Food Label Guide
Food products these days are covered in enticing labels and claims that convince buyers that their products are high quality. Unfortunately, many of these labels are undefined and unregulated. Here's a guide to a few of the most common food labels and what they really mean. To learn more, go to this highly informational label guide by Consumer Reports.
The food labels below are tightly regulated and have high standards for how plants and animals are grown and treated:
USDA Organic- farms must have good soil and water quality, no GMOs, and no synthetic pesticides. However, this claim does not regulate animal welfare.
Certified Humane Raised and Handled- limit use of toxic substances in buildings. Air quality, nutritious food, pasture access, confinement is prohibited. Handling the animals with consideration and care.
American Grassfed- Animals graze on pasture, eat only grass their entire life, and are not treated with antibiotics or growth hormones. Farms are inspected every 15 months.
Global Animal Partnership- Well regulated, with high standards concerned with animal welfare. Learn about their levels here.
Animal Welfare Approved- Care of animals with sustainability in mind.
Regenerative Organic Certified- This certification has high standards that ensure produce that is grown in a sustainable way. Environmental factors such as soil health, as well as animal and worker welfare standards, are monitored. Products must be certified organic as well.
AGW (A Greener World) Certifications- Uphold high standards for many different certifications, such as Certified Grassfed, Certified Organic, Certified Non-GMO, and Certified Regenerative, Animal Welfare Approved, and Salmon Welfare Certified.
​
Fair Trade Certified- This certification upholds high standards for workers rights and sustainability.
These food labels below are either completely unregulated or have very loose, inconsistent standards with a weak verification process. Many of these claims do not have an official seal, which is often a sign that the claim is unregulated:
No antibiotics- does not have well defined standards for verification.
Non-GMO- has inconsistent standards and rules, so is not very reputable.
Naturally Raised- is completely unregulated.
Humanely Raised- is unregulated.
Natural- only regulates how the meat is processed after slaughter, but poses no regulations on how the animal is raised.
Pasture Raised- simply means that the animal must have access to an outdoor facility for a minimum of 120 days per year. Outdoors could mean anything from a lovely pasture to a crowded, fenced in lot.
Cage Free- simply means the animals are raised without a cage, but does not enforce any other requirements for how the animals are treated.
Grass Fed- the USDA does not have a defined definition of what this means. Animals must have some access to pasture and eat grass at some point.
Vegetarian Fed- some animals, such as chickens, eat grubs as part of their diet, so this claim does not mean the animals were fed a better diet.
Bibliography
Consumer Reports Guide to Food Labels & claims. Consumer Reports. (n.d.). Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.consumerreports.org/food-labels/seals-and-claims.
Food label guide. FoodPrint. (2021, March 17). Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://foodprint.org/eating-sustainably/food-label-guide/.
Meat, eggs and dairy label guide. ASPCA. (n.d.). Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.aspca.org/shopwithyourheart/consumer-resources/meat-eggs-and-dairy-label-guide.
Nargi, L. (2022, October 12). Making sense of regenerative labels. FoodPrint. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://foodprint.org/blog/regenerative-labels/.
Lawler, M. (2017, November 25). What meat labels like 'organic' and 'grass Fed' actually mean-and whether you should care. SELF. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.self.com/story/what-beef-labels-actually-mean.