VegNews (July 2007)

The Puck Stops Here
Star chef raises the bar on animal welfare

by Mat Thomas

Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck is a veritable culinary institution who presides over an international epicurean empire encompassing 43 catering venues and nearly 100 gourmet restaurants, a line of frozen and canned entrées, bestselling cookbooks, and signature cookware products. A frequent guest on popular TV talk shows, Puck has even played himself in cameo roles on syndicated sitcoms, from Frasier to The Simpsons. Given his notoriety, people were bound to take notice when Puck went public with plans to phase some of the worst factory farming practices out of his operations as part of a wide-ranging new program to upgrade his company’s quality standards. 

In line with the new program announced in March 2007, Puck’s restaurants have already stopped serving foie gras, and by the end of this year, they will be using neither battery cage eggs nor veal and pork from animals raised in crates. The company is now working directly with suppliers to ensure they can meet the new welfare standards, and has contracted with a consulting firm that will conduct onsite audits of their farms. The plan also calls for progressive animal welfare standards in the raising of poultry, expanding the use of all-natural organic ingredients, and more vegetarian and vegan selections on all their menus. Wayne Pacelle, CEO of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), called Puck’s program “the most far-reaching and comprehensive…in the restaurant industry.” 

Perhaps that’s because it was HSUS that created the nine-point animal welfare program at Puck’s request. “I wanted to celebrate my 25th year in the food business by doing something really special,” said Puck, “so we asked HSUS to partner with us and guide our strategy. And I am proud of the program because it embodies what I stand for—humane treatment of animals, environmental sustainability, and serving our customers the most healthy, tasteful food possible, lovingly prepared from the highest quality ingredients. This, to me, represents the very best in fine dining.”

Growing up on his family’s farm in Austria, Puck learned the importance of knowing where the food we eat comes from, a principle that continues to drive his business today. “One of the reasons that many of our restaurants feature an open kitchen is so my guests can see what they’re going to get and how it’s prepared,” he said. Puck believes that standardizing welfare is consistent with such openness because it allows him to assure customers that animals raised for food had a decent quality of life…even if they ultimately end up as one of the master chef’s special creations.

Farm Sanctuary and HSUS, the two animal protection organizations most involved in efforts to influence Puck (albeit using different tactics), fully support his decision. “By speaking out against cruelty, Puck has stood firmly against a dominant mindset in the food industry, which asserts that they should be free to use and abuse animals however they see fit,” said Gene Baur, President of Farm Sanctuary, which started pressuring Puck in 2002 to drop crated veal and then later foie gras. “This will raise awareness of the fact that farm animals suffer, and cause some to question the ethics of eating animals.” 

Paul Shapiro, Director of HSUS's Factory Farming Campaign, sees practical implications for the growing farm animal advocacy movement. “Puck’s move in the right direction will increase pressure on animal agribusiness to end some of its most abusive practices,” he said, “bringing us closer to banning such horrible cruelties as battery cages, gestation crates, and veal crates for good.”