From artificial intelligence and animal welfare to supply chain partnerships and animal rights extremism, the conversations were thought-provoking at the Animal Agriculture Alliance’s 2025 Stakeholders Summit. The 2025 Summit, “Food for Thought: Dishing on Sustainability,” took place April 30 through May 2 in Arlington, Va., with more than 200 registered in-person attendees.
Here are five takeaways from this year’s event.
1. Embrace artificial intelligence to make change.
Former Google executive and president of Story Arc Consulting Steve Lerch said generative artificial intelligence (AI) can help animal agriculture identify new ways to connect with consumers. As humans, change is often resisted, especially when something has worked in the past. However, consumers are always changing, and animal agriculture needs to adapt to continue meeting people where they are at. AI tools like ChatGPT are a simple way to brainstorm new ideas and craft messaging that will resonate with target audiences.
2. Animal welfare needs to be part of your organizational culture.
“We’re all here for the same shared goal at the end of the day,” said Nick Wolfenden, Cargill’s global director of sustainable animal welfare. Companies should embrace animal welfare as part of their organizational culture. In addition, “healthy tension” is important between stakeholders to continue driving change on this issue.
3. Animal health is driving sustainability solutions.
Speakers agreed that healthy animals are a cornerstone of sustainable food systems, claiming that better animal health equates to higher productivity, lower emissions, and more people being fed. “Keeping animals healthy can contribute to a more sustainable food system,” said Ron Phillips, senior vice president of policy at the Animal Health Institute.
4. Create partnerships across the supply chain.
The need for continued partnerships across the supply chain and across species was a recurring theme of the 2025 Summit. Brandi Herndon, chief agribusiness officer at the Tulsa State Fair, said, “We’re all facing the same problems…and we could all be fantastic allies together.” Similarly, Eric Mittenthal, chief strategy officer at The Meat Institute, emphasized the importance of working together to reach shared sustainability goals: “We can’t achieve these big goals in silos.”
5. Animal rights extremism is a national security concern.
The ongoing threat of animal rights extremism is a national security concern, as Karen Meidenbauer, DVM, noted, “Food security is a national security.” When asked what the top threats to animal agriculture and food security were, responses from security experts included the spread of zoonotic diseases – which can be exacerbated by on-farm activism, the rise of agro-crimes and animal rights activism, and cybersecurity concerns, such as data and intellectual property (IP) theft.
Learn more about the 2025 Summit here. Make plans to attend the 2026 Summit, set for May 5-7 in Kansas City, Mo. Follow the hashtag #AAA26 for periodic updates about the event.
