I think all this proves that when it comes down to it, local is your best option. Knowing where your food comes from (REALLY know - visit the farm, meet the owners!) is the only way to have control over this.

Agree, find a local small farm with chickens running around and you can score some true "free-range" eggs.

I also love that crappy "no hormones added" advertisement on the raw chicken at the store. I always think no shit sherlock, simply adding hormones to cut up meat isn't going to do anything! Same thing with milk.
None of the packages say "no hormones were injected into this chicken while it was still alive." Now that would actually mean something.

oddly enough as i was buying eggs last thursday i thought to myself "now how do i actually know these hens weren't raised conventionally and are actually free-range?" there is still a very noticeable different between the "free-range" ones i get at F&E and conventional ones (shells are thicker, yokes are darker).

if the FDA really doesn't monitor cage-free vs conventional, then this sparks my conscience to try a little harder to find eggs local. like from my grandmother who has tons of eggs from her chickens and no one to give them to. ha. the convenience of grocery stores around the corner has caused me to be lazy.

My sister has 300 layer chickens roaming her 5 acres farm. Let me tell you it's disconcerting to see 100 chickens running toward you in full speed thinking you have treats for them.

She used to raise couple of meat chickens and ever since then I seriously doubt those "free-range" labels in grocery stores because these meat chickens do NOT want to free range. They just want to sit all day, preferably in front of a feeder. My sister has to shove them out of the coop every morning and then shove them back in every night. They're bred to be so passive that "free ranging" is ridiculous from their point of view. My sister stopped raising meat chicken, it was too much work to force them into the fresh air and sunshine.

Many thanks for this post. I read that free range chickens only have to be allowed outside for 1/2 hour a day, and because they're caged up so often they just huddle in fear of the outdoors and never move. I buy humane certified but ideally we'll take some road trips this summer and meet our local farmers instead.

We bought free range / organic / with omega 3s in the food for a long time. I was never very happy about the quality and I knew exactly what the standard was.

We finally switched to pastured eggs with a high rating from the Cornocopia institute. http://www.cornucopia.org/organic-egg-scorecard/ They taste much better and since we were already paying a fair amount, it wasn't much of an upgrade. We also buy from the farmer's market but it is nice to have a grocery store (Whole Foods) option.

I read the Kitchn frequently, but this is my first time commenting... I'm a little embarrassed to read this here:

"Here in the U.S. the Department of Agriculture has no standards and allows any egg to be labeled as 'free-range.'"

I think you got this from Wikipedia, which is a funny translation of a DailyGreen article. I would suggest next time you write an article about the USDA's standards, you might think about googling USDA (instead of relying solely on Wikipedia).

Here are these terms, as defined by the USDA: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/meat_&_poultry_labeling_terms/index.asp#top

The definition for free-range eggs/poultry is that ranchers must prove that the chickens have access to the outdoors.

Yes, there is plenty to quibble about in that definition -- but there IS actually a definition/standard, which would mean that theoretically NOT just "any egg [can] be labeled as 'free-range.'"

Thanks to Brendalynn for the clarification. I worry about misinformation because so many more people probably read this blog than the USDA's website. I know some college professors who take a letter grade off for every Wikipedia reference - it should not be used.

We must go even beyond that though and ask how often the USDA does their job - Free Range is a label that bilks the public while making them think that the animals are treated humanely while the USDA collects a paycheck. Certified Humane is run by a nonprofit - one of the head people apparently worked for a food industry although she did recieve an award from the ASPCA.

@brendalynn that is what this article is about; that the definition is so vague that if the chickens are let out for a minute in 24 hours the eggs can still be classified as free-range. As a buyer that is not what I am looking for. I want to see them cage free so I can be guilt free.

@brendalynn I actually did go to the USDA's site and didn't rely solely on what wikipedia has to say. As someone with a lot of school teacher friends, I don't hate wikipedia but I hear their lament that kids use it as their only source and that's sloppy research. Thanks for your post.

@Brendalynn. Embarrassing is your lack of comprehension because this is a great article with with facts that check out.

The USDA site states the following and only the following when it comes to their standards for Free Range and Free Roaming;

" FREE RANGE or FREE ROAMING:
Producers must demonstrate to the Agency that the poultry has been allowed access to the outside. "

This answer is not good enough for the majority of us who care where and how our food has been brown and raised. We want to see specs, specifics, know that there are permits and set written requirements for poultry farmers labeling eggs free range and free roaming.

I think Ms. Chin's article was informative, well written and after doing more research her facts all check out. Good job and thank you Ms. Chin.

As a vet, and someone who has done research with laying hens and on environmental enrichment of battery cages, I can't resist chiming in and playing Devil's Advocate.

"Free range" in the sense that most consumers envision it is neither utopian nor viable on a CAFO scale. It is hard to accept, but truthfully many layers in medium-sized CAFO operations are actually healthier than the birds left to roam on smaller farms. Their incidence of infectious disease and parasitism is drastically reduced, and caged birds do not face the VERY real threats of cannibalism and mutilation by their fellow hens, nor are they vulnerable to predation by wild mammals, raptors, or even errant pets.

Yes, Europe's drastic overhaul of its poultry industry was hailed as progressive by many, but the truth is, it put a substantial proportion of European poultry producers out of business. But Europe still has to get its eggs from somewhere, and now most supermarket eggs over there are imported from countries (esp in S America) where humane farming regulations are virtually non-existent. It's hard to call it a clear victory for the birds when viewed in that context.

Lest anyone get the wrong idea, I am a vegetarian on principle, and think the best solution for those who eat eggs is a WELL cared for backyard flock. Yes, chickens need vaccines too. And no, they should not just be left to roam the yard -- they need protection from the elements and from predators, and trust me, your lawn needs protection from them. :-)

What's missing from this article (unless I missed it) is evaluation of what is meant when eggs are labeled as coming from "Cage-free" chickens.

@lunazzura - You have to be kidding me. Birds get their beaks cut off (otherwise they will fight); tiny cages cause lacerations and a concentration of bird feces (which, in some places led to bird flu) - maybe the antibiotics keep the incidence of infections lower but can you really call those conditions "healthy"?

I was a mere vet tech (now a biologist with a master's degree, thanks) so I respect your authority as a vet but quite frankly, this kind of attitude - combined with the willingness to declaw cats, is why the field of veterinary medicine gets such a bad reputation.

@Valgal - I wondered that too. From what I understand, only Free Range is regulated as a trade term by the USDA although the U.K. uses similar terms, which makes it more confusing. Bottom line is that Humane Certified is the only kind of farm that gets inspected by a third party NGO so that's worth investigating, or getting to know the farmer.

@Emmi,

You clearly misunderstood what I was saying, but thanks for all the unnecessary accusations.

Part of my research has contributed to improving the welfare of laying hens, including providing areas of the cage where there are not wire bottoms, and where fewer birds are put into a larger space, and a perch, scratchpad, and a secluded nestbox is provided. Beak-cutting is a cruel practice that needs to end; the reason it came into being was because they were shoving way too many birds into single cages (the stress of which led to fighting and cannibalization). In my professional opinion, which has been expressed multiple times at producer conferences as well as in my research, is that the introduction of enriched battery cages, by reducing the number of birds per cage, will eliminate the need for beak-cutting. Enriched cages are expected to be industry standard within five to ten years (and are now law in California). Your assertions are based on old practices which people like me are working to change.

Additionally, thank you for assuming that I declaw cats, which I and MANY of my colleagues refuse to do.

My "attitude" is based on *knowledge* that mass animal agriculture is never going away in this country, no matter how sorely it rubs those of us who dedicate our professional lives to improving the health an welfare of animals. There simply is way too much money involved and way too many livelihoods on the line. Americans will never stop eating eggs or meat or dairy products. You cannot end the practice but you can work to reform it, which has always been my goal.

@Velgal,

Cage free just means no cages. So maybe they don't have a cage but they can still be packed up so tight they don't have room to move around.

I would reccomend "Eating Animals" if you guys want to know more!

@Lunazurra,

Go back and read my comment again. I think you'll see that I merely said you are perpetuating an attitude which I find objectionable in the veterinary community as a whole. Hardly an accusation, certainly not a tangible one.

Since declawing is off-topic (my fault), feel free to email me if we need to discuss it further

elliesparrow@ymail.com

I'm very happy to hear from a vet who does not declaw, and I'd be curious to know what region / state you're in, simply because we are in a supposedly enlightened / liberal area with dozens of vets and all of them declaw. They all say they think it is cruel however their clients "threaten" to have their pets destroyed if the vets do not give their cats the procedure. So suddenly they're held at gunpoint by the clients, instead of putting their foot down as a community of doctors. Again, glad to see you're not that way and certainly in the minority so far as I can tell. Those of us who advocate against declawing are fighting an uphill battle so long as the veterinary community condones the practice.

I am glad you are working to change the industry standard and it sounds like yours will be positive; what incenses me, honestly, is the suggestion that battery farms might be better than small farms. I know people who keep backyard hens and many of them are not well cared for because the owners didn't know what they were getting into; one woman I know leaves them outdoors in the dead of winter because she claims they are being stubborn and "refuse" to come in for the night.

Since your comment on this was brief, maybe I misinterpreted it; but avian neuroscience is a hot field right now and we certainly know that poultry birds are not as mindless as we think they are; if we wouldn't put our cats in battery cages, we should not put birds in them either. Without a visual, I cannot form an opinion on the improvements you're working towards, but I know many small farmers who do just fine caring for their birds, and I'd hate to see people reading this post, reject the product because of what you said. You're a doctor. People listen to you.

Chickens are easier to keep than a dog or cat. One chicken per person in your household, and your set up with an egg a day for each person. When was the last time the dog or cat gave you an egg you can eat? Unless the eggs are coming from a small local farm, most people would be scared away from eating eggs if they really knew how their "cage free/ free range/ organic" eggs started out... pre super market shelf. It's unpleasant on so many levels. And, not only do the pet chickens give you eggs, they also give you the BEST compost material you'll ever find!

Yay, we just got (laying) chicks a week ago. We are so thrilled to have the little peepers in the family!

in 4-5 months we will hopefully be able to STOP buying eggs. A lot of investment, but it's so much fun!

Anyone who has any questions about their food, should commit to buying local or growing the food at home. We all need to be more sustainability minded, I think.