Tyson Foods Inc. is launching a contract grower’s bill of rights spelling out the guarantees the vertically integrated poultry company offers to its growers.
The May 3, 2018, announcement spelled out an eight-point promise for its farmers as well as other initiatives aimed at promoting a more transparent growing process and better communication between the Springdale, Arkansas, company and its more than 3,600 independent contract growers.
A full copy of the pledge is available on Tyson’s website. The eight points are:
- The right to a written copy of the contract
- The right to information detailing how much they are paid
- The right to discuss their contract with outside parties
- The right to a fixed-length contract that can only be terminated for cause
- The right for the poultry farmer to terminate the contract with Tyson Foods for any reason or no reason at all by giving a 90-day prior written notice for broilers and turkeys, and a 60-day written notice prior to scheduled removal of poultry from farmer’s housing for hens and pullets.
- The right to join an association of contract poultry farmers
- The right to poultry welfare standards and training on poultry welfare standards
- The right to tell Tyson first, or freely contact the company with concerns
As part of the announcement, all of the company’s contract growers were sent a letter from Doug Ramsey, group president of poultry for Tyson, and a written copy of the contract.
In an interview, Bernie Adcock, Tyson’s chief supply chain officer of poultry, said almost all of the provisions already exist in Tyson contracts, but the company wanted to ensure it’s clearly communicating with its growers and being more transparent in its contracting.
“This is a journey we've been on, this is a step forward and we will continue to move forward as we go,” Adcock said. “We value our growers and we'll do everything we can to enhance that relationship as we move forward.”
Advisory board, enhanced communication technology
In addition to the bill of rights, Tyson also announced that it is developing an advisory council made up of poultry farmers giving growers the ability to communicate directly with Tyson management.
“The goal of the farmers’ advisory council is to provide a platform where contract farmers can share their views of the business environment for raising chickens, while we can gather insights that might help us improve how we operate,” Ramsey said in a release.
A release from Tyson said the company is still working on the details of the initial advisory council as well as the process for getting interested farmers to participate. The board now includes a total of six members coming from Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee and North Carolina.
Tyson will also be publishing much of the information for poultry growers published on www.growwithtyson.com, on a new, smartphone app available to contract farmers. The app is being developed but there is no current release date.
