HERNDON, Va., Dec. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- As the U.S. Department of
Agriculture is announcing several steps to improve food safety following the
discovery of mad cow disease in the United States, Humane Farm Animal Care
(HFAC) is urging consumers to look for Certified Humane labels on beef as an
added assurance of quality.
HFAC is a non-profit organization that develops animal welfare science-
based standards for the humane treatment of farm animals and inspects farms to
ensure that they meet the standards. The farms participating in the voluntary
program can use the "Certified Humane Raised & Handled" label on their
products, providing consumers assurances that the meat, eggs or dairy products
come from animals raised, handled and transported in compliance with the
humane standards. A searchable database of retailers carrying Certified
Humane products is available at http://www.certifiedhumane.org.
"Certified Humane standards already include several of the U.S. Department
of Agriculture's new requirements and we're pleased that they've taken these
steps to improve food safety," said Adele Douglass, executive director of
Humane Farm Animal Care. "We go further in protecting farm animals by
requiring humane treatment from birth to slaughter."
In addition to never allowing the slaughter of downed cattle, the
Certified Humane standards require that farms provide information to
inspectors on the type of feed given to the animals. While the USDA has banned
feeding cattle protein to other cattle, there is no process for inspecting
farms to ensure compliance.
Certified Humane standards also require traceability and rigorous record
keeping on the health and well being of each animal. All cows whose meat will
bear the Certified Humane label must be born on that farm or another Certified
Humane farm.
"While much remains unknown about the transmission of BSE and the risk to
humans, this debate certainly has more Americans thinking about the source of
their food," said Dr. Joy Mench, chairman of the HFAC scientific committee.
"The Certified Humane program offers consumers assurances that farmers are
meeting strict standards for raising and handling animals."
The Certified Humane program is backed by the leading humane
organizations, including The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals and The Humane Society of the United States. For more information,
visit http://www.certifiedhumane.org. Its standards are developed by leading animal
welfare scientists and are available on the web site.
SOURCE HSUS; ASPCA
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Related links:
http://www.aspca.org
http://www.certifiedhumane.org
CONTACT:
Patricia Jones of ASPCA, +1-212-876-7700
x4659, or Adele Douglass of HFAC, +1-703-591-0350, or Rachel
Querry of HSUS, +1-301-258-8255
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