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McDonald's awards suppliers for sustainable practices

March 14, 2012

McDonald's has named its 2012 Best of Sustainable Supply Chain winners, which includes a list of 51 partners recognized for improving food sources, the environment, local communities and employee wellness.

McDonald's received more than 400 submissions from 172 different suppliers, making the 2012 selection process the most difficult to date.

Supply chain achievements spanned diverse areas such as meeting zero waste-to-landfill targets, taking the plastic out of plastic bottles, teaching orphans how to raise chickens, helping employees attain further education and more.

These projects were selected based on either measurable results or innovation.

"One of our core values is taking seriously the responsibilities that come with being a leader, and using our size, scope and resources to help make the world a better place. Nowhere is that commitment more evident than in our supply chain," said Jose Armario, executive vice president, McDonald's Global Supply Chain, Development & Franchising. "The submissions in this year's report demonstrate that McDonald's supply chain is world class in its ability to provide safe, sustainable, and assured supply of food and products our customers love."

Best of Sustainable Supply Report highlights include:

Integrated pest management.Leading competitive North American potato suppliers – ConAgra Lamb Weston, McCain Foods, J.R. Simplot Company – collaborated to identify and measure the implementation of best practices to reduce pesticide, fertilizer and water use.

Animal welfare training.GenOSI Inc., an OSI Group partner in the Philippines, trained government animal welfare officers and meat inspectors in the Philippines. Judges selected this entry as an example of leadership beyond the company's scope of responsibility to drive systemic change.

Sustainable wheat farming to reduce carbon footprint. Fresh Start Bakeries in Europe worked with suppliers to reduce the carbon footprint resulting from the agricultural practices used to produce wheat. This reflects McDonald's Sustainable Land Management Commitment.

Reducing the use of fossil fuels and supplying energy to the community. Grupo Melo, a Central American supplier, built and optimized hydro power turbines that produce excess power for the surrounding community during the rainy season.

"The majority of any given company's social and environmental impacts are in its supply chain. McDonald's recognition of its suppliers is an important means to highlighting innovative solutions that drive sustainability commitments and encourage leadership within the industry," said Sonal Pandya-Dalal, Conservation International's senior advisor, Corporate Leadership Strategies, Center for Environmental Leadership in Business.

A panel of executives and external experts, including BSR, Conservation International, Food Animal Initiative (FAI) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) selected the final 2012 Best of Sustainable Supply winners.

The 2012 Best of Sustainable Supply winners are:

• Agrarfrost Gmbh & Co. KG
• Amadori Group
• Arla Foods
• Barco Uniforms
• Brasil Foods
• Burnbrae Farms
• Cargill Inc.
• ConAgra Lamb Weston
• Darigold
• East Balt Inc.
• Florette Agricola-Spain
• Fresh Start Bakeries Europe
• GenOSI Inc.
• Golden State Foods
• Green Mountain Coffee Roasters
• Griffith Colombia S.A.
• Grupo Melo
• H.J. Heinz Company
• HAVI Logistics Environmental Services
• J.R. Simplot Company
• JBS USA LLC
• K&K Foods Ltd.
• Keystone Foods
• Kraft Foods
• McCain Foods Limited
• Moy Park (a Marfrig Food company)
• Mullins Food Products
• Northeast Foods Inc.
• OSI Food Solutions
• PepsiCo Foods Canada
• Refricon Mercantil Ltda
• Scotsman Ice Systems
• Smithfield
• The Bama Companies
• The Coca-Cola Company
• The Marketing Store
• Tulip Ltd.
• Tyson Foods Inc.
• VISTA Processed Foods

The full report is available online.

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