AWI has updated A Consumer’s Guide to Food Labels and Animal Welfare to help shoppers make food choices with animal welfare in mind. The changes include our assessment of two new labels, One Health Certified and Organic Plus Trust (OPT) Certified Grass-Fed Organic.
The One Health Certified label, which can be found on certain poultry products, has been placed in AWI’s “beware” category. Despite presenting an image that it signifies responsible animal care, One Health Certified has not developed its own comprehensive animal welfare standards. Rather, it merely requires that producers meet the criteria of other programs, including those developed by and for the conventional poultry industry that allow for extreme confinement and do not require access to the outdoors or environmental enrichments.
On the other hand, AWI considers OPT Certified Grass-Fed Organic a “next best choice” for dairy products. The program’s standards require producers to provide cattle with longer grazing periods and a diet that consists of forage only, in addition to complying with regulations under the National Organic Program that address livestock health and living conditions.
Visit our website at awionline.org/FoodLabelGuide to download the guide.