The True Standard of Animal Welfare
The First in our Organic September Newsbeet Article Series
This year, in the face of climate change, 'pingdemic' food supply issues, diet related ill-health and widespread decline in wildlife, it feels like the need to reassess our food production systems has never been greater. With Organic September just around the corner, we'll be using the month to highlight how, by shopping with us, you are working with nature to help nourish and restore our planet.
Organic September is the UK’s largest campaign dedicated to growing the organic market, headed up by the Soil Association and the Organic Trade Board. The aim of the campaign is to highlight how certified organic farms, producers and brands help to protect nature, wildlife and the planet. Alongside the Soil Association, we’re using Organic September to educate and expand on just how organic works with nature, not against it. We love the sentiment that if the planet had a choice, it would choose organic.
During this month-long campaign to raise awareness of the benefits of organic food and farming, we’ll be breaking down the 6 main advantages of organic. Starting with the true standards of animal welfare…
The Highest Standards of Animal Welfare
Soil Association certified farms and producers of organic meat boast the highest standards of animal welfare in the UK. When you purchase organic meat with the Soil Association certified logo, you know the animal from which it came lived as naturally and as happily as possible. In organic farming, animal welfare is one of the most important aspects, with livestock given plenty of space and fresh air and raised in conditions that reflect their natural behaviour.
Living in smaller flocks and herds plus more freedoms to wander about the great outdoors in turn means less antibiotics are needed. Happy and healthy animals do not need routine antibiotics, and on organic farms animals are only treated with medicine when they are needed, not forced. Organic farms are also forbidden from painful mutilations, such as beak trimming or tail-docking, to prevent aggressive side effects of stress. With stress at a minimum on organic farms, these types of mutilations are not only prohibited, but are not needed.
On the Eversfield Organic Farm
At Eversfield Organic, we work with small, local farms to provide the best organic meat for nationwide delivery. All of the farms we work with are certified organic, meaning they all abide by the organic standards of animal welfare. Back on our own organic farm, we rear our herd of rare, heritage Aberdeen Angus cattle to the highest standards too.
Animals on organic farms must have access to pasture, plenty of space to roam, a natural diet and be able to graze on organic pasture free from artificial fertilisers and pesticides. These are all boxes ticked by the Eversfield Organic farm. The ruminant digestive system of cattle is naturally designed to digest pasture, not grain used to pack on weight on some traditional farms. Our cattle are free from growth hormones, allowing for a natural, slow grown life the way nature intended.
Being outdoors for a minimum of 200 days of the year means our herd are less likely to suffer from disease, reducing the need for antibiotics. In the winter, the cattle spend their days munching on preserved pasture in the form of hay, continuing their 100% grass fed for life diet. We’re proud to be one of only a few farms across the country to hold both Soil Association organic certification and PFLA (Pasture for Life Association) certification. The Pasture for Life Association aim to unite meat producers across the UK to create high quality food in a more natural way, going hand in hand with the organic ethos.
Our friends at Eating Better have produced a handy video, filmed on our very own farm, summarising everything we do here to increase animal welfare in our closed loop system. Take a look at their Producing Better video, the first in their trilogy of Eating Better films, to hear members of the Eversfield Organic Family, Mark Bury and Anna Elliot (with a cameo from baby Ewan), discuss the topic further.
Organic meat not only ensures the highest standards of animal welfare but provides a taste and texture that is second to none. Browse our organic meat (including our grass fed beef) and add an organic meat delivery to your next weekly shop to see for yourself, and join the Organic September movement.
