CGF Earns Animal Welfare Approval
It’s now widely accepted that raising animals intensively – indoors or confined on dirt feedlots – is not only bad for animals, but is also harming human health and the wider environment. The headlines speak volumes about our broken food system: about the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, environmental pollution from intensive farming systems, and animal welfare abuses.
In 2006, a program was founded to address the growing consumer demand for meat, eggs and dairy products from animals treated to the highest welfare standards and managed with the environment in mind. Animal Welfare Approval (AWA) audits, certifies and supports independent family farmers raising their animals according to the highest standards, outdoors on pasture or range. Called a “badge of honor for farmers” and the “gold standard,” AWA has come to be the most highly regarded food label when it comes to animal welfare, pasture-based farming, and sustainability.
The AWA program operates on the simple understanding that the way we raise our animals, the nutritional quality of the meat, milk and eggs they produce, and the impact of farming systems on the environment, are all intrinsically linked. We know that if we manage our animals properly and according to their needs, we don’t have to rely on things like routine antibiotics and other chemical inputs to farm. We know that healthy, content animals produce better tasting, healthier meat, milk and eggs. And we know that pasture-based farming livestock systems can actually have a positive impact on the environment, too. Click here to learn more about the benefits of pasture-based farming.
Cherry Grove Farm is proud to have been given Animal Welfare Approval for our fully pastured laying hens. Our heritage breed birds live in mobile coops and are moved several times a week to follow our sheep through their pasture.
Read more on our Press Page.
