Don’t get discouraged by all of the labeling confusion. There are a lot of amazing farms and companies out there!
With the help of the internet, it is easier than ever to get the information you need to make more humane eating choices.
One of my favorite examples of a company that is doing it right is Vital Farms. Available at just about every Whole Foods in America, their eggs are organic, pasture-raised and humane-certified.
Their chickens are allowed to graze and socialize outside every day. Their beaks are not cut off and they are not given antibiotics or GMO feed.
Yes, they are a few dollars more than eggs that come from tortured chickens, but these are literally the best eggs I have ever tasted. Every time I eat them I think about the video of their happy chickens on their website, and it makes me happy.
Check out their website and support them; they are an amazing company:
When it comes to grocery shopping in America there truly is no better place than Whole Foods.
They are huge supporters of the Non-GMO Project, and many of their products are organic. By 2018 Whole Foods will require that all products containing GMOs must be labeled.
My favorite thing about Whole Foods is that they use the Global Animal Partnership’s 5-Step Animal Welfare Rating Standards.
This means that when you buy meat or poultry at Whole Foods, it is rated to let you know exactly how the animal was treated with the following steps:
Take Action: Shopping Humanely
In addition to purchasing products that are certified humane from your local grocery store, supporting your local farmers market is a great way to eat sustainably and humanely.
No matter where you live in the US, there is bound to be a farmers’ market close by. Even in Los Angeles, I have found it easy to locate farmers markets that sell locally and humanely raised animal products.
The following page by the Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT) is a great resource, with links that will help you find a farmers market near you.
It also provides a list of questions you should ask when shopping at a farmers market. Remember that not all animal products sold at these markets are organic or humanely treated.
The great thing about this type of shopping is that someone from the farm is standing right there and will answer any questions that you might have.
https://www.foodanimalconcerns.org/humane3.htm
Eating organically and humanely can get expensive. While it’s not possible for every budget, every little change can make a big difference.
Cooking will save you a lot of money. My husband and I make all of our coffee at home, because daily Starbucks visits for two people can add up to hundreds of dollars a month. We also stopped buying snacks and sweets. When you cut out desserts, sodas and snack foods, you not only save a ton of money, you eat healthier and lose weight.
We also cut back on eating out. Eating out can be very expensive. By cutting back on our restaurant visits we had more money to spend on quality meat and produce for the house.