"The Meat Institute’s first-ever continuous improvement report is a game changer for transparency in the sector – setting transparent baselines that will allow us to measure progress and verify our sector’s contributions to global goals,” said NAMI President and CEO Julie Anna Potts. Potts was referring to the first of many reports to come from the North American Meat Institute’s (NAMI) Protein PACT (for the People, Animals, and Climate of Tomorrow). 

Through Protein PACT, partners across the animal protein industry are uniting in the largest-ever effort to strengthen animal protein’s contributions to healthy people, healthy animals, healthy communities, and a healthy environment. In 2021, CAT Squared was selected as the data-management service provider for Protein PACT.

CAT Squared's Commitment to Continuous Improvement

"Over the last three decades, CAT Squared has become a trusted partner in driving continuous improvement for the processors we serve across the globe,” said CAT Squared CEO Vernon Smith. “It’s an honor to have the opportunity to more broadly serve the industry as it reaches to achieve its ambitious sustainability goals for healthy people and a healthy planet.”

With CAT Squared’s knowledge of the meat and poultry industries, the project team developed the right questions to collect the best quality data and create meaningful KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for NAMI. The team then onboarded reporting teams representing NAMI’s largest U.S. members. In November 2022, NAMI released its first report ahead of the United Nations Climate Summit.

The report reveals that about 81 percent of facilities reporting data are covered by Meat Institute members’ commitments to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. With 100 percent of the Meat Institute’s large U.S. members (more than 2,000 employees) submitting data, the report covers an estimated 90 percent of meat sold in the United States by volume and sets the first-ever baselines for measuring progress toward ambitious targets for environmental sustainability, animal care, food safety, worker safety, and food security.

What is the Protein PACT?

The Protein PACT unites partners across animal protein to accelerate the entire sector’s progress toward global sustainable development goals for healthy people, healthy animals, healthy communities, and a healthy environment. Protein PACT partners are establishing transparent baselines and benchmarks, setting ambitious targets for continuous improvement, collecting data to verify and transparently report on progress, and launching comprehensive communications about animal protein’s unique place in healthy diets and sustainable food systems. To learn more, visit www.TheProteinPACT.org.

Kathy Barbeire

Written by Kathy Barbeire

Kathy Barbeire is a seasoned professional with a strong track record in leveraging new technology, data analysis, and storytelling to drive organizational success. As the marketing manager at CAT Squared since 2015, Kathy stays updated on industry trends to ensure our products remain adaptable to evolving standards and prepares our customers for disruptive technologies. She actively participates in a blockchain learning group associated with Blockchain for Arkansas (BC4AR), an initiative led by Governor Asa Hutchinson. Kathy's expanding knowledge and expertise enable her to create informative content that educates our supply chain partners and helps them navigate upcoming transitions. Kathy's educational background includes graduating magna cum laude from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR) with a Bachelor of Arts degree in professional and technical writing, along with double minors in sociology and information technology. She later completed the MBA program at UALR. Prior to joining CAT Squared, Kathy applied her passion for data-driven storytelling to assist nonprofits in defining goals, tracking program metrics, and engaging donors and community stakeholders. She served as a program manager at the Our House Homeless Shelter in Little Rock and later at The Salvation Army Central Arkansas Area Command.