Invictus Blog

My meat was raised how?!
Written by Nichole DeHart

I don’t know about you, but I can be overwhelmed by the amount of choices we have when going to the grocery store.  I won’t even get started on the amount of toothpaste we have to choose from, let alone the wide variety of animal products for purchase. Do I buy organic vs. non-organic? Do I buy cage-free or natural? Do I purchase from local farmers or not? These are just a few questions we are faced with when we walk through the doors of our local grocer. It can sometimes be daunting to decide what to purchase, especially if you are slightly unclear of what the labels actually mean. This can definitely be true when trying to make an informed decision when purchasing your animal foods.

There are lots of variables when deciding what type of animal products to buy. Considering that if you are reading this post in the first place, you are probably concerned about the quality of your meat. There is a wide variety in the quality of animal products sold at the grocery store. Have the fish been raised or caught in a sustainable way, was this chicken raised in its natural habitat, was this cow pumped with hormones? There are lots of tricky ways to get consumers to purchase a product that they may think was raised sustainable but, due to the misleading label, was not. Here is a way to read between the lines and note exactly what type of meat or animal product being purchased:

Conventional: Refers to standard agricultural practices that are widespread in the industry. It can include the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, “mono-cropping,” feedlot and confinement systems, antibiotics, hormones and other chemical approaches.

Family Farmed: The label makes claims that the product was raised by a family farmer that are independently verified.

Natural: This can be a misleading label. It means that the animal was raised close to their original state and can’t have any artificial ingredients or added color but, unless there is another label stating different, the meat is made from factory farmed animals.

Cage-free: This is an unregulated label and indicates that the poultry animals could “freely roam a building or enclosed area with unlimited access to food and water.” The area, however, is not regulated and can still mean that the animal was raised in an overcrowded room with no outdoor access. Beak cutting is still permitted. Unless otherwise stated, you can assume that the animal is given the same foods as factory-farmed animals.

Free-range: This label is a step up from cage free because it means that the animal was given access to the outdoors instead of just freely roaming a building, but the feeding practices are probably still conventional (meaning grain fed).

Organic: This label is regulated by the USDA and verifies that the livestock “producers met animal health and welfare standards, did not use antibiotics or growth hormones, used 100% organic feed and provides animals with access to the outdoors.” Organic feed typically means that the animal was fed grains, not grass or insects.

Grass-fed: Grass-fed animals receive a majority of their nutrients from grass throughout their life as opposed to just being “organic.” Traditional grass-fed animals are usually grain finished to fatten them up before slaughter. Unless the package says different, you can assume that the animal was finished with grains, negating all the amazing benefits of being grass fed.

Grass Finished: This ensures that the animal is not fed any grains at the end part of their life.

Pastured: This is a voluntary label so the USDA does not regulate it. It is implied that the animals carrying this label have had access to the outdoors to graze on open fields, being cued by their own hunger. Most of their lives are spent outdoors. They can still be fed hormones and antibiotics if not otherwise stated. Look for Pastured and Organic together!

Wild Caught: This is an unregulated term referring to the fact that the animals, usually fish, were wild and caught in their natural habitats. Yay for wild caught!

Good luck deciding what types of meat to buy next time you are at the grocery store! Hopefully this cheat sheet will help you make more informed decisions. The best types of meat will have a combination of these labels. Better yet, go to your local farmers market and talk to the farmers directly about the meat they are selling! This is the best way to make informed decisions about your animal products!

Sources

http://www.animalwelfareapproved.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Food-Labelling-for-Dummies-screen-v9-041013.pdf
http://www.lifestylebypoliquin.com/Lifestyle/StayHealthy/631/The_Quality_Spectrum_of_Animal_Foods.aspx