Egg labels include Free-Range, Natural, Organic, Cage-Free, Free-Roaming, and Vegetarian Fed.
When unverified, these claims most often are merely marketing tactics.
The reality is that the majority of eggs are produced on factory farms in windowless, confined spaces. Hens are packed up to five-at-a-time into battery cages typically 12 by 18 inches in area, making it impossible for them to stretch their wings or engage in natural behaviors such as walking, dust bathing, nesting and pecking.
The use of the terms "free-range" or "free roaming" is only applied by the USDA to chickens raised as meat, not those laying eggs. These phrases on a label imply that the animal had unrestrained access to the outside world. In reality, the term only guarantees that the animal has had some opportunity to go outdoors each day -- through a door left open, for example -- with no requirement that it actually gets there.
Here are some other commonly used market terms, and what they really mean:
Cage-Free: Hens laying eggs labeled as "cage-free" are uncaged inside barns or warehouses, but generally do not have access to the outdoors. They have the ability to engage in many of their natural behaviors, but beak trimming and forced molting through starvation are still permitted.
Vegetarian-Fed: These birds are provided a more natural feed than that
received by most laying hens, but this label does not have significant
relevance to the animals' living conditions.
Grass-Fed or Pastured: This indicates that the hens have been raised
on pasture. However, there are no standards defining "grass-fed," as
there are for "organic" and "free farmed" (see below), and no third-party
verification. Practitioners of grassfed or pastured poultry often use rotational grazing systems with movable cages for at least some portion of the bird's life. This is a desirable option (assuming it can be verified), as birds eat more naturally, consume fewer resources, and live more in tune with their natural behaviors and needs while
on pasture. Many suppliers of grass-fed egg-producing hens also report that
their eggs are higher in healthy Omega-3 fatty acids than conventional eggs.
Certified Organic: The birds are uncaged inside barns or warehouses, and
are required to have outdoor access (although there have been concerns
about lax enforcement, with some large-scale producers not providing birds
meaningful access to the outdoors). They are fed an organic, all-vegetarian
diet free of antibiotics and pesticides, as required by the USDA's National
Organic Program. Forced molting through starvation still is permitted. Compliance
is verified through third-party auditing.
Fertile: These eggs were laid by hens that lived with roosters, meaning they
most likely were not caged.
Omega-3 Enriched: This label claim has no relevance to animal welfare.
Natural: This label has no relevance to animal welfare. As currently defined
by the USDA, "natural" refers to a type of processing, rather than to the bird's living conditions.
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools."
-Herbert Spencer
Cops remove 10,000 pot plants
By JANE HUH
Post-Tribune Staff Writer
More than 10,000 marijuana plants were found at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore this week, according to Chief Ranger Mike Bremer.
The plants, some as high as 12 feet, had been growing on land that's the size of a football field. The plants have an estimated street value of $8 million, according to law enforcement estimates.
