Certified Humane – What Does It Mean on a Label?
Certified Humane, overseen by Humane Farm Animal Care (HFAC), is an international non-profit certification. HFAC is dedicated to improving the lives of farm animals in food production from the time of birth, slaughter, packaging and shipment. The main goal of this program is to improve the lives of farm animals by driving consumer demand for kinder and more responsible farm animal practices.
Due to the rising number of videos on YouTube showing the inhumane way animals have been raised, fed, transported and slaughtered has raised awareness to put these practices into place. Many whistleblowers have come forward to create drastic changes in some of the nation’s largest food producers. Certified products have come from facilities that meet precise, objective standards for farm animal treatment. You can find Certified Humane products in Brazil, Canada, Peru and the U.S.
The Certified Humane Raised and Handled label assure consumers of the following:
- That the producer meets HFAC standards and applies them to animals from birth through slaughter.
- Cages, crates, and tie stalls are not used. Animals must be free to do what comes naturally. For example, chickens can flap their wings and dust bathe, and pigs have the space to move around and root.
- A diet of quality feed, without animal by-products, antibiotics or growth hormones must be provided.
- Producers must comply with food safety and environmental regulations. Processors must comply with the American Meat Institute Standards (AMI).
This is great news but when the big companies keep over pricing your small Mo. & pop Farms than there is a bigger problem. The bug companies are still mass producing all kver and myself I would rather see the animal I am going to eat before having it processed by someplace that I can look in the plant without having to hide a camera.
Power to the small farms
You mention pigs and chickens but what about all other livestock and what about the slaughterhouse conditions . Do they use CCTV to ensure ethical practices are being
employed throughout the entire process of killing animals, an incongruouty if ever there
was one.Although due to ethical reasons I do not eat meat myself ,it is factory farming
I object to and it’s total lack of respect,care, concern and decency it shows for the poor
animals it depends on for it’s sustainability.I believe that if people feel the need to eat
flesh then it should only be occasionally and it ought to be considerably more expensive
to reflect the costs involved in true animal welfare .This would not only reduce the need
for factory farming it would also greatly lessen the burden on the National Health Service
since the quantity of meat consumed today is excessive and ultimately dangerous to
society .