Hello, everyone! Good news from Brazil! As an outcome of corporate relations efforts from Fórum Animal and Mercy for Animals, as well as public pressure by MFA's accountability campaign 'Cadê O Avanço?', M. Dias Branco just announced that in December 2024, they concluded their transition and are now 100% cage-free. M. Dias Branco is a leading producer of pasta and cookies in Brazil, holding a significant market share. They are also present in other countries and are currently working to expand internationally. The company’s main product line is egg pasta, formulated with processed eggs and egg by-products. These ingredients are featured across nearly the entire range of the company’s portfolio. As part of the company's media strategy to announce the accomplishment, they asked Mercy For Animals do Brasil to provide statements for the articles published in the press. You can read more about it in Investe SP, FoodBiz and on M. Dias Branco website. Scale: National Timeline: Asks for implementation rates started in 2019 by MFA and in 2021 by Fórum Animal and their accountability annual report Egglab. Since then, MFA and Fórum Animal have consistently followed up with M. Dias Branco to monitor their progress. As the company had not reported any progress by 2023, it was selected as a target for Mercy For Animals' public awareness campaign, 'Cadê O Avanço?', launched on July 24, 2023. As an outcome, not only did M. Dias Branco fulfilled their transition to a cage-free supply-chain, but also started reporting progress. Who: Mercy For Animals and Fórum Animal. Failed tactics: none Successful tactics:  Corporate Relations engagement and Campaign pressure asking for transparency in progress reporting. In 2025, M. Dias Branco shared with MFA and Fórum Animal that they had completed their implementation. Soon, the company will also update their website to announce this conclusion as part of their communication strategy. Scalability: National. Thank you!  

Hello FAST community! Leading wholesaler in the Horeca sector, METRO Italy has published a policy on the welfare of farmed fish, thus becoming the first company to sign up to our campaign Anche i Pesci (Fish Too), which calls on food companies to phase out the main causes of suffering for these animals. The policy outlines a set of criteria to improve the living conditions of farmed fish – starting with sea bass and sea bream – and primarily focuses on two key areas, in line with the guidelines of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and EFSA’s scientific opinions: * Effective stunning: As a current policy, all METRO’s own-brand fresh sea bass, sea bream and salmon products come from animals that have been effectively stunned (specifically, sea bass and sea bream by electrical methods, and salmon by either electrical or percussive methods). * Reduced stocking densities: All farms supplying METRO’s own-brand fresh sea bass and sea bream currently apply a stocking density of ≤ 15 kg/m³. We estimate that this commitment will impact an average of 805,000 fishes per year. Conversations with METRO began two years ago, when we first presented our corporate fish ask, and have continued with a collaborative approach since then. We will continue working with METRO to ensure the policy is extended to cover an increasing number of fish product categories under the company’s own brand. We will also leverage this significant step forward to promote further farmed fish welfare commitments from other food companies in Italy.