U.S. Animal Welfare Policy

We are committed to Stand For Something Good^® in everything we do. This mission begins on the farms and ranches from which we carefully source all our premium ingredients. We work closely with our farmers, ranchers, bakers, food purveyors, and animal welfare experts to achieve ethical and humane practices, and constantly strive to raise the bar for ourselves and the restaurant industry as a whole. To further transparency for our team, guests, and suppliers, we’re sharing our U.S. Animal Welfare Policy to outline our core beliefs, where we're at, and where we’re going.

We stand firmly behind the Five Freedoms of each species, a comprehensive framework formalized by the UK Farm Animal Welfare Council that ensures farm animals have lives that are worth living.

For all farm animals being raised for Shake Shack’s supply chain or that provide milk and eggs, We Stand For:

1. Freedom from hunger and thirst
2. Freedom from discomfort
3. Freedom from pain, injury, or disease
4. Freedom to express normal behavior
5. Freedom from fear and distress

This means we have a zero-tolerance policy for animal abuse across the entire lifespan of an animal. Animals must be handled by staff who’ve been trained in the correct handling procedures of each species. If any of our suppliers are found to have been abusing animals, we will immediately terminate the relationship until sufficient evidence is shown that employees have been retrained and practices have been corrected to meet our standards.

Beef

We believe firmly in the welfare of the cattle being raised for our beef patties and require that they be treated with the highest standards of animal handling and care throughout their lives.

We only source beef from suppliers who NEVER administer growth promotants or hormones and NEVER administer antibiotics. We Stand For:

• NO antibiotics
• NO added hormones
• NO animal by-products in feed
• Suppliers that raise and handle their cattle humanely

Pork

We believe firmly in the welfare of the pigs being raised for our bacon and sausage. We require that they are treated with the highest standards of animal handling and care throughout their lives. This includes never subjecting animals to gestation crates or farrowing stalls that limit the ability to turn around. We support the practice of providing pigs with access to the outdoors, but also providing the safety and warmth of the indoors. We discourage the practice of tail docking of piglets and needle teeth clipping.

We only source pork from suppliers who NEVER administer antibiotics. We Stand For:

• NO antibiotics
• NO animal by-products in feed
• NO gestation crates
• NO routine needle teeth clipping or grinding
• Suppliers that raise and handle their pigs humanely, including access to the outdoors, if possible, and warmth and security if raised indoors

Chicken

We believe firmly in the welfare of the chickens being raised for our supply chain and require a cage-free environment from our suppliers. Chickens must also be provided a clean and enriched environment that allows them to turn around and flap their wings.

We only source chicken from suppliers who NEVER administer antibiotics. We Stand For:

• NO antibiotics
• NO animal by-products in feed
• Suppliers that raise and handle their chickens humanely
• A cage-free environment

Chicken – Implement by 2024

There are still improvements to be achieved in the way chickens are raised for our supply chain. Our goal is, by 2024, to source 100% of our chickens using standards aligned with the requirements of the Global Animal Partnership (GAP) and processed using a multi-step, controlled-atmosphere processing system. We will be updating our progress annually.

We Stand For:

• Improving conditions of broiler chickens
• The use of genetics that produces healthier chickens by 2026
• Giving chickens more space and reducing the maximum stocking density
• Better living conditions including litter, lighting, and enrichment

In 2021 we made progress on the better living conditions goal

• 100% of our purchases met the standard for litter
• 30% of our purchases met the standard for lighting

Cage-Free Eggs

In 2016 we successfully achieved our goal of converting all products that contain eggs as an ingredient to using only cage-free eggs in our domestic restaurants.

Since we first introduced Shake Shack breakfast back in 2013, we’ve sourced cage-free eggs in shells for our Egg N’ Cheese sandwiches.

We are currently sourcing 100% cage-free eggs for both the US and UK supply chains and are committed to sourcing 100% cage-free eggs for our global supply chain by 2025.

Dairy

Shake Shack stands by the National Milk Producers Federation’s standard of not tail docking dairy cows. We also encourage our suppliers to use selective breeding of dairy cows to eliminate the need for dehorning. Additionally, we prohibit the use of rBST/rBGH in our fluid dairy supply.

Foie Gras

We commit to never serving foie gras in our restaurants.

 

We Hear You

We care deeply about the issues that are important to our guests, so we want to hear from you! If we can ever do anything better, let us know at share@shakeshack.com.

As part of our ongoing commitment to transparency, check out our annual Stand for Something Good Summary here.