#UptownUploads Chicken Labels

7/26/2015

I normally go out of my way to not purchase any products that I believe use misleading or unfair labels.

But like most families, I am on a budget and this little package of chicken breasts was on sale so I scooped it up.

But what about all those labels? What do they mean? Let's talk about a few of them!

"No Hormones"

This actually means no added hormones, as all food we consume has hormone. On that note - NO CHICKEN HAS ADDED HORMONE. It's illegal and has been since 1950.

"No antibiotic ever!"

Ok. So this bird was never sick, hopefully. Because if he was sick he wasn't treated. Good to note that no animals will have anitbiotic (not even traces) present at the time of butchering, so all your meat (label or not) is anitbiotic free.

"Cage free!"

This is a romantic ideal for animal agriculture. Cages are used by poultry farmers to protect birds from predators and other birds. If you want to pay extra for cage free you absolutely have that right. But please respect the fact that it's not possible to raise cage free birds in the numbers we need at an affordable price for all families.

If you don't have the luxury of paying those higher prices know that is ok too! All birds are treated humanely and live in clean, safe environments - cage or no cage.

2 Comments

Eric

7/26/2015 05:27:33 am

Another interesting note about cage free broilers...it is NEVER standard industry practice to cage meat birds of any kind...layers only.

Kate

7/26/2015 06:12:36 am

Eric thank you so much for pointing that out!!! I hadn't even thought about that. In fact are any broilers raised in cages?

Uptown Girl

Kate Lambert grew up in northern Illinois, not on a farm but active in FFA and showing livestock.

She married the man of her dreams, who happened to be a farmer in Missouri.

She serves as an Ag loan officer for the largest agricultural lender in the state, being active in the industry as a professional.

She participates in the management of the family farm, where they raise corn, soybeans, cattle and sheep. She loves running and spending time with her two boys, who are ALL boy.

She is passionate about agriculture and telling the story of the industry to consumers.

Uptown Girl