Handling operations and producers of organic livestock must earn a certificate from the National Organic Program. They are subject to an annual inspection, and must document every procedure concerning all aspects of livestock in an official organic system plan. Organic certification for livestock producers requires that animals incur a minimal amount of stress and fear during slaughter. It also requires the use of feed free of mammalian or poultry by-products and other guarantees of the purity and integrity of the meat.
Food Protection Act
To establish uniform national organic standards, the U.S. government enacted the Organic Foods Production Act, under Title 21 of the 1990 Farm Bill. This important piece of legislation provides official guidelines for producing and packaging organic food. Methods of production, handling and processing of meat labeled USDA organic must adhere to these standards.
Access to Pasture
Following the Access to Pasture Rule is one of the requirements for organic meat certification. According to the Access to Pasture rule issued by the National Organic Program, all certified organic livestock, must meet USDA organic standards and have the opportunity to go outside and walk around. During the grazing season, organic livestock producers must allow animals to actively graze daily. This means they eat fresh plants growing in an organic pasture. Organic livestock operators cannot confine the animals during the non-grazing season.
Carcinogens
Limiting your exposure to carcinogenic substances, or those that can cause cancer, is a significant advantage to eating organic meat. By design, organic meat has no intentional exposure to herbicides, fungicides and insecticides for its entire life cycle and shelf life. Commercial meat production has no such regulations. The Environmental Protection Agency points out that the majority of legal herbicides and nine out of 10 fungicides are carcinogenic.
Antibiotics
Commercial livestock are routinely given antibiotics and other medication to treat infections that rapidly spread in unnaturally crowded barn conditions. Organic meat contains no antibiotics and no growth promoting hormones. The group, Greening Princeton, advocates switching to organic meat, and says the widespread use of antibiotics in agriculture "significantly enhances the evolution of antibiotic-resistant bacteria."
Going Green
According to Georgia Health Information, choosing organic meat over commercial meat gives consumers an opportunity to do something good for the environment. Organic livestock farmers base their production methods around the principle of conservation. They strive to conserve natural resources and minimize environmental pollutants. They employ crop rotation, and cover crops to fertilize the soil and control weeds in livestock pastures. This eliminates the release of chemical fertilizers and herbicides into the environment including the local watershed. Cover crops also promote the retention of top soil, a valuable natural resource.
References
- U.S. Departement of Agriculture: What the Access to Pasture Rule Means for Organics
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture: Organic Meat and Poultry Processing Basics
- Princeton University: Organic? What's the Big Deal?
- Alternative Farming Systems Information Center: What is Organic Production?
- Georgia Health Info: Organic Foods: Are They Safer? More Nutritious?
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