Organic Vs. Free-Range Chicken
The terms "organic" and "free-range" have become increasingly popular labels on both agricultural and animal food products. "Organic" refers to a set of growing and raising standards instituted by the government, focusing heavily on the avoidance of synthetic chemicals and food sources for animals, and mandating a certain amount of outdoor access. "Free-range," by contrast, does not address food sources or chemicals, but solely the fact that animals have the ability to access the outdoors.
Organic Food Products
Organically-produced food products must meet standards imposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Among these standards are a requirement that organic foods avoid synthetic chemicals, and do not use fertilizers, hormones and antibiotics in production. Foods that are "100 percent organic" must meet government standards absolutely, while products with at least 70 percent organic content may assert on their label that they are "made with organic ingredients."
Organic Animal Products and Chicken
In addition to regulating the types of foods and substances to which animals may be exposed, the USDA also addresses broader issues of animal living conditions. USDA regulations mandate that livestock, including chicken, labeled "organic" must be allowed "access to pasture" during raising. This requirement includes "access to the outside, direct sunlight, fresh air and freedom of movement."
USDA standards require that producers of "free-range" chicken "demonstrate that the poultry has been allowed access to the outside" during raising. However, free-range regulations do not enumerate a given amount of daily time during which the chickens must be "allowed access" to the outdoors, or the size of the outdoor space they may roam. This makes the term "free-range" inherently ambiguous without a more substantive description of the conditions in which chickens were raised. Under the regulatory language, all organic chickens are raised under generic free-range conditions. However, free-range chicken does not necessarily qualify as an organic food product.
Nutrition and Taste
The USDA notes that terms such as "organic" and "free-range" address only the production process of a food, and not its final quality or nutritional value. In general, organic foods have been found to have, at most, only small nutritional differences from conventionally raised foods, though research in this area remains ongoing, according to the USDA. While a small British study published in March 2008 in "British Poultry Science" indicated a subjective eating preference for conventionally-raised chicken over organic or free-range chicken, scientific research of taste preferences between organic and free-range chicken varieties remains extremely limited.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture; Organic Production and Organic Food; June 2007
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: Organic Labeling and Marketing Information; April 2008
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: Access to Pasture Rule for Organic Livestock; November 1, 2010
- Food Safety and Inspection Service: Meat and Poultry Labeling Terms
- Tufts University: Food and Animal Welfare
- U.S. Department of Agriculture; Should I Purchase Organic Foods?; October 2008
Aaron Zvi has been a writer and photojournalist for 10 years in Washington, D.C., and the Middle East. A student of political science and psychology from the University of Maryland, he also does technical and market analysis for a green technology company. His work has appeared in local newspapers, commissioned research and a patent or two. He began writing professionally in 1998.