Vital Farms has taken the farm-to-table concept to the next level by letting people view footage of the farms where the brand's eggs are laid. With eco-minded shoppers keen to know the provenance of their food, brands that offer transparent info will likely be rewarded with customers’ trust.
Vital Farms' Traceability program lets visitors to its website enter the name of the farm listed on their egg carton and then view 360-degree footage of the area. The video content, collected from 200 farms across the US, often features pasture-raised hens roaming grassy fields and the barns where they shelter at night. “I can’t speak to why we don’t see other companies doing this in the United States,” says president and CEO Russell Diez-Canseco. “But it was, frankly, a pretty easy choice for us to do it because we’re proud of what we do and we’ve got nothing to hide.”
Following a jump in veganism and activists exposing the poor animal welfare standards on farms, Diez-Canseco adds: “I wish more of the videos we saw were positive, and over time we’re hoping to change that in this country.” His comment eludes to the fact that as pressure to be transparent increases, brands will need to develop more ethically-minded processes to meet consumer expectations.
Transparency has become a key factor in people’s food choices, driving calls for more information about how and where produce is sourced. Indeed, 67% of Americans under the age of 35 say they're willing to pay more for food that is ethically produced, and 99% of all shoppers believe transparency is important when it comes to fresh food.
The industry has some way to go, though. Research suggests that less than half of Americans have a positive impression of food manufacturing. By prioritizing transparency and making information easily visible, Vital Farms will likely earn kudos among ethically-minded consumers. Nestlé has also tapped into a desire for openness by allowing people to track products from farm to aisle via blockchain technology, and Walmart’s launch of an end-to-end beef supply chain drives transparency and sustainability expectations.
Anna Yaffe is the Canvas8 intern and a Psychology & Cognitive Neuroscience graduate. Manchester born and bred, she can be found revelling in all of London’s tourist hotspots whilst making her way through the entire collection of Desert Island Discs podcasts.
