Sustainability: Land & Air

Pilgrim's has been a longtime industry leader in the adoption of policies and technologies that minimize the impact of the poultry growing process on the environment.

On-Farm Water Quality Managment Plans

One of the most important ways we minimize environmental impact is through water quality management plans. We recognized in the early 1990s that the traditional methods of land-applying poultry litter based on nitrogen loadings – as had been recommended by federal agencies and universities for years – was not sustainable. More than 15 years ago, we began a policy of requiring our contract growers and our company-owned farms to manage litter land application using water quality management plans and agronomic-based loading rates. We emphasize proper handling and management of litter and other waste, and we require compliance with all state and local environmental laws and regulations. More than 90% of our growers now operate under water quality management plans, and we believe the implementation of best management practices in these plans has allowed us to reduce our impact on the environment.

Beneficial Use of Poultry Litter

The majority of the litter generated on contract farms is managed through beneficial reuse as a fertilizer on pasture and crop land. As we continue to seek alternative opportunities to manage litter, we have evaluated many processes including “litter-to-energy” programs. While we have not constructed any litter-to-energy facilities to date, we are continually evaluating the feasibility of these types of systems and will implement them where environmental issues and/or costs indicate such a system is a necessary and practical option. In the meantime, we will work to ensure that poultry litter is stored and land applied for beneficial reuse under technically sound water quality management plans at all Pilgrim's locations.

Poultry Feed Supplements

Another of our company's proactive environmental efforts is in the area of feed supplements to reduce nutrients in poultry litter. Throughout the years, Pilgrim's has used different types of feed supplements at various locations and seen reductions in the amount of nutrients that makes its way into poultry litter.

In 2007, Pilgrim's, along with other poultry companies in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Commonwealth of Virginia to use a feed supplement to reduce the amount of phosphorus contained in poultry litter by as much as 30%. This phosphorus reduction helps balance the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus in litter to levels more in line with the nutrient requirements of pastures and crops, which allows litter to be a more valuable and beneficial organic fertilizer.