Confused by Labels -- Join the Crowd!

Many people eat animals and animal by-products that are labeled “free-range,” “free-roaming,” and “cage-free” because they want to support  “humane” animal welfare practices.   After all, what do you envision when you see an idyllic photo and the words  “cage-free” on an egg carton?  Or a pristine photo of a meadow and “free-roaming” on a package of chicken breasts?   And this "myth" is exactly what animal agricultural industries pay to perpetuate. 

Food labels are misleading and this is especially true in the case of animals and animal by-products designated for human consumption.  “Cage-free,” is one of the most deceptive labels.  In fact, the designation means very little from an animal welfare perspective.  A “cage-free” label means only that egg laying hens were not housed in battery cages.  While this may sound humane, consider what the “cage-free” designation  does NOT mean. 

• “Cage-free” labels do not mean that egg laying hens have freedom of movement.  In fact, the mobility of “cage-free” hens is usually extremely restricted due to severe overcrowding. Cage-free hens are typically  housed by the thousands in warehouse style buildings with only a 12 square inch space.  See FarmSanctuary.org

• “Cage-free” labels do not mean that hens were not debeaked – The overwhelming majority are sadly subjected to this cruel practice.  (For an explanation of debeaking, see United Poultry Concerns).

• “Cage-free” labels do not mean that egg-laying hens have access to any outdoor space.

• “Cage-free” labels do not mean that “housing” conditions are sanitary.

• “Cage-free” labels do not mean that the company who owns the chickens does not engage in cruel culling practices.(1)

• “Cage- free” labels do not mean that a egg-laying hen was not factory farmed.    

Labels such as “free-roaming” and “free-range” are also confusing and misleading.   These designations are used to label birds we eat, as opposed to egg laying hens or other animals.  Used in a context other than birds killed for human consumption, the “free-range” designation is meaningless.  However, even in its intended context,  “free-roaming” and “free-range” labels provide absolutely no assurance that a chicken was humanely treated.  

“Free-roaming” or “free-range” mean only that some access to an outdoor space was provided.  Again, while this may sound “humane,” the designations are misleading because there are no standards for: 

• length of time a bird is actually outside (if ever);

• size and nature of the outdoor space provided;

• maximum number of birds that can be crammed into the outdoor space

So, a factory farmed chicken who lived in a windowless warehouse enclosure with tens of thousands of other birds can be labeled “free-range” or “free-roaming” on the sole basis that some access to an outdoor space was provided.  Other compassionate and humane sounding labels that are totally meaningless to how an animal actually lived are “natural,” pasture-raised” and “enriched.”  Almost 99% of the animals we eat today are factory farmed.  We support factory farming virtually every time we eat animals and their by-products.  This is true even if the package photo, label or “designation” try to convince us otherwise.    


Kris Giovanini,

"Free-Roaming" Chickens

(1) “Culling” is the “disposal” (killing) of  live male chicks (since they can’t lay eggs and therefore, are not profitable to the company who owns them).  The most common methods of culling chicks are throwing them into grinding machines and suffocation.