2 minute read
Tom Linney
The animal agriculture industry goes to great lengths to convince consumers that its products are humane. In reality, animals are exploited by the billions in the factory farming industry, often facing cruel conditions such as intensive confinement in crates or cages so small they can’t even turn around or flap their wings.
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One major source of consumer confusion is the labels on animal products, which commonly feature terms that suggest higher standards for animal treatment. All too often, these terms are essentially meaningless. Meanwhile, the factory farming industry and its enablers seek to prevent truthful labeling of plant-based products. Here are 5 facts to know and share.
1) “Antibiotic Free” and “Hormone Free” promises about eggs? They don’t mean much.
Consumers can easily be misled into believing that eggs labeled this way are produced in less cruel conditions — but in truth, these terms say next to nothing about how chickens are treated.
Most eggs in the U.S. are already antibiotic free, since antibiotics decrease egg production — and all are hormone free since it’s illegal to give hormones to chickens.
2) Terms like “Farm Fresh,” “Happy Hens,” “Naturally Raised,” or “Animal Friendly” on egg cartons? Don’t take them to the bank. There’s no official federal regulatory or policy guidance on phrases like these — so they can mean whatever the producer wants them to mean.
3) Some state legislatures are siding with industrial animal agriculture over consumers. Prodded by industry interests, state lawmakers may try to prevent plant-based producers from using truthful terms in their product labeling and marketing. Unconstitutional state laws have been enacted that seek to penalize the use of terms such as “plant-based sausage” or “veggie bacon. ” The Animal Legal Defense Fund and others have stepped up to defend plant-based producers’ First Amendment rights, winning groundbreaking lawsuits in multiple states.
4) Some members of Congress want to stop dairy-free products from using terms like “milk,” “yogurt,” and “cheese.” These lawmakers have introduced legislation to try to stop the use of terms like “almond milk” or “soy yogurt.” Supporters of plant-based labeling censorship often claim that consumers are confused by terms like “soy milk” and “veggie burger.” But in reality, “[o]mitting words that are traditionally associated with animal products from the names of plant-based products actually causes consumers to be significantly more confused about the taste and uses of these products,” according to research from Cornell University.
5) The Animal Legal Defense Fund is working to protect animals and consumers. As the nation’s preeminent legal advocacy organization for animals, we fight to ensure that consumers have access to the truth about the food they eat. In a milestone win this summer, plant-based producer Miyoko’s Kitchen, represented by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, was victorious in its lawsuit against the California Department of Food and Agriculture. The agency had sought to stop Miyoko’s from using terms like “butter” and “dairy” on its products — even with qualifiers like “vegan” and “made with plants” — among other attempts at censorship. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California found that the agency’s instructions violated Miyoko’s First Amendment right to free speech.
Learn more at aldf.org.
