Free-Range and Cage-Free Foods
Free-Range Hens
Free-range foods usually refer to poultry products produced by animals that are free to roam in open areas while foraging and grazing outside. These animals have access to the outdoors and are then used to produce dairy products and meat by farmers. The term is notorious for its unspecific nature; the USDA merely requires the animal to be outside for an "undetermined" period of time - around five minutes, according to other reports - and consumers rarely know whether or not the label is truly appropriate. Only poultry is declared to be 'free-range' by the USDA since there are no clear regulations for any other kind of free-range products. So why buy free-range? Because it's a good thing to do - to know that the hen was not cooped up while laying eggs is quite a comfort for animal lovers. Organic food is always free-range, but free-range food is not always organic; the terms are not interchangeable.
Cage-free foods are foods produced by animals that were enclosed in a space rather than in a cage; these animals are not allowed outside access and must remain within the space, albeit without the restriction of a cage.
Cage-free foods are foods produced by animals that were enclosed in a space rather than in a cage; these animals are not allowed outside access and must remain within the space, albeit without the restriction of a cage.