Burger King scores with animal-rights groups

If animal-rights gurus constitute a sizable chunk of the fast-food demographic, Burger King Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BKC) just scored a major victory. On Tuesday, the company announced that it would start buying eggs and pork from suppliers that do not confine their animals in cages and crates. Furthermore, according to the New York Times:

The company said that it would also favor suppliers of chickens that use gas, or "controlled-atmospheric stunning," rather than electric shocks to knock birds unconscious before slaughter. It is considered a more humane method, though only a handful of slaughterhouses use it.

The company is hoping that, within the next two months, two percent of its eggs and 10% of its pork will come from farms that allow the animals greater mobility. Most interesting, the company does not anticipate raising prices as a result of the change. The announcement comes after meetings with the Humane Society and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

It will be interesting to see the reverberations of this move throughout the industry. A large company like Burger King has the power to set the bar for corporate responsibility and I would look for other restaurants, large and small, to follow its lead.

Large corporations have the power to change the world for better or for worse. If companies like Burger King and McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD) decide to ramp up environmental/humane practices, they can make a big difference. Bravo to BK for doing the right thing.