Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd have launched fresh chicken meat in Germany that meets the requirements of the European Chicken Initiative.
Aldi claims to be the first major food retailer in Germany to introduce the products. It described the move as 'the next step' in its #Haltungswechsel (Change of attitude) project.
Broiler Welfare
The European broiler initiative, also known internationally as the European Chicken Commitment or Better Chicken Commitment, includes strict criteria for keeping broilers.
These rules include allocating more space per animal, more sunlight, perches, and manipulable materials, as well as rearing slower-growing poultry breeds.
In both Aldi supermarkets, all chicken products from the Fair & Gut own brand now meet the requirements of the European Chicken Initiative.
The items meet the requirements of husbandry type 3 and exceed the criteria in some cases.
Mahi Klosterhalfen, president of the Albert Schweitzer Foundation, a nonprofit company that campaigns for animal welfare, said, "It is an important development that Aldi is now the first major food retailer in Germany to meet the criteria of the European broiler chicken initiative for some chicken products.
"After Aldi's early commitment, this is now another big step for more animal welfare in chicken farming."
#Haltungswechsel At Aldi
Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd first pledged to align with the European broiler chicken initiative in November 2020.
"We are pleased that, so soon after our commitment to the European Chicken Initiative, we can now also offer the first products that meet the criteria. We have worked intensively on this with our partners and suppliers," said Katrin Beyer, business unit director category management at Aldi Nord.
"We are consistently continuing on the path we have taken with the change of attitude. Offering products that comply with the European Chicken Initiative is an important step towards more animal welfare in broilers,” added Julia Adou, director of corporate responsibility at Aldi Süd.
As part of the #Haltungswechsel project, the discounters are committed to making animal welfare a matter of course and making sustainable shopping affordable for everyone.
Last year, the retailer announced the switch to more animal-friendly forms of husbandry for fresh meat.
At the beginning of 2022, the promise was extended to drinking milk products.
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest fresh produce news. Article by Conor Farrelly. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
