A neighbor on Nextdoor recently posted about trouble finding organic and cruelty free meat in Portland. This is a task that is surprisingly confusing and ripe with misinformation. Here’s the original question, with my response below.
The Cruelty Free and Sustainable Question
“A question I’ve been struggling to find the answer to for years. Where is the best place in Portland that offers organic, cruelty free, free range meat that is not fed the traditional corn diet. Mainly looking for poultry and wild fish, as I don’t consume red meat very often. I currently buy my meat from Costco but It doesn’t say where it comes from. Im also learning that USDA organic labeling is a grey area and doesn’t differ much from traditional meat. I went into new seasons the other day to ask what the chicken eat and how/where they live but they don’t have many answers. The deli guy said it’s better chicken because it’s air chilled, but I’m more concerned about how the animal lived as opposed to what happened after it died.” Ali, Portland, Oregon
The Answer: Documentation Matters; Don’t Forget Bivalves
The only way to know for sure that your meat it cruelty free is to buy directly from the farmers and fisherman, or to buy from companies that post photos or videos of their animal’s conditions. Bigger sustainable food companies will typically post on their website or social media. Major national brands that do this well are Vital Farms and Happy Egg.
For poultry you should look for ‘pasture raised’ as a keyword. All other keywords like organic, free range, no hormones and antibiotics don’t tell you anything about living conditions.
I highly recommend a read of Michael Pollan’s the Omnivore’s Dilemma which showcases some of the best regenerative and less cruel animal farming practices. A huge portion of the book is a look at Joel Salatin’s Polyface Farms and it’s approach to raise ‘broiler chickens’ for meat consumption while also rejuvenating the land through rotational grazing. The bird’s deaths aren’t pretty, but they are quick. The bird’s lives are spent outdoors wandering through pasture and stands of trees.
This site recently covered free range vs. pasture raised chicken eggs in detail. The article outlines why we’re choosing to buy pasture raised eggs over all other labels associated with chicken eggs including ‘free range’ and ‘organic’.
Shellfish Are Cruelty Free AND Good for the Environment?
Aside from tasting great and being protein dense, some people argue that shellfish (bivalves like scallops, oysters, clams, and mussels) have a less developed nervous system than plants, so shellfish could be a good source for cruelty free protein.
Here’s a full write-up on the topic called “Are Scallops Actually Vegan” by Melissa Kravitz for Vice.com.
Shellfish have the added benefit of being water cleaners, so buying local shellfish will help support a business model that keeps our bays and estuaries clean. Here’s a 30 second time lapse video of Oysters cleaning bay water:
To my scientist and biologist readers please let me know if you feel I’ve extended the truth on any of these claims about how to find and eat cruelty free. I always try to back my claims with links to the science, but this topic in particular is a bit more abstract and experiential.
The huge theme for lessening the impact of your food goes beyond just organic and cruelty free. Do your food choices harm or help the environment? How about you food’s carbon footprint? Perhaps conventional (not organic) local blue berries are superior to organic blueberries shipped 6,345 miles from Chile.
Perhaps a farmer close to your city raises 100 chickens a year, and you can support them by driving out and buying directly from them a few times a year witnessing their process first hand. Don’t stop at organic and cruelty free, look to get eyes on where your food comes from too and be considerate of the greater impact on the environment.
Sincerely,
Nate