WASHINGTON — The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is launching a multi-step effort to strengthen standards used to substantiate animal-raising claims such as “raised without antibiotics,” “grass-fed” and “free-range,” among others. The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the USDA has received petitions, comments and letters asking the agency to reevaluate its oversight of how animal-raising claims are substantiated.
The FSIS most recently updated its guideline on “grass-fed” and “free-range” claims in 2019. The spotlight now has turned to the veracity of such claims as “raised without antibiotics” or “no antibiotics ever.”
To address concerns, the FSIS, along with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS), will conduct a sampling project to assess antibiotic residues in cattle marketed with the “raised without antibiotics” claim.
The agency said project results will help inform whether FSIS should require laboratory testing results be submitted for the “raised without antibiotics” claim or start a new verification sampling program.
Additionally, FSIS will be issuing a revised industry guideline to recommend companies strengthen the documentation they submit to substantiate animal-raising claims. FSIS said it would “strongly encourage” the use of third-party certification to verify the claims.
“Consumers should be able to trust that the label claims they see on products bearing the USDA mark of inspection are truthful and accurate,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “USDA is taking action today to ensure the integrity of animal-raising claims and level the playing field for producers who are truthfully using these claims, which we know consumers value and rely on to guide their meat and poultry purchasing decisions.”
In response to USDA’s announcement, Dena Jones, farmed animal program director for the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), said the organization welcomed the actions USDA-FSIS intends to take to strengthen the agency’s label approval program.
“AWI has issued multiple reports over the last decade documenting how the USDA routinely allows producers to use ‘higher welfare’ claims on products from animals raised under conventional industry standards,” Ms. Jones said. “The current approval process is inadequate and ripe for exploitation.
“We have long urged the USDA to require producers to obtain third-party certification to verify certain animal-raising claims, such as holistic assertions related to animal welfare (e.g., “humane”) and environmental stewardship (e.g., “sustainable” or “regenerative”). Allowing producers to make animal welfare claims without adhering to higher standards harms animals, higher-welfare farmers, and consumers who expect these claims to indicate better treatment of animals.”
