Taco Bell Has Promised To Stop Using Antibiotics In A Quarter Of Its Food Supply By 2025
One Crunchwrap Supreme, hold the antibiotics, please. This week, Taco Bell announced that that order will be 25 percent possible by the year 2025. Six years to reduce 25 percent of the antibiotics used in Taco Bell’s beef? Allow us to explain.
According to Food & Wine, the U.S. and Canada make up 98 percent of Taco Bell’s global beef suppliers. The chain is committing to cutting the antibiotics used in this beef by 25 percent by the year 2025. While the promise sounds, well, slow and not all that impressive, the Natural Resources Defense Council has given the move its seal of approval.
“While its commitment leaves significant room for improvement, it’s a move in the right direction and shows the pressure is on for competitors to take action,” NRDC’s Director of Food Campaigns Lena Brook told Food & Wine.
Back in 2017, the call to end the use of antibiotics in food started with chicken. The reason is that antibiotics are important for humans in fighting bacteria, and using antibiotics in food can help spur the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Chains like McDonald’s and suppliers like Tyson took note and stopped using antibiotics. Now, the NRDC, which has helped motivate restaurant chains to cut down on antibiotics by issuing letter grades, is turning attention to beef.
Why were chains able to cut back on antibiotics in chicken so quickly while this reduction for beef seems like it will take significantly longer? Taco Bell’s Manager of Global Nutrition and Sustainability Missy Schaaphok told CNN Business that working with beef is more complicated than chicken. Schaaphok pointed out that cows live longer and change hands more frequently so they’re harder to track, especially considering Taco Bell gets its beef from outside suppliers.
Food & Wine says McDonald’s also made a promise that’s pretty vague, presumably because of the more complex work of decreasing antibiotics in beef compared to chicken. The megachain vowed to reduce its use of antibiotics important to human health across 85 percent of its global supply chain, but didn’t include any concrete targets. Now, the NRDC has also made calls for Wendy’s to make its own commitment. Brook said, “Fast food chains are seeing the writing on the wall: Customers want better beef.”
While these promises won’t exactly be fulfilled quickly, we’re glad chains like Taco Bell are stepping up to the plate and paying attention to what needs to be done in order to address health concerns.
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