Waitrose has fulfilled its Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) in a pioneering step forward for animal welfare. By the end of August, every Waitrose own-brand chicken product – including fresh, frozen, ready meals, and sandwiches – will meet the BCC’s higher welfare criteria. This milestone comes well ahead of the 2026 deadline, reinforcing the supermarket’s leadership in ethical sourcing.

Shopping with confidence

Customers can now shop with confidence, knowing that all Waitrose own-brand chicken is:

Sourced from slower-growing breeds
Raised with more space, enrichment, and natural light
Processed using more humane slaughter methods

Empowering ethical choices

Supporting the rollout is Waitrose’s new animal welfare labelling system – the first of its kind in UK supermarkets. The five-tier visual system gives shoppers clear insight into how their food was produced, rating chicken products based on farming methods and welfare standards.

This innovation empowers customers to make informed choices that reflect their values, while driving industry-wide progress.

Calls for mandatory animal welfare labelling

Charlotte Di Cello, Chief Commercial Officer at Waitrose, said:

We’re proud to be the only UK grocer to offer BCC welfare standards as a minimum across all our Waitrose branded chicken products – including fresh, frozen and ingredient chicken. Our customers can be assured that Waitrose continues to be number one for animal welfare.

We’re not stopping there. We’re calling on the UK Government to make animal welfare labelling mandatory across all retailers so that all shoppers, regardless of where they buy their food, can make more conscious choices that align with their values.

Take action on Honest Labelling

Waitrose is leading the way, but it is vital Defra continue to progress work on mandatory method of production labelling. Without widespread transparency, welfare standards may be neglected, and customers who are eager to support higher welfare could be misled.

Waitrose hits 100% higher welfare chicken target