PIC Values

Animal Welfare

As the world's leading supplier of breeding stock to pig producers around the world, we regard respect for animals as one of the core values of our business. Good animal welfare practices are critical to the reproductive and growth performance of our products. We are therefore committed to adopting high animal welfare standards from both an ethical and commercial point of view.

We specifically aim to:

• Require all farm staff to adopt a company-wide 'code of conduct' to ensure professional levels of animal husbandry.
• Implement what is regarded as local industry best practice in our production units.
• Monitor animal welfare practices on all owned production units through a regular program of management audits and independent veterinary visits.
• Adhere to local legal requirements and national guidelines on animal welfare.

Environmental Impact

PIC recognizes the social obligations to the communities in which we operate. We consider respect of the environment to be one of the company's core values.

Biotechnology Implications

PIC leads the world in the application of biotechnology to the pig breeding stock business. Development in this area has many potential benefits to producers and consumers as well as to both animals and the environment, e.g., improved meat quality, increased disease resistance, elimination of congenital defects, etc. We also recognize the moral and ethical concerns that exist in sections of the general public.

PIC's breeding program is based on a process of natural selection. This is consistent with farming practices for many centuries. The application of biotechnology (e.g., artificial insemination, marker assisted selection, etc.) helps us to improve the speed and effectiveness of this process.