Stay Savvy on Animal Welfare Food Label Claims with AWI’s Updated Guide

AWI recently released new and improved versions of A Consumer’s Guide to Food Labels and Animal Welfare to help compassionate consumers purchase more humane food options. This guide includes definitions, and the animal welfare implications, of some of the most common labels applied to dairy, egg, meat, and poultry products. For those who wish to have something handy when on the go, our convenient and popular pocket guide has been revamped to provide a color-coded snapshot of all claims, labels, and certifications we’ve assessed and rated. On the back, consumers will find a QR code that takes them to an updated full guide, which now includes interactive and mobile-friendly enhancements.

The guide rates common animal-raising claims, labels, and certifications using five categories: Best Choices, Next Best Choices, Fair Choices, Slight Improvement, and Beware of These Labels. The Slight Improvement category is a new addition and is meant to provide a more accurate representation of two types of labels: (1) those that indicate comprehensive animal welfare standards that represent just a slight improvement over conventional industry production and (2) labels whose relevance is restricted to a single practice or aspect of production. Products bearing labels that fall within any of the categories other than Beware of These Labels are preferred over conventional products, the vast majority of which come from factory farms. (When a product bears a higher-welfare third-party certification in combination with other claims, shoppers can usually assume the product falls within the category of the third-party certification, since that type of certification indicates an independent assessment that the product meets a broad set of higher-welfare standards.)

In determining our ratings, we consider if and how the claims are independently verified, what the claim signifies in terms of production practices, how these practices impact animal welfare, and whether they represent a meaningful improvement over conventional, industrial farming. Among other aspects of production, we consider the animals’ outdoor access and ability to express natural behaviors, as well as the standard’s permissible physical alterations and requirements for pain relief, and whether emergency protocols (e.g., fire protection and animal disease outbreak response measures) are required.

In addition to the new Slight Improvement category, the revised guide includes several other notable changes: USDA Certified Organic was upgraded from Fair Choice to Next Best Choice in response to regulations finalized in October 2023 that significantly improved animal welfare standards under the National Organic Program, which governs the USDA Organic label (See AWI Quarterly, winter 2023). We added new certifications that require outdoor access for animals, including free-range designations for third-party certification programs Certified Humane and American Humane Certified (rated as Next Best Choices). The Marine Stewardship Council’s aquaculture certification program also makes its first appearance—albeit in the Beware of These Labels category due to its lack of standards for the humane treatment of fish and disregard for the welfare of bycaught species.

Help us spread the word! Access the mobile-friendly guide or order printed copies of the pocket version to share with friends and family or add to local lending libraries. Be sure to also bookmark our full guide for easy access in the grocery aisle!

See more AWI Quarterly articles about: Farmed Animals, Labeling and Food Choices

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