Top 5 Aviagen commitments-Breeding a sustainable future

When the United Nations established its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all, the International Poultry Council (IPC) set to work to identify areas where the global poultry industry could join in and truly make a difference. The outcome was the adoption of 5 SDGs that have the highest relevance to the poultry industry, which the IPC highlighted in the Declaration of São Paulo (Table 1). A global poultry genetics company, Aviagen has been Breeding Sustainability for decades. Our Top 5 corporate commitments are in harmony with the IPC’s 5 priority SDGs, and show our shared goal to help deliver a better, more sustainable future for the planet and its people.

Table 1 – 5 SDGs prioritised by the IPC.

Synergy between the IPC’s 5 priority SDGs and Aviagen’s Top 5 Commitments

Aviagen has always taken a balanced, responsible approach to poultry breeding, with a strong focus on animal welfare and sustainability. Our Top 5 Commitments go hand-in-hand with the 5 IPC-adopted goals for sustainable development:

In our newly released ”Committed to Breeding Sustainability” interactive presentation, you can see the close relationship between our Top 5 Aviagen Commitments and the 5 SDGs prioritised by the IPC.

First commitment: Health, food safety and food security

We take our position in the global food supply chain seriously and realise that to help our customers feed the world, we must safeguard an uninterrupted supply of healthy breeding stock. That is why we apply not one, but multiple strategies to secure supply.

First, bird health is protected by the industry’s most rigorous and carefully monitored biosecurity programme that guides everyone and everything that comes into contact with the birds. Our strict biosecurity measures are designed to prevent the introduction and spread of pathogens, and to meet and exceed all official regulations for the trade of poultry breeding stock.

Further ensuring a safe and continued supply of birds that are healthy and disease free is a global team of more than 30 veterinarians who support both customers and Aviagen facilities around the world. These veterinarians check and double check bird welfare and biosecurity through regular audits and health monitoring. And their care for birds doesn’t end there. Through Aviagen Schools, workshops, webinars, literature, and more, they regularly share expert health advice to help customers continuously strengthen the health and welfare of their flocks.

Next, we have dual breeding programmes on 2 continents, as well as great grandparent (GGP) and GP operations in various strategic global locations. In addition, we have production facilities on 5 continents. This allows us to provide a consistent supply of top-quality breeding stock to customers on in more than 100 countries, even in times of trade restrictions or other challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, in turn ensuring high quality protein continues to reach economies all around the world.

Finally, a world-class global export team carefully guides the shipment and delivery of birds and every stage in between. These dedicated and experienced specialists communicate with everyone involved in the process to make sure it goes smoothly. They also monitor chick status en route to maintain an ideal environment for their unique needs, making sure quality, healthy chicks arrive safely at customer farms everywhere on the map.

Commitment to a more sustainable world for today and tomorrow

Through our Top 5 commitments that align closely with the 5 key SDGs, Aviagen strives to secure global supply to help feed current and future generations with safe, nutritious, affordable and readily available chicken meat. At the same time, we work toward continuous improvement in bird health and welfare, while strengthening the economic success of our customers and sustaining our planet for years to come.