Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (CP Foods) has undertaken the “One Health” principle, animal welfare standards and responsible use of antimicrobials practices to promote stable and safe food production to ensure good health and living standards of animal health, human health, and environmental health are intrinsically intertwined encouraging a more sustainable ecosystem balance.
Dr. Payungsak Somyanontanakul (DVM), Vice President and head of Animal Welfare and Anti Microbial Committee at CP Foods, said that it is not only the “One Health” principle under the World Health Organization (WHO) but also the five-freedom practices of Animal Welfare have been relevantly implemented to promote animal’s good health in its livestock and aquaculture business both in Thailand and its overseas investment. This is to ensure that animal will have enough food and water supply, living in good environment, able to express normal and natural behaviors, having good take care properly when sickness.
The “One Health” concept summarises an idea that has been known for more than a century: animal health, human health, and environmental health are intrinsically intertwined and interdependent. The health of one affects the health of all. We envisage and implement One Health as a collaborative global approach to understanding and managing risks for planetary health and encouraging a more sustainable ecosystem balance.
Besides, CP Foods also launches the Responsible and Prudent Use of Anti Microbial Resistance Policy which covers anitibiotics under which medicine treatment for animals has strictly come under the veterinarian control. Moreover, the company must be free from shared-class antimicrobials by using animal medicine as its first priority. They will work in cooperation with the world’s renowned experts to develop new technology with a better way to the feed animal in line with animal welfare principle.
Currently, the CP Foods has treated animals in farms with the five freedoms of Animal Welfare with responsible and prudent use of anitimicrobials 100% for safe meat production. The quality meat will be directly supplied to innovative food processing to serve consumer’s need in the future who are more concerned on healthier products and environmental friendly practices throughout the supply chain such as plant-based protein, Cheeva Pork with Omega 3, Benja Chicken which raised without antibiotics throughout the feeding period.
“WHO, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have put importantly on “One Health Approach” with strong cooperations of government, private sector, civil society, expert, farmer and consumer to reduce risk from antimicrobial resistance. The health of one affects the health of human, animal and environment. We have to prevent infectious diseases and Emerging Infectious Diseases, which will be happened in the future,” pointed Dr. Payungsak.
CP Foods set up an important targets under “CPF 2030 Sustainability in Action”, which is the company’s new sustainable strategy, to encourage sustainability in food processing and consumption toward the next nine years, under which Animal Welfare is one of its nine targets on food security. These future targets include promoting sow’s crates gestation pen 100%, increasing production of cage free egg by 30% per year compares with based year on 2020, breeding broilers with a physical environment, with husks, sandbags, balls and perches for the chickens to exhibit natural pecking and clinging behaviors by 2030. At present, 100% of the Company's farm animals are raised according to five freedoms principles with responsible use of antibiotics.
CP Foods also steps forward on innovation in animal welfare through “Smart Farm” by installing Smart Eyes system to develop real-time monitor of animal behaviors such as food and water consumption in broiler farms. This will encourage chicken to live in good environment through the breeding period, to reduce entry of staff, disease risk and human touches.
The company has also assessed good physical and mental health through Welfare Outcome Measures and humane principle in broiler, laying hen and shrimp under “One Health Approach”.
