BEST Beef

BEST Beef is an incentive-based program rewarding good agricultural practices, improvements in animal welfare, and emission management practices. The program was funded by McDonald’s in 2010 together with various representatives of the meat industry. Transparency of the program is ensured through audit systems. Over the years, the program has supplied 150,000 cows that comply with the best beef criteria. As of the end of 2023, approximately 5,000 farmers were participating in the program, and their number is growing every year. At the end of 2024, the program will start providing incentives for emission management such as using on-farm GHG-tools which will support farmers to reduce their emissions.

Cow Goggles

At OSI, we aim to keep improving the animal welfare at our sites. One of the tools we use are Cow Vision Glasses that allow us to understand the vision of cattle during handling. It changes our perception, the field of vision, the sharpness, and the perceived colors. It also simulates certain situations that may be stressful for cows such as entering a confined space or changing to a lighter or darker environment. This is because cows see things differently, their field of vision is wider, their vision less sharp, they also need more time to adjust to changes of lightning compared to humans. This helps understand why a cow stops when leaving a barn while their vision adjusts. It also helps the engineering team to make changes or upgrades to the live animal facilities that are more beneficial to natural movement. This better understanding then can help handlers on our sites to know how to manage the cows properly and to prevent possible stress.

Enrichment and Lighting in Broiler Houses

The enrichment and lighting program promotes the natural behaviors of birds in broiler houses. Objects are installed in the stable that help the birds with roosting, sitting in an elevated position, cover and shelter, pecking, and dustbathing behavior. These four behaviors are what OSI focuses on to enable the birds their natural behaviors in a controlled environment. OSI is working closely with our suppliers to elevate the already high Animal Welfare standards to a whole new level.

The standard was implemented in six countries in Europe, and 66 houses were audited by 3rd party auditing bodies.

High Frequency Full Spectrum LEDs in Broiler Houses

Together with suppliers, OSI tests the usage a High-Frequency LED Light System in broiler houses. The objective is to determine if the light source imitates the natural light and hence influences the welfare of the animals. The test project is in collaboration with the University of Debrecen.

Unlike conventional LEDs, high-frequency LEDs emit red, green, blue, white, and UV lights that can be detected by the eyes of birds, and received by brain tissue that controls physiological processes. This may affect the growth and reproduction of birds. Also, different types of lights may affect whether a bird feels comfortable and calm.

Initial results of the QBA (Qualitative Behavior Assessment), showed that the High-Frequency LED light shows similar behavior patterns as natural light.

Lumachain

OSI is committed to leading best practices in our industry, including the respectful management of animals and responsible use of animal medicines to ensure the health and welfare of livestock in our supply chain.

OSI is implementing Lumachain in one of its facilities, which is an AI tool that helps improve animal welfare, livestock handling, health & safety. This is done through the reduction of stress, prevention of slips and falls, and improving eating quality. The tool also provides traceability by following the animals through all the intake process.