Anti-factory farming group launches website to help consumers buy more humane poultry products

November 22, 2015 – In order to meet consumer demand for greater transparency in food production, Farm Forward, a non-profit anti-factory farming organization that wants to promote more conscientious food choice is launching BuyingPoultry, an online buying guide that will make it easier for U.S. consumers to learn about and find the highest-welfare poultry products available locally and nationally.

“We designed BuyingPoultry from the ground up to sift through confusing marketing claims and labels on eggs and other poultry products so that all of us can find products that are in line with our values,” explains Ben Goldsmith, Executive Director of Farm Forward. “Most shoppers report that they need a source of information about animal welfare that they can trust. That’s what BuyingPoultry is all about.”

Farm Forward cites a survey commissioned by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) by Edge Research that revealed that over 80 pe rcent of consumers believe that the welfare of chickens is important, but less than one-third of those surveyed trust the producers to treat chickens humanely. Labels like “organic” and “free-range” don’t guarantee that the birds were raised in better conditions than those of industrial farms, the organization said in a release. The purpose of BuyingPoultry, it claims, is to help conscientious consumers understand the facts behind welfare claims and certifications, and helps makes sense of this complex information by offering buying advice from leading animal welfare experts and farmers.

BuyingPoultry’s online buying guide is the first database of its kind and has an extensive national database of producers, products, and retailers. Products have been graded by BuyingPoultry’s Animal Welfare Advisory Committee based on the claims and certifications that they bear and an understanding of animal welfare rooted in science, according to a release. 

Funding for BuyingPoultry was provided by the ASPCA.