SEPTEMBER 20218in myopinionEMPOWERING ANIMAL WELFARE THROUGH SOUND SCIENCE-BASED SOLUTIONSBy Karen Christensen, Senior Director of Animal Wellbeing, Tyson FoodsThroughout the course of the pandemic, we've seen a myriad of changes in how the world perceives food and how it ends up on our dinner plates. The sudden change has affected our daily lives, requiring people to become reacquainted with their kitchens and preparing meals for their families. With that shift, many consumers have become more interested in where their food comes from and even how the animals were raised--providing the quality, nutritious protein we enjoy. We're many generations removed from the days when a significant percentage of the population was involved with the production of our food. Today, less than 2 percent of the population is engaged in any kind of agricultural production, which means the remaining percentage might not be fully aware of the farm-to-table process. At Tyson Foods, our mission is to be the leader in animal welfare through compassionate care based on sound science. Although the care of the animals has always been a top priority at Tyson, our program was given the name of "FarmCheck" in 2012. FarmCheck© has four pillars that keep us focused on the important areas of animal care. The first is "people". We have a large, dedicated, and well-trained team that focuses daily on our mission. FarmCheck© provides regular site visits and 3rd party audits to confirm that farmers that work within our supply chain are adhering to our standards. We have an internationally acclaimed advisory panel that helps push us to continuous improvement in welfare but also help us understand and address critical areas like ethical issues, consumer interests, and
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