Why Should Companies Care about Animal Welfare?
Most individuals agree that animal welfare is a subject that should be important to us all, and that it’s our duty to make sure that all animals are treated respectfully, responsibly and humanely. But sadly, animal exploitation is still rife, with many creatures around the world being exploited and subjected to suffering, due to being used for entertainment, fashion or scientific advancement.
Peta, one of the largest animal rights organizations, notes that there are significant shortcomings when it comes to international law and policy to do with animal testing. There are still numerous medicines and cosmetic products created every year which harm animals in the process of their making.
Why Animal Welfare is Important to Businesses
Aside from basic ethics rooted in human decency, there are many reasons for why promoting animal welfare can have a positive impact on business. The past few years have seen a consumer marketing shift towards ‘marketing your culture, not your product.’ Studies have shown that increasing numbers of consumers are drawn to brands that align with their own values. They are motivated not just by what the brand offers product-wise, but also by what it stands for.
This movement towards ethical marketing was previously limited to niche producers catering to socially-conscious consumers. Now it has entered the mainstream and in doing so, it is supporting the animal welfare cause.
There are companies driving positive change in a whole range of sectors. An example in the clothing market is Net-a-Porter which owns Prada, Gucci and Burberry among others. A few years ago the retailer pledged to ban fur from its entire portfolio following a survey of more than 25,000 of its clients. There have been similar changes happening in the food industry, as Tyson Foods, one of the largest companies involved in meat-packing, has created a $150 million venture capital firm focused on diversifying its portfolio. The company is looking to invest in plant-based protein.
The above examples show the benefits of promoting animal welfare in relation to keeping consumers happy and engaged in your brand. But the same is true of employee recruitment and retention. In the increasingly candidate-driven market that 2022 promises to offer, companies can no longer compete for top talent on salary alone. For many top candidates, a great company culture, rooted in ethics and championing causes that they believe in, is now one of the prime drivers for choosing one job over another.
But when it comes to animal welfare and business, we shouldn’t just be talking about proactive change occurring in industries where there has been an animal ethics problem. We should talk more broadly about what companies at large, and in all sectors, can proactively do to support the issue.
How Tech Companies are Committing Meaningfully to Animal Welfare
Software companies working with Tech to the Rescue have already pledged their company’s commitment to animal welfare. Several of them have even worked alongside animal rights charities to support them in combating digital challenges and scaling their impact.
One example is software house Netguru’s partnership with Sinergia Animal, an international animal protection organization working in countries of the Global South. Netguru worked on creating a website which made the policies of banks transparent. In effect, this showed at-a-glance which banks offered support to non-ethical businesses and lacked the right policies to stop this in its tracks.
Tech companies can get actively involved in championing the cause, as in the case above. Or, if they lack the resources to do so at present, they can promote their support for animals by openly stating that they will only work with clients who comply with animal ethics.
How You Can Help the World Become a Better Place for Animals
So what can you do to help improve the global welfare of animals?
It’s always worth starting with your employees. Is there an animal rights charity that they know, and whose cause they are particularly passionate about? It’s worth finding out, and then seeing whether you could focus your company’s fundraising initiatives on this cause. If your charity of choice is not already a member of Tech to the Rescue, encourage it to join, so that it can take advantage of pro bono support with their digitalisation efforts. Be sure to engage your staff in any internal CSR initiatives by giving them as much information as possible on what the charity does and how the donated money will be used.
If you’re a software house or IT company able to offer your services in a pro-bono capacity, there are certainly many animal welfare charities that would be grateful for your team’s skills and experience! Many of the IT providers that we’ve worked with have spoken about the great relationships struck up with the NGOs that they’ve been partnered with. They’ve also been updated on the real-life impact that their work has had on supporting animals in need, while at the same time boosting employee engagement in their work.
Get involved in Tech to the Rescue and help make the world a better place for animals!
