Kroger 2014 Annual Report Download - page 62
Download and view the complete annual report
Please find page 62 of the 2014 Kroger annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.60
SH A R E H O L D E R P R O P O S A L
( I T E M N O. 6 )
We have been notified by one shareholder, the name and shareholdings of which will be furnished
promptlytoanyshareholderuponwrittenororalrequesttoKroger’sSecretaryatourexecutiveoffices,that
itintendstoproposethefollowingresolutionattheannualmeeting:
“Whereas: Antibiotic resistance has become a public health crisis. ‘Superbugs’ - bacteria immune or
resistantto one or moreantibiotics-infectover2millionpeopleintheU.S.andkillover23,000annually,
accordingtotheCentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.Asresistanceincreases,medicationsusedto
treathuman infectionslosetheir effectiveness,leadingtheWorldHealthOrganizationtowarn of“a post-
antibioticera.”
Animportantcauseofantibioticresistantbacteriaistheoveruseofantibioticsinfood-animalproduction,for
theroutine,non-therapeuticpurposesofpromotingfastergrowthorpreventing(insteadoftreating)illness.
IntheU.S.,morethan70%ofmedicallyimportantantibioticsaresoldforuseonfood-animals.
Calls to restrict or ban the routine use of medically important antibiotics for food-animals have been
endorsed by the American Medical Association, American Public Health Association, and other leading
healthorganizations:
Eatingfoodcontaminatedwithantibioticresistantbacteriaisonewayinwhichsuperbugscanbetransmitted
from a farm to human population. Government testing of raw supermarket meat detected ‘superbug’
versionsofsalmonella,E.coli,orotherbacteriain81%ofgroundturkey,55%ofgroundbeef,and39%of
chickensampled.
Anoutbreakofantibiotic-resistantSalmonellafromchickenlastyearresultedinmorethan600knownillnesses.
SeveralKrogerprivatebrandchickenproductswererecalledbyFosterFarmsaspartofthisoutbreak.
A 2012 Consumer Reports survey concluded that the majority of consumers surveyed were extremely or
veryconcernedabouttheuseofantibioticsinanimalfeedandwouldspendmoreformeatproducedwithout
these drugs.
CompaniesincludingWholeFoods,PaneraBread,Chipotle,andChik-fil-Ahavepoliciesagainstpurchasing
meatproducedwithantibiotics,heighteningtheriskstocompaniesnotactingonthisissue.PerdueFoods
announcedthatithasphasedoutroutineantibioticuseintheproductionofitschickenmeat,demonstrating
thatmeatcanbeproducedonalargescalewithoutoverusingantibiotics.
Krogerisoneofthelargestsupermarketchainsinthenation,withperishablefoodincludingmeatanddeli
itemsaccountingforaround21%ofthecompany’srevenuein2013.Consequently,foodqualityandsafety
trendsshouldbeoftopprioritytothecompany.Krogerfacesreputationalriskandliabilityconcernsifitsells
meatcontainingantibioticresistantbacteria.
Resolved:Shareholdersrequestthatthe Board undertakeand publish astudy ofpolicyoptionsthat could
reduce oreliminate routineantibioticuseinthe productionofits private label brandmeats.
Supporting Statement:
Proponents suggest that the Board explore policy options such as the following:adoptatime-bound
plantophaseoutpurchasesofmeatproducedwithroutineantibioticuse;establishanewprocurementpolicy
thatgivespreferencetosuppliersthatmeetthesestandards;publicdeclarationofsuchpreferences.“Routine
antibioticuse”meansusingantibiotics,onfoodanimals,thatbelongtothesameclassesofdrugsadministered
tohumans,forthenon-therapeuticpurposesofgrowthpromotionordiseaseprevention.”