Pilgrim’s UK, alongside its retail partners Waitrose and Co-op, conducted a human rights impact assessment (HRIA) of its integrated pork and lamb supply chains. The assessment was the first-of-its-kind for a livestock supply chain due to its scale and wide-ranging criteria. It spanned Pilgrim’s UK’s outdoor-bred pig farms and lamb farms, as well as the business’ processing and abattoir sites, from which Co-op and Waitrose source the majority of their pork and all of Waitrose’s lamb products.
In response to the findings, the businesses have published a joint Human Rights Action Plan, which is designed to raise awareness among stakeholders along the supply chain of health & safety training, mental health and wellbeing, gender discrimination and access to grievance systems.
Ongoing worker welfare visits will also continue to take place throughout the year to ensure high human rights standards are maintained. The Action Plan will be updated with progress reported on publicly.