Real Organic Project: Beef
This label is designed as an add-on to the USDA Organic label. Certified farms produce goods with higher standards for animal welfare, soil health and worker welfare than USDA organic alone.
Requires Verification/Inspection
FoodPrint Label Criteria
Animal Feed Quality
Produced without industrial pesticides
Synthetic fertilizers or sewage sludge prohibited
Finished on grass*
Prohibits animal waste and byproduct
Restricts use of feed supplements
Prohibits GMOs
*A minimum of 40% of the finishing diet must come from pasture.
Drug Use
Antibiotics only for sick animals or prohibited
Prohibit hormones and other drugs to healthy animals
Environmental and Pasture Quality
Pasture management / rotational grazing plan required
Synthetic fertilizers or sewage sludge prohibited
Grown without industrial pesticides
Biodiversity required in pasture
Soil health monitored/measured for improvement over time
Requires accounting or modeling of carbon emissions and sequestration
Animal Welfare and Living Conditions
Prohibits feedlots*
Prohibits long term confinement
Prohibits electric prods*
Hygiene and manure management addressed
Pain relief for castration
Prohibits dehorning**
Taildocking prohibited
Standards for animal wellbeing in transport including maximum duration times
Welfare standards for slaughtering addressed
Pasture required throughout grazing/growing season
*Feedlots are allowed as outdoor access only outside of the growing season.
**Dehorning is permitted but only with anesthesia.
Worker Welfare
Standards and protections for workers on farm
Standards and protections for workers in processing plants
Fair/living wages ensured
Health care insurance ensured
Food Label Glossary
For explanations of some of these technical terms, like “rotational grazing” or “sewage sludge fertilizers,” please visit our glossary.