Education and training is foundational to knowledge, empowerment, accountability and a strong animal care culture. Every employee involved in the raising, transport and processing of poultry must be trained on and adhere to our animal care policies and procedures. All employees who handle animals currently receive animal care training when they commence employment, and this is reviewed annually. Training is a critical area of building a strong culture of animal care, and in 2016 we will be investing more resources to enhance our programs, including a variety of web-based, classroom and applied learning tools.

Maple Leaf has 23 experts who are Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization (“PAACO”) certified across our pork and poultry operations monitoring animal health every day. Our people who are PAACO trained have deep knowledge and skills related to animal welfare monitoring and reporting. We plan to further leverage our employees who are PAACO trained and certified as a core element of our animal care strategy.