![Billionaire Icahn steps up campaign against McDonald's pig farm practices](https://www.portugalcolonial.pt/media/shared/articles/0e/6d/d3/Billionaire-Icahn-steps-up-campaign-422362.jpg)
-
Top China, US diplomats begin meeting in Laos
-
First Olympic medals up for grabs as rain disrupts Games
-
Epic pool rivalry lights up first day of Olympic medal action
-
IOC apologises for South Korea gaffe in Olympics opening ceremony
-
Bangladesh says student leaders held for their own safety
-
Japan's Sado mines added to World Heritage list
-
'Windmill love' sees Dutch artist become mill operator
-
US defends law forcing sale of TikTok app
-
Messi out for defending champ Miami as Leagues Cup begins
-
Australia bans uranium mining at Indigenous site
-
Divers attempt to reach sunken Philippine oil tanker
-
Trump accuses Harris of anti-Semitism in overblown speech
-
Coughlin clings to lead at LPGA Canadian Women's Open
-
Trump offers tech sector policy flips ahead of election
-
Spacecraft to swing by Earth, Moon on path to Jupiter
-
What's the fallout of Mexican drug lords' capture?
-
Video game makers see actors as AI 'data,' says union on strike
-
Chinese qualifier Shang to face Thompson in ATP Atlanta semis
-
'Massive attack' on French rail threatens more chaos
-
'We did it!': France breathes sigh of relief after Olympics ceremony
-
Regional concern grows as Venezuela blocks vote observers
-
Historic river parade, Dion show-stopper ignite Paris Olympics
-
Rainy Paris Olympic parade dampens many spectators' spirits
-
The one of a kind Paris opening ceremony: five memorable moments
-
Justin Timberlake seeks to dismiss DUI case
-
Warner Brothers Discovery sues NBA over Amazon rights deal
-
Kobe Bryant locker, Maradona jersey up for auction in New York
-
Historic river parade launches Paris Olympics
-
New York family of Holocaust victim reclaims Nazi-looted art
-
NASA Mars rover captures rock that could hold fossilized microbes
-
Thousands evacuate season's biggest wildfire in northern California
-
Ethiopia mourns victims of landslide tragedy
-
Lady Gaga adds sparkle to star-studded Olympic show
-
Airbus and Boeing supremacy secure despite turbulence
-
Teams sail down Seine in rain-soaked Olympics opening ceremony
-
West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third Test
-
Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine
-
Mott's England future uncertain as ECB chief fails to offer support
-
Trump meets Israeli PM Netanyahu in Florida
-
S.African police say 95 Libyans detained at suspected military camp
-
Blinken set for talks with Chinese counterpart in Laos
-
Norris heads Piastri in McLaren one-two at Belgian GP practice
-
G20 seeks common ground on taxing super-rich
-
European medicines watchdog rejects new Alzheimer's drug
-
Habib, Ebden eye Alcaraz and Djokovic shocks at Olympics tennis
-
Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris opening ceremony
-
Two Sinaloa Cartel leaders face US charges after stunning capture
-
Spain train driver jailed for 2.5 years over deadly 2013 crash
-
Paris poised for Olympic opening ceremony spectacular
-
Judoka fails doping test in first case at Paris Olympics
![Billionaire Icahn steps up campaign against McDonald's pig farm practices](https://www.portugalcolonial.pt/media/shared/articles/0e/6d/d3/Billionaire-Icahn-steps-up-campaign-422362.jpg)
Billionaire Icahn steps up campaign against McDonald's pig farm practices
Billionaire Carl Icahn has nominated two allies to the board of McDonald's, the company confirmed Sunday, part of the activist investor's campaign against pig-farming practices used in the fast-food giant's supply chains.
"Carl Icahn has nominated Leslie Samuelrich and Maisie Ganzler for the 2022 election," McDonald's said in a statement, adding that the board would "evaluate the nominees as it would any other candidates proposed to it."
Icahn's "stated focus in making this nomination relates to a narrow issue regarding the Company's pork commitment", it added, in a reference to the use of so-called gestation crates.
According to the Humane Society, the metal enclosures -- used to contain sows for almost all of a pregnancy -- are so small that the animal cannot turn around, and can lead to health issues such as infection or anatomical problems.
Icahn is known for taking stakes in companies to ask for radical measures before reaping huge profits, but he has said animal welfare concerns are behind his intervention.
"I really do feel emotional about these animals and the unnecessary suffering," he told Bloomberg.
He said he had worked with the Humane Society a decade ago on the use of the crates, winning an agreement from McDonald's that it would stop buying from suppliers using the cages within 10 years.
McDonald's "did a little something but never delivered," Icahn said.
But the fast-food giant has said that, since its 2012 commitment, "McDonald's has led the industry, and today an estimated 30–35 percent of US pork production has moved to group housing systems."
"By the end of 2022, the Company expects to source 85 percent to 90 percent of its US pork volumes from sows not housed in gestation crates during pregnancy," it added.
The company noted that Icahn, "who states that he holds 200 shares of McDonald's stock, is the majority owner of Viskase, a company that produces and supplies packaging for the pork and poultry industry."
"It's noteworthy that Mr. Icahn has not publicly called on Viskase to adopt commitments similar to those of McDonald's 2012 commitment."
L.Torres--PC