Pork

Humane handling on the farm

While Cargill no longer owns pork production operations and does not handle live hogs, we do process and market pork products as part of our protein business. When purchasing pork, we encourage producers to follow Pork Quality Assurance Plus and Common Swine Industry Audit (CSIA) standards. The Pork Quality Assurance Plus (PQA) program provides training to farmers and producers on best animal welfare and food safety practices.  CSIA standards are an audit tool that builds upon the Pork Quality Assurance Plus program, providing a consistent, reliable and verifiable system to ensure on-farm animal well-being.

Humane handling at processing (when applicable)

Cargill does not own pork processing plants, but to learn more about animal processing, view this North American Meat Institute video.

We require North American Institute guidelines and industry best practices for pork purchases.

Transport

We expect Transportation Quality Assurance (TQA) certification for our pork suppliers. TQA helps hog transporters, producers and handlers understand how to best handle, move and transport animals with consideration to animal well-being.

Industry standards and guidelines

Although Cargill no longer owns or operates pork processing facilities in the U.S., we do require that pork supplied to us come from hogs that are humanely handled and processed.

The organizations that establish criteria for the humane treatment of hogs include:

• Processing
  • North American Meat Institute
  • Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization
• On the farm:
  • National Pork Board