DENVER — Unveiling yet another innovative industry first, the American Humane Certified farm animal welfare program announced it will launch an online Humane Care Training Program for food producers to use in educating employees, growers and contractors who handle animals.
Complement and expand
The training will complement and expand American Humane Certified’s existing national program of auditing and certifying the humane handling of animals raised for food.
The new American Humane Certified Humane Care Training curriculum will be developed by John J. McGlone, Ph.D., animal and food science professor at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, in association with Farm Animal Care Training and Auditing which provides independent, professional, science-based animal care training and auditing services.
McGlone is the principal partner at Farm Animal Care Training and Auditing, which is a privately held company that owns no equity or controlling interest in pork, beef, dairy or poultry production, processing or food retailing.
Farm Animal Care Training and Auditing relies on the best animal welfare science and leading scientists to develop its programs.
CDC Global Services Inc., which developed the web-based data-reporting components for American Humane Certified’s True Humane Tracking auditing process, will develop technical aspects of the online learning system.
The online video components will be provided by HS3 Technologies Inc., developer of the live, online video monitoring for American Humane’s unique auditing process.
American Humane Certified is the nation’s oldest and fastest growing animal welfare certification program, with more than 50 million farm animals now covered.
The program’s True Humane Tracking system is a proprietary, three-tiered audit system.
State-of-the-art
This state-of-the-art method delivers transparency, accountability and consistency to producers, retailers and consumers.
Producers who successfully comply are allowed to use and promote the American Humane Certified label on their products, attesting to the humane animal care that consumers are demanding along with other sustainable farming practices.
The new training program will begin testing in the spring of 2009, and should be available for widespread use by food producers in July 2009.
Key component
The training will be required as a key component of American Humane’s certification process. It will feature easy access and clear, comprehensive lessons for anyone working in direct contact with animals.
Every species will have its own training module that incorporates video and graphics to demonstrate key points.
It will be the first humane training curriculum offered to producers and employees to demonstrate and reinforce science-based and compassionate animal welfare standards.
For large food-service companies, the training will illustrate a significant, socially responsible undertaking, especially as they require their employees and independent suppliers and growers to be trained in humane care and animal welfare standards.
Other users
Other users likely will include universities and government agencies dealing with agriculture, such as the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
For more information visit www.thehumanetouch.org.
