Day 067 - 15 Dec 94 - Page 19

     
     1        that of the US.
     2
     3   Q.   What about audits of slaughterhouses, welfare audits of
     4        slaughterhouses?
     5        A.  What is your question?
     6
     7   Q.   How frequently, if at all, do welfare audits of
     8        slaughterhouses take place?
     9        A.  Again, it depends on our concerns in every country in
    10        every slaughterhouses.  In cases where we feel that there
    11        is an opportunity, we spend more time with them.  If we
    12        feel that there is really not an opportunity and we have
    13        other areas where we can have a bigger impact relating to
    14        welfare of the animal, relating safety of our raw materials
    15        or relating the quality of our products, that is where we
    16        spend our resources.
    17
    18        Let us say in the US, specially Cargills, they spend a lot
    19        of time working in the slaughterhouses doing research to
    20        find better practices, so we feel very comfortable.  I do
         not feel the need that I have to be there every single week
    22        working with them.
    23
    24   Q.   Who spends a lot of time?
    25        A.  Cargill or Sun Valley Poultry.
    26
    27   Q.   Sun Valley.  Are Sun Valley in the USA?
    28        A.  No, Sun Valley Poultry is the name of the -- Cargill,
    29        Cargill is the mother company in the UK.  The UK is for Sun
    30        Valley Poultry.
    31
    32   Q.   It is not called Sun Valley in the USA?
    33        A.  No.  In the USA it is called Cargill.
    34
    35   Q.   So, the time spent working on better practices, is a lot of
    36        that to do with more efficiency of production and hygiene?
    37        A.  We take the approach that we need to look at
    38        everything.  We look at everything from the welfare of the
    39        animal all the way to the quality, safety and obviously
    40        also for economic reasons, what is the most economic reason
         to produce.
    42
    43   Q.   When you say "we" you are talking about Cargill?
    44        A.  Talk about, in general, McDonald's Corporation, I talk
    45        about our suppliers.
    46
    47   Q.   Right.  Is McDonald's Corporation actually doing anything
    48        in the slaughterhouses?
    49        A.  We are doing, yes, we are doing a lot of work funding
    50        research.  We are doing a lot of work paying. 
    51 
    52   Q.   Funding research into what? 
    53        A.  Into finding the best practices available.  We spend a
    54        lot of money through our suppliers because we pay for those
    55        expenses, the time that they spend and the money and the
    56        resources that they spend trying to find the best
    57        practices.  We spend a lot of money trying to or
    58        transferring the best practices around the world.
    59
    60        So, to answer your questions, yes, we do spend a lot of