Press Release 27th March 2024

Now new at BILLA: even MORE welfare for "Fair to the animal" chicken

BILLA is consistently honouring its promise of greater animal welfare in its stores. As with BILLA PLUS last autumn, the previous Hofstädter "Fair zum Tier" chicken range will be upgraded to the new "MEHRwohl" quality level in all BILLA markets with immediate effect. In other words, all Hofstädter own-brand chicken products now available at BILLA and BILLA PLUS under the "Fair zum Tier" seal come from Austrian "Fair zum Tier" partner farms, which offer their chickens even more freedom of movement than before. MEHRwohl chickens are a so-called slow-growing breed. They are more agile, gain weight more slowly and live significantly longer than their conspecifics. Bales of straw scattered around the barn serve as a natural resting place for them. Only GMO-free feed from Europe is used for feeding.

A group of white chicks standing on a bed of straw, with one chick in focus in the foreground. The background is slightly blurred.

Hofstädter "Fair zum Tier" chicken products are now available in all BILLA and BILLA PLUS stores throughout Austria in the new "MEHRwohl" animal welfare quality level. / Copyright: © Eibensteiner, Abdruck zu redaktionellen Zwecken honorarfrei, Reproduction for PR purposes free of charge

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At a glance

In cooperation with regional partners, BILLA has managed to create improved husbandry conditions for "Fair zum Tier" chicken.
Hofstädter "Fair zum Tier" chicken products are now available in all BILLA and BILLA PLUS stores throughout Austria in the new "MEHRwohl" animal welfare quality level.
MEHRwohl chickens are given more time to grow up and more exercise and movement than animals from conventional husbandry and previous " Fair zum Tier" chickens.
BILLA supports domestic farms in switching to improved husbandry standards with long-term contracts and purchase guarantees.

Marcel Haraszti, CEO of Rewe International AG: "With our commitment to greater animal welfare, we at BILLA have not only set an example, but have also already achieved an incredible amount: no other store in Austria offers such a comprehensive range of animal welfare products as we do. We are determined to continue on this path together with our regional partner companies. Our 'Fair to Animals' programmes and our own organic brand Ja! Natürlich organic brand play a key role in this. They stand for particularly close cooperation with local farmers. We support them in the transition to higher animal welfare standards with long-term contracts and purchase guarantees. We are delighted to set another milestone with the new MEHRwohl chicken to promote animal welfare in Austrian agriculture."

BILLA applies higher animal welfare standards than required by law

With its own organic brand Ja! Natürlich, BILLA offers meat and sausage as well as dairy products and eggs in organic quality and under the highest animal welfare standards. Selected own-brand products from Hofstädter and BILLA, among others, that come from conventional animal husbandry with higher animal welfare standards and can be found in the self-service area are always clearly labelled with the "Fair zum Tier" seal. In addition, BILLA customers can only find fresh meat in animal welfare quality from the organic brands Ja! Natürlich organic brands and the conventional meat brands Almo, STROHwohl, MEHRwohl and SONNwohl, which are labelled with the "Fair zum Tier" seal. In addition, milk and dairy products from BILLA Heumilch also carry the "Fair zum Tier" seal, whether from the Ja! Natürlich organic farmers or on the "Fair zum Tier" farms - strict inspections of the farms are always carried out regularly by independent bodies.