Animal Welfare Reporting: Corporate Accountability and Transparency

Corporate animal welfare reporting allows investors, consumers, and civil society to assess and compare company welfare commitments and performance over time.

Key Facts

The Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare (BBFAW) has scored food companies on their welfare management and disclosure since 2012, creating comparative accountability data
Major institutional investors including CalPERS and some European pension funds have incorporated animal welfare criteria into ESG screening and engagement programmes
FAIRR (Farm Animal Investment Risk and Return) initiative engages institutional investors on the welfare, environmental, and regulatory risks of intensive animal agriculture
Supply chain welfare reporting requirements are increasingly included in EU corporate sustainability reporting legislation under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive
Companies that score highly on welfare benchmarks including BBFAW have shown improved financial performance in some analyses, supporting the business case for welfare reporting

Welfare Considerations

Corporate welfare reporting is a systemic transparency mechanism that operates above the level of individual consumer choice. When companies must publicly disclose their welfare commitments, performance data, and supply chain practices, they face reputational, investor, and regulatory scrutiny that creates genuine incentive for improvement. The BBFAW has shown that benchmarking alone shifts company behaviour — the published ranking creates competitive pressure to improve welfare management. Strengthening mandatory welfare reporting requirements and investor engagement on welfare is one of the most leveraged systemic welfare interventions available.

What You Can Do

Engage with BBFAW scores and FAIRR analyses when making investment decisions or engaging with pension fund managers
Advocate for strong welfare reporting requirements in corporate sustainability reporting legislation
Support investor engagement programmes that use welfare performance as a factor in corporate governance
Push food companies to publish credible, independently audited welfare performance data rather than aspirational commitments
Share corporate welfare reporting data with media and advocacy organisations to amplify accountability pressure