The Truth Behind Chicken Labels
posted on
November 19, 2019
I used to pay a premium for "Free Range Organic Chicken". I thought I was getting happy chickens raised outside on green pasture but little did I know loopholes in the meat labeling industry allows factory farms to use those labels while raising chickens in cement floored grow houses with lip service "access" to the outdoors. :(
I was buying the "best" chicken, only to find out it was basically the same factory-farmed junk I was trying to avoid.
Free Range Organic Chicken...is the picture above what you expected?
Over the years, we've learned a lot about the meat labeling industry, and been terribly disappointed. Here's a cheat sheet to help you navigate the labels:
Conventional Chicken- grow house, antibiotics, vaccines, gmo feed
Organic Chicken-grow house, antibiotics, vaccines, organic feed
Free Range Chicken- grow house with a door, antibiotics, vaccines, any feed
Pasture Raised Chicken- no legal definition (unregulated living conditions), may include antibiotics, vaccines, gmo feed
Jubilee Chicken- 24/7 outside, NO antibiotics, NO vaccines, foraging for bugs, grubs, seeds, & worms + supplemental organic, non-gmo feed.
Are you trying to do your best for your family and paying a premium for something that doesn't measure up to your expectations? There is hope!
Take the extra step and actually visit where your food comes from. If the farm is not open to the public, and prefers fancy ads over actual footage of the animals, you might want to think twice.
Come visit us at one of our monthly farm tours or schedule a private group tour and inspect what you expect! If you can't make it out to the farm, check out our online virtual farm tour.
