What Grocery Store Food Labels Mean...and Don't

Tell you what—learning about food labels takes a lot of time, research, and open tabs at the top of the browser window (current count: 27!).

There are good intentions behind food labeling, and we absolutely deserve to know what's in our food and how it was raised. But none of us has time for this kind of research, you know?

So here's a run-down of common food labels, and what they mean (and don't).

Be sure to stick around until the end, where we share some thoughts about an easier way to trust your food.

Let's get started.

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USDA CERTIFIED ORGANIC

THE GOOD!

CERTIFIED ORGANIC MEANS:

"The food or other agricultural product has been produced according to the USDA organic standards." [1,2]

"[Organic] methods foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance and conserve biodiversity. Synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, irradiation and genetic engineering may not be used." [2]

THE NOT-SO-GOOD.

CERTIFIED ORGANIC DOESN’T MEAN:

1. Doesn't mean pigs, chickens, or turkeys necessarily ever set foot on grass.

"Pigs and poultry may be kept on concrete or dirt lots for all stages of production as long as the living-condition requirements—access to the outdoors, fresh air, direct sunlight, space to exercise, shade, shelter from inclement weather, clean drinking water, and bedding as appropriate—are met." [3]

2. Doesn't mean cows remain solely on pasture, or are properly managed when there to provide them with fresh forage and promote soil health. 

"Finishing ruminant slaughter stock on yards, feeding pads, or feedlots is allowed year round as long as the animals can freely leave the yard to go to pasture during the grazing season." [4]

3. Doesn't mean cows can't still be fed significant amounts of grain.

"Animals must graze on pasture at least 120 days per year, and animals must have a minimum of 30% dry matter intake from grazing pasture during the grazing season." [5] (Here's the math for you: the certified organic label allows up to 245 days per year off-pasture, and a diet of up to 69% grain) 

4. Doesn't mean ALL synthetic substances are necessarily forbidden.

"Organic standards are designed to allow natural substances in organic farming while prohibiting synthetic substances. The National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances [6]—a component of the organic standards—lists the exceptions to this basic rule." [7]

USDA CERTIFIED ORGANIC:

J&L GREEN FARM:

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CAGE-FREE 

THE GOOD!

CAGE-FREE MEANS:

"Birds are able to freely roam a building, room or enclosed area." [8] 

THE NOT-SO-GOOD.

CAGE-FREE DOESN'T MEAN:

1. Doesn't mean the birds are outdoors. 

"Birds are able to freely roam a building, room or enclosed area." [9]

2. Doesn't mean the birds are organic.

“'Cage-free' does not impact what animals eat." [10]

CAGE-FREE:

OUR PASTURED EGG PARTNER:

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FREE-RANGE

THE GOOD!

FREE-RANGE MEANS:

"Birds are provided shelter in a building, room or area with unlimited access to food and fresh water and continuous access to the outdoors during their production cycle." [11]

THE NOT-SO-GOOD.

FREE-RANGE DOESN'T MEAN:

1. Doesn't mean they’re ever on pasture.

"The USDA regulations do not specify the quality or size of the outside range." [12]

2. Doesn't mean they’re outdoors often, or for long.

"The USDA regulations do not specify the duration of time an animal must have access to outdoor space." [13]

3. Doesn't mean they’re organic.

"Like cage-free, free-range does not specify the type of feed for animals." [14]

FREE-RANGE:

J&L GREEN FARM:

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GRASS-FED

THE GOOD!

GRASS-FED MEANS:

"Grass (Forage) Fed" means that grass and forage shall be the feed source consumed for the lifetime of the ruminant animal, with the exception of milk consumed prior to weaning. Animals cannot be fed grain or grain byproducts and must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season." [15]

THE NOT-SO-GOOD.

GRASS-FED DOESN'T MEAN:

1. Doesn't mean they’re organic.

"The grass-fed label does not limit the use of antibiotics, hormones or pesticides." [16]

2. Doesn't mean cows are always on pasture.

"Animals must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season." [17]

3. Doesn't mean that producers using the label are complying fully with the USDA definition of grass-fed, and doesn't mean producers are being fully transparent with consumers about the way(s) in which their unique farm's practices differ from the USDA definition.

THE MEANING OF GRASS-FED AT J&L GREEN FARM:

From our website: "We are proud that our cattle are 100% grass-finished and raised entirely on pasture. We purchase cattle, so although we cannot control what they eat prior to coming to our farm, we do graze all cattle for a year at minimum before harvesting. This means that we never feed any supplemental grain to our cattle; they are only fed pesticide-free grass and hay (dried grass) from the moment we receive them on our farm to the day their meat is harvested."

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GMO-FREE & NON-GMO

Note: “GMO” (genetically modified organism) had, until 2022, become the common term consumers and popular media used to describe a plant, animal, or microorganism that has had its genetic material (DNA) altered through a process called genetic engineering." [18] In January 2022, "Bioengineered (BE)" became the required labeling term, but the standards behind the Bioengineered (BE) label are less comprehensive, less restrictive, and less transparent than the Non-GMO label. [19]

THE GOOD!

GMO-FREE / NON-GMO MEAN:

GMO-FREE: "A product that is GMO-free contains ingredients that may have been derived from genetically modified ingredients. While this product may be the result of a genetic modification, there will be no detectable GMOs/DNA that has been genetically engineered when analyzed in a lab, because the ingredients that may have been derived from bioengineering have been highly processed or refined and all detectable DNA has been removed." [20] (This is similar to the standards of the new Bioengineered (BE) label.)

NON-GMO: "A product that is labeled as non-GMO is not derived from any GMO sources." [21]

THE NOT-SO-GOOD.

GMO-FREE / NON-GMO DON'T MEAN:

1. Neither label means they’re necessarily produced without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers, antibiotics, or hormones.

"A certified organic product is ALWAYS a non-GMO product. A non-GMO product, however, is NOT ALWAYS organic." [22]

2. "GMO-Free" doesn't mean that no GMOs are present, or that the ingredients weren't derived from bioengineering.

"All detectable DNA has been removed." [23]

"A product that is 'GMO-free' contains ingredients that may have been derived from genetically modified ingredients." [24]

THE MOST RELIABLE NON-GMO LABEL:

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NATURAL

THE GOOD!

NATURAL MEANS:

"Meat, poultry and egg products that are minimally processed and contain no artificial ingredients." [25]

THE NOT-SO-GOOD.

NATURAL DOESN’T MEAN:

1. Doesn't mean animals had a high quality of life.

"Does not include standards regarding farm practices." [26]

"The claim has no relevance whatsoever to how the animals were raised." [27]

2. Doesn't mean it's organic.

"Applies [solely] to the processing of meat, poultry and egg products." [28]

3. Doesn't officially mean anything when applied to products that don't contain meat, poultry or eggs.

"No standards or regulations exist for labeling natural food products that do not contain meat, poultry or eggs." [29]

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HUMANE  

Note: There are no federal labeling guidelines for "humane." Private labeling programs of varying quality exist.

"Multiple private labeling programs make claims that animals were treated humanely during the production cycle. The verification of these claims varies widely." [30]

"Due to the lack of federal legislation protecting farm animals, voluntary third-party welfare audits were started to provide assurances that animals are being raised according to these programs' guidelines." [31]

Certified Animal Welfare Approved by AGW is the only USDA-approved third-party animal welfare food certification label that supports and promotes family farmers who raise their animals with the highest welfare standards, outdoors, on pasture or range. [32]

THE ONLY USDA-APPROVED HUMANE LABEL:

WHAT HUMANE LOOKS LIKE AROUND HERE:

*****

An Easier Way to Trust your Food

Instead of trusting stickers and certifications to feed your family, we encourage you to consider an alternative: trust a human being (or two).

• Find a local farmer with an open-door policy
• Visit their farm
• Look with your own eyes, and ask them every question you have
• Build a relationship
• Trust them to be your family's farmer for a really long time

Or, if you live nowhere near a farm...

• Find a small farm who will deliver to you
• Get to know them, and ask them every question you have
• Build a relationship
• Consider them your farmer
• Trust them to feed your family for a really long time

This - not a sticker or certificate - is how you trust your food. This is how food becomes a relationship.

Visit our website

Notes:

1. USDA Organic Standards (link)
2. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What is organic?" (link)
3. Living Conditions, Facilities, and Handling for Organic Livestock (link)
4. Living Conditions, Facilities, and Handling for Organic Livestock (link)
5. Organic Cattle, Sheep and Goats for Meat Production (link)
6. The National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (link)
7. Organic 101: Allowed and Prohibited Substances (link)
8. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
9. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
10. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
11. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
12. The Lexicon of Sustainability Terms (link)
13. The Lexicon of Sustainability Terms (link)
14. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
15. What is Grass-Fed Meat? (link)
16. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
17. What is Grass-Fed Meat? (link)
18. How GMOs are Regulated in the United States (link)
19. Non-GMO Project: What Is Bioengineered Food? (link)
20. GMO-Free vs Non-GMO vs Organic (link) 
21. GMO-Free vs Non-GMO vs Organic (link) 
22. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
23. GMO-Free vs Non-GMO vs Organic (link) 
24. GMO-Free vs Non-GMO vs Organic (link) 
25. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
26. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
27. Making Better Food Choices: Common Labels (link)
28. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
29. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
30. USDA Certified Organics: Understanding the Basics / "What about other labels - what do they mean?" (link)
31. Animal Health and Welfare Audit and Certification Programs (link)
32. Making Better Food Choices: Common Labels (link)