Buzz words like organic, natural and cage-free can be confusing.
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Consumer Reports cuts through the confusion to help you focus on the most meaningful labels.
Donna Simons runs her own food co-op and teaching kitchen, but it's her farm that stands out, for its eggs.
"My chickens have a pretty good life, they can forage naturally. They are outdoors all day," says Simons, of Pound Ridge Farm.
Donna's farm is not typical.
Once a year, it's thoroughly inspected by A Greener World, a group that Consumer Reports says is free of conflicts of interest and performs unannounced farm visits, to earn the seal "Animal Welfare Approved."
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"I feel that raising animals according to the highest standards is the most important thing I can do as a farmer, as a supplier of food and as an educator," said Simons.
Consumer Reports says "Animal Welfare Approved" is a seal worth searching out.
A recent guide by CR analyzed and rated many of the food-labeling seals and claims consumers encounter from the farmer's market to the supermarket.
"It's very hard for consumers to know which of these claims have a good definition behind them and good standards that meet their expectations," says Charlotte Vallaeys, a policy analyst with Consumer Reports.
Take, for example, "All Natural," "Pesticide Free," or "No Antibiotics."
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In some cases, those labels may be accurate, though shoppers can't always be sure because the claims are not well-defined or required to be properly verified.
Consumer Reports says a better label to look for is: "The USDA Organic seal is a very good one. It's backed by federal law and federal regulations that are really quite comprehensive," said Vallaeys.
Consumer Reports also highly rates seals like "Non-GMO Project Verified," "Certified Humane Raised and Handled" and "American Grassfed."
Bottom line: You might have to do a little homework, but at least you'll understand what the labels really mean.