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It is accurate that Wendy’s does not currently participate in the Fair Food Program. That is because there is no nexus between the Fair Food Program and our supply chain. Since 2019, Wendy’s has sourced our North American tomato supply exclusively from indoor, hydroponic greenhouse farms while the Fair Food Program predominantly operates in outdoor, conventional tomato growing environments.

Wendy’s has an established Supplier Code of Conduct that applies to significant suppliers of The Wendy’s Company and our North America restaurant system and we also require third-party reviews related to the human rights and labor practices for suppliers of certain hand-harvested, whole, fresh produce such as tomatoes. We continue to work with third-party groups and experts on matters related to Corporate Social Responsibility, and this input helps Wendy’s make informed decisions on enhancements to the Supplier Code of Conduct. Unlike areas such as food safety and animal welfare in which there are global or industry-wide standard assessments and certifications, today there is not a singular human rights and labor practices assessment that is used by all sectors and geographies of agricultural work. Therefore, in implementing this requirement, Wendy’s evaluated and subsequently authorized several human rights and labor practice frameworks that are consistent with our Supplier Code of Conduct.

Wendy’s considers the Fair Food Program to be an acceptable certification framework; however, our understanding is that, at present, none of our covered suppliers use the Fair Food Program framework. We have no reason to doubt that the Fair Food Program has helped improve conditions on outdoor tomato farms. However, linking this work with the idea that joining this program, and purchasing field-grown, commodity tomatoes, is the only way that Wendy’s can demonstrate responsibility in our supply chain is not true.

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