McDonald's USA said that by 2022, it will only buy pork from producers that do not use gestation crates for housing their pregnant sows. Reuters reports that the company will also work with producers and suppliers to develop traceability systems to prove that the meat it buys are not from farms that use such structures.
The company also said that, by 2017, it would seek to source pork for its U.S. business from producers that are also working to phase out such gestation stalls. Animal-rights groups have characterized the use of gestation stalls as being inhumane to the animals.