McDonald’s Ireland & UK Strategy on Soy is based on three pillars: Innovate, Illustrate and Influence.
Innovate
We recognise that soy plays an important role in providing a nutritious feed source to animals – but there is increasing innovation to deliver alternatives. We encourage and support our suppliers to consider reducing and replacing soy in animal diets, whilst being mindful of the potential impact any alternatives might also have.
Illustrate
We are committed to tracking progress against our goal and we map our soy footprint annually. We know that the majority of soy used in our supply chain is in animal feed. While the soy sourced to feed chickens grown for McDonald’s in the UK & Ireland currently supports deforestation-free supply chains through third party certification with cut-off dates aligned to the Accountability Framework initiative (AFi) principles, we want to go further.
Informed by data from our suppliers we assessed deforestation risks associated with embedded soy in our UK & Ireland supply chains for chicken, pork, dairy, beef, eggs, and direct soy. We are now in the process of creating action plans with our suppliers, aligned to the three pillars of our Strategy on Soy. Through these action plans, we aim to support progress on soy sustainability not only in our own supply chains but also throughout the wider sector.
Influence
We know that the underlying causes driving deforestation are complex and larger than any one company can address alone, which is why we will collaborate within and beyond our supply chain to help drive transformational change. For example, we are proud founding signatories of the UK Soy Manifesto. The UK Soy Manifesto is a collective industry commitment signaling a new approach to soy, enabling UK companies across the supply chain to step up and develop inclusive solutions. We are also members of the UK Roundtable on Sustainable Soy, a collaboration between the UK government and Industry. Through the Roundtable, companies and industry associations work together to achieve a shared goal of supporting resilient supplies of soy for the UK which are legal and cultivated in a way that protects against the conversion of forests and valuable native vegetation.
You can find out more about the actions that underpin our commitments to the UK Soy Manifesto here.
Measuring and Reporting on Progress
McDonald’s Ireland & UK is committed to annually reporting our progress towards our commitment, including the actions we take to achieve the commitments of the UK Soy Manifesto. We are committed to improving traceability and supporting more transparent reporting across our supply chains.
We recognise the challenges related to how companies report progress toward their deforestation commitments and targets, and efforts are ongoing to standardise reporting practices. To ensure we are reporting clearly and consistently against our commitments, we work with expert partners and align our definitions with recognised frameworks such as the Accountability Framework initiative (AFi). McDonald’s UK & Ireland commitments and expectations are in line with McDonald’s global definitions of deforestation set out here.
In addition to the definitions found on our Global webpage, we are using the definitions set out below to help guide the work we are currently doing to establish actions plans.
“Deforestation cut-off dates” (aligned to AFi)
Refers to the date after which deforestation renders a given area or production unit non-compliant with no-deforestation commitments.
“Embedded (soy)”
Refers to soy sourced for feed of livestock used in McDonald’s products.
“Direct (soy)”
Refers to soy used directly as an ingredient in McDonald’s products.