Report questions Calgary Co-op’s animal-welfare practices as decade-old debate returns to grocer

Eleven years after it committed to phasing out confinement for pigs and laying hens by 2018, Calgary Co-op is facing renewed calls from an animal-welfare organization to provide a public update on how, or whether, it has changed how it sources its meat and eggs. The calls for transparency also come seven years after the company last addressed those commitments to the public, saying the full phase-out of inexpensive products was unfeasible. A report published Wednesday by Mercy for Animals, a non-profit charity that aims to prevent cruelty to farmed animals, placed Calgary Co-op tied for last among major Canadian grocers for animal welfare practices — primarily due to the company’s lack of reporting on its policies for phasing out certain practices — with the organization giving the local chain a score of zero. To date, despite advancements in the industry and retail sector, as well as these requests from members, Calgary Co-op has neither published policies to promote animal welfare