USA – Pizza Hut, the pizza, pasta and chicken restaurant has pledged to use chicken raised free from antibiotics in the US by 2022 in its latest move to provide healthier food menus.
This involves cutting antibiotics important to human medicine from all its chicken products including its subsidiary WingStreet wings.
Pizza Hut is responding to rising concerns over antibiotics among restaurants serving pizza and chicken.
“We are dedicated to listening to our customers and to serving better food.
Today’s announcement to no longer serve chicken raised with antibiotics by 2022 demonstrates our commitment to serve food that not only tastes great, but that customers can feel good about eating,” said Marianne Radley, chief brand officer, Pizza Hut.
“Our customers are our business, and we will continue to push ourselves to ensure that we are delivering the quality food and quality experience our customers expect and deserve.”
In 2016, the restaurant chain unveiled plans to eliminate the use of antibiotics important to human medicine from chicken for their pizzas by the end of March 2017.
This included removal of preservatives BHA and BHT from its meat supply followed by eliminating all artificial preservatives from its cheese.
A 2013 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided evidence that antibiotic overuse is contributing to the rise of super-strong bacteria, or superbugs, that no longer respond to antibiotics.
According to the research, if the overuse continues, it could mean a future in which we can no longer treat infections using antibiotics.
Based on the report and other research on the topic, many chains have made efforts to move away from antibiotics.
Papa John’s and Papa Murphy’s, a take-and-bake pizza chain, announced they had transitioned to poultry raised without antibiotics two years ago.
Last year, the American fast food restaurant and specialty in fried chicken, KFC said its US poultry suppliers had been given until the end of 2018 to stop raising chickens using antibiotics important to human medicine.
The company already removed artificial flavors and colors from its core pizzas in May 2015 and additionally, removed partially hydrogenated oils and monosodium glutamate (MSG) from the chain’s ingredient list, and 2.5 million lbs. of salt from its ingredients over the last five years.
“The Pizza Hut culinary team has done a terrific job of listening to the voice of the customer, and have worked tirelessly to mind emerging health trends while not impacting the great taste that makes our food so special,” said Radley.
