Some food labels are backed by meaningful animal care standards, but no one is charged with verifying that participating farmers comply with the standards. In other cases compliance is verified, but the standards address only a limited aspect of animal care and handling. Animal welfare organizations in the U.S. have recently developed comprehensive humane standards that are verified, but products from these programs are not widely available yet.

Look for the following labels on dairy, eggs, poultry and meat, and encourage your local restaurants and stores to offer more of these products.

A GOOD start
“Cage free” (eggs)
“Free range” (eggs, chicken, goose, duck, turkey)
“Grass fed” (dairy, beef, lamb)

Even BETTER
“Free range” (beef, bison, pork, lamb)
“Pasture raised” (dairy, eggs, chicken, goose, duck, turkey, beef, bison, lamb, pork)
“USDA Organic” (dairy, eggs, chicken, goose, duck, turkey, beef, bison, lamb, pork)  

The "Even Better" labels generally indicate a higher level of animal welfare because the standards are more meaningful than those for the Good Start labels, but the standards are either not verified by a third party or cover only a limited aspect of animal care.

The BEST options
“Certified Humane” (dairy, eggs, chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, pork) 
“American Humane Certified” (dairy, eggs, chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, pork) 
“Animal Welfare Approved” (dairy, eggs, chicken, turkey, duck, goose, beef, lamb, pork, rabbit) 

The "Best Options" labels cover multiple aspects of animal care and compliance with the standards is verified by an independent third party.  Here are the symbols to look for while you are shopping:
        

Learn more!

Get more information about the labels above >> 

Compare animal welfare standards of different humane food labels >>

See our Humane Food Q&A >> 

Learn more about reducing your consumption of meat and other animal products >>