inefficiencies, minimize waste and maximize their resources. Data-driven insights can help producers find sustainability strategies that also enhance profitability.  

Food producers can leverage regulations such as the European Green Deal to design digital strategies that not only avoid green penalties from government, but also focus on creating branded, unique products, Walker said.

European feed production is declining, according to the 2023 Alltech Agri-Food Outlook, and yet, the value of European food production is on the rise. This calls for integration among the supply chain.

“Businesses that are most resilient and future-ready are those that are integrated, with clear linkages between agriculture and food production,” he said. “Integrated businesses are better able to deliver on consumer expectations for food that is nutritious, tasty, produced sustainably, and ensures the welfare of animals.”

While sustainability, consumer trends, pandemic and geopolitics are the main drivers of agri-food integration, ag-tech is the enabler of value capturing. Sustainability claims on food packaging, for example, can greatly boost the value of food products. These claims rely on verifiable production information.

Data also enables advisory services to give effective guidance, and it validates the impact of management changes, Walker said.

Digital platforms can connect members of the supply chain and allow businesses to be virtually integrated, Walker said. It also allows the transfer of value across the supply chain, from retailer to processor to farmer.

For example, Alltech’s three-step process — measure, advise, partner — demonstrates the power of data-driven decision-making. By gathering farm-specific data, food producers can better understand their systems, set goals and identify opportunities for improvement. Advisors equipped with this data, such as veterinarians and independent consultants, can provide valuable insights and guidance to farmers, feedmillers, food processors and other stakeholders in the value chain.

Walker referred to the advisory services of Alltech E-CO₂, whose certified environmental assessments provide a wealth of in-depth data on animal production, health, feed, fertilizer, nitrogen balance, water, energy and resource use. The data collected is used to deliver practical on-farm and online programs, as well as benchmark reporting, with clear and concise consultancy advice to lower the producer’s carbon emissions.

Alltech also uses its InTouch system to bring together farm insights and results from on-farm measurement tools. Its advisors help farmers interpret data and set goals.

“By sharing data and insights, we empower advisors to solve agri-food-system challenges and drive the transfer of value, from the consumer to the processor to the farmer,” Walker said.

What’s next for sustainability in agriculture?

The sustainability agenda has quickly accelerated over the past five years, McCarthy said.

Before 2015, the topic of sustainability was more popular among the academic world than the public. Terms like “ESG reporting” were not as integrated into businesses as they are today. The tipping point occurred between 2015 and 2020, driven by initiatives such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement, as well as popular influences, such as David Attenborough’s climate change documentaries.

Now, sustainability is being integrated throughout the agri-food industry. A key driver of progress today is policy changes, such as the European Green Deal, McCarthy said. The Green Deal aims to transform the European Union’s economy into a sustainable and climate-neutral one by 2050, and legislative framework has been introduced to ensure that all sectors meet its goals. The United States has committed to a 40% reduction in carbon emissions 2030. It has announced a net-zero target for 2050.

What’s next?

Increased regulation, climate-change activism, media attention and consumer demand are driving sustainability discussions. Consumers expect food producers to step up, McCarthy said. While everyone across the value chain has a role to play, food producers are front and center, followed by governments and policymakers, farmers and shoppers themselves.

How can the agriculture industry create a more sustainable food system? It starts with data.

McCarthy encouraged the audience to take the Alltech Sustainability Insights Survey to share their perspective on the issues that matter most to the value chain.

“Even if we’re 10% more informed as an industry, we’ll make better decisions,” she said.

As part of Alltech’s insights survey project, the company has spoken with 26 industry leaders to better understand the complexity of the food industry and identify issues that affect the value chain.

The initial key insights from these conversations are related to:

• External forces: Food is a complex industry influenced by policy, politics and nutrition.
• Understanding sustainability: There is much more to sustainability than reducing emissions.
• Cost: Consumers want food that is sustainably produced, but very few are willing to pay the price for it.
• Proof: How do we make sure sustainability models have the flexibility to adapt and the reliability to be repeated?
• The role of technology: Can technological solutions be financially viable at the scale we need it to operate?

“We have the opportunity to shape the future,” McCarthy said. “Ultimately, what all of us are looking for is better food with fewer resources from our planet.”

McCarthy encouraged conference attendees to embrace the power of data to help the agri-food industry fulfill its essential role of both nourishing and replenishing the planet.

“Data is our friend,” she said. “It’s almost like an insurance policy to show what we have done to consistently prove the improvement we are making.”

As we look for answers to today’s challenges, science gives us a sense of optimism, Dr. Lyons told attendees. Innovation and collaboration are vital.  

“We are coming out of a time of chaos,” Dr. Lyons said. “A lot of old rules are being thrown out. This is the time to adapt and think in new ways.”

The Alltech Sustainability Insights report will offer an in-depth look at how our industry is responding to today’s challenges and help us develop a collaboration strategy for delivering a Planet of Plenty™. Take our survey today!