Producing the meat, poultry and dairy we need while using less land, water and energy has never been more important.

While today the overwhelming majority of American households choose to eat meat, dairy and eggs, we know that people are more conscious than ever about how their food choices impact their health, their communities and the environment.

Policy makers, investors and the meat industry’s customers in food service and retail are also evaluating pressures, trends, opportunities and consumer behavior as they make decisions about animal agriculture — decisions that could dramatically alter expectations for producers and processors, as well as impact consumer choice and understanding.

That’s why the Meat Institute and our partners across meat, poultry, milk, animal feed and ingredients this week unveiled the Protein PACT for the People, Animals and Climate of Tomorrow.

The Protein PACT is the first joint initiative of its kind designed to accelerate momentum and verify progress toward global sustainable development goals. The initiative unites, amplifies and strengthens commitments developed by the Meat Institute, the Animal Agriculture Alliance, the Beef Alliance, Dairy Management Inc., Elanco, the Institute for Feed Education and Research, the National Corn Growers Association, the National Pork Board, the National Pork Producers Council, the United Soybean Council, the U.S. Meat Export Federation and U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef — and we look forward to welcoming additional partners to the effort over time.

This is our PACT: To deliver safe, nutritious meat, poultry and dairy; balanced diets; good jobs; and thriving communities. To provide the most humane care and raise healthy animals. To protect the land, air and water we all share.

Protein PACT partners are committed to leading from within to help animal protein and feed producers and processors articulate a compelling case for how choosing meat, dairy and eggs aligns with consumers’ values and meets their needs — from the family dinner table to the global policy table.

The Protein PACT unites partner organizations’ efforts and goals under a common umbrella and provides a simple vision to focus our contributions, commitments and achievements. Protein PACT partners are building on remarkable progress in recent decades and going even further to deliver for the future. For example:

The U.S. dairy industry has committed to be carbon neutral or better by 2050, further building on U.S. dairy’s achievements reducing dairy farm greenhouse gas emissions that are already the lowest in the world.
U.S. corn farmers are committed to continuous improvement in the production of corn, a versatile crop providing abundant high-quality food, feed, renewable energy, biobased products and ecosystem services. The National Corn Growers’ Association recently released its 2021 sustainability report and is seeking feedback on its sustainability efforts here.

Alongside the debut of the Protein PACT, the North American Meat Institute (Meat Institute) released its draft sustainability framework and is soliciting feedback from members, suppliers, customers, supply chain partners and all interested stakeholders to inform our organization’s efforts to set ambitious targets and measure progress toward global sustainability goals.

The Meat Institute is also a proud member of the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Poultry & Eggs (US-RSPE), which has developed a sustainability framework specifically for the full value chains of chicken, turkey and eggs. US-RSPE is seeking feedback on its sustainability framework here.

Our urgent task is to ensure stakeholders, decision makers and ultimately consumers trust that meat, dairy and eggs are part of solutions for diverse, healthy, sustainable diets. Doing so will require firm commitment and unwavering action from everyone in the supply chain, and we need the community’s feedback to strengthen our collective path forward.

Input and guidance from every part of the journey from farm to table is critical to help inform metrics and targets and drive adoption across the industry and throughout the supply chain. We want to hear from you: Will you support the Protein PACT?

Visit www.TheProteinPACT.org to learn more and join the conversation.

Protein PACT

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