Is Subway guilty of corporate humanewashing?

And Subway is one of the greatest offenders. With multiple pages on its website dedicated to sustainability and responsible sourcing, the company gives off the impression that it’s working hard to progress the commitments it made to its customers.

But it’s been several years since Subway reported any progress toward fulfilling its commitment to source 100% cage-free eggs in North America by 2025. It had ten years to make progress on its promise to help spare egg-laying hens from cruel cages. We’re a quarter of the way through 2025, and have no public evidence that Subway did what it said it would.

On Subway’s animal welfare page, it says that it “believes that where our ingredients come from and how our animals are bred, raised, transported, and slaughtered are integral to preparing great food for our guests. We take the issue of animal welfare seriously and believe the ethical treatment of animals is an essential component of our commitment to responsible sourcing.”

This all sounds great in theory—but is Subway humanewashing its commitment? Corporate humanewashing is a common practice where animal products are deceptively marketed to consumers so they believe they’re purchasing high or higher welfare products. A good example of this is the company’s original cage-free policy press release—which pledged to keep customers updated about its cage-free transition, and failed to do so: “Subway customers across Europe are served only eggs from free range hens and in Australia are served eggs from cage free hens,” Elizabeth [Stewart, Director of Subway Corporate Social Responsibility] said. “Major menu changes like this take time, but we will keep our customers updated every step of the way as we work diligently with our suppliers to reach our goals. As more and more chains come on board with their commitment we want customers to remember you have ours.”

How will Subway show its customers that they have its “commitment” when it seems like it doesn’t even remember making one to them? And until Subway publicly reports on its cage-free egg progress to show it’s on track to be 100% compliant by the end of 2025—instead of just saying it is—it’s up to us to make sure that it doesn’t forget the caged egg-laying hens in its supply chain. Join us in taking action against Subway today.