| 
We’ve all heard the horror stories about industrial farming and the ills of the mass-produced proteins we buy at the grocery store. A new generation of Western farmers and activists is focussed on giving consumers another, better, choice.
"Animal welfare and farming can work," says Bill McDonald, executive director of the Winnipeg Humane Society, the first group in Canada to launch, in 2001, a humane certification program. Activists in British Columbia then followed suit. "It was not one thing, but a few that created the right environment," says Alyssa Bell Stoneman, farm animal welfare coordinator for the B.C. SPCA, which now also certifies humanely treated farm animal products. How do you know what you’re buying?
What it Means
Think of ethical eating as putting the chicken before the egg. Humane standards, developed by industry experts, producers, and veterinarians, focus on the welfare of farm animals from birth to slaughterhouse. In B.C. and Alberta, the red barn logo (right, top) is the seal of approval In Manitoba, it’s the happy face (right, bottom).
Farmers pay for annual inspections by an independent third party. Requirements vary by area, but cages and crates are generally prohibited. Likewise, growth hormones and antibiotics are a no-no (unless for veterinary treatment). In a nutshell, humanely raised animals are free from hunger, thirst, discomfort, pain and distress, and free to follow their natural behaviours.
Beef and Dairy
Painted River Farm in B.C.’s Fraser Valley was the first beef farm to be certified by the B.C. SPCA, and claims to have the happiest cattle on the range. They winter inside a large barn, but for eight months each year they graze on lush green pasture. "From our porch we can see all the cows at all times," says farmer Donna Gilmore. Those destined for slaughter end their stress-free life at Pitt Meadow Meats, just an hour away; short transportation times are a critical part of humane treatment. Under federal regulation cattle can be transported for up to 52 hours with no food, water or rest; the B.C. SPCA limits that to 24 hours and the Winnipeg Humane Society dictates no more than four hours.
The only dairy farm in B.C. to be certified humane is on Vancouver Island, where Little Qualicum Cheeseworks tends 40 tail-flicking cows that leisurely graze outside seven months of the year. Conventional dairy farmers usually confine their cows indoors year-round and some dock their tails to ease the process of milking.
Pork and Chicken
Life doesn’t get much better for pigs than on First Nature Farms, west of Grande Prairie, Alberta. Jerry Kitt gives his 300 or so porkers total freedom to wallow in the mud, sunbathe or root in the forest. "I’m looking outside right now," he says over the phone. "They’re all running around; they’re having a lot of fun." Humane-certified farmer Ian Smith of Argyle, Manitoba, has windows in his pig barn to let in natural light and doors that allow his animals to go in and out as they please.
Humanely raised chickens get more space than their factory-farm equivalents-plus, with roomier quarters they get to keep their beaks and toes. Laying hens normally require a mere two square feet of space, as well as perches and materials to build nests. At Rabbit River Farms in Richmond, B.C., they get far more: about 43 square feet per hen on outdoor pasture.
Taste
Scott Pohorelic, chef at Calgary’s River Café, who is renowned for sourcing meat from humanely raised animals, says "It is the right thing to do," but also insists that there’s a huge payoff in taste. "There is no question that the meat is profoundly better from animals raised in a low-stress and healthy environment."
Where to Find It
Beef Super Valu (B.C.); Community Natural Foods, Amaranth Whole Foods (Calgary); Planet Organic (Calgary and Edmonton); Organic Roots (Edmonton); eatit.ca, Crampton’s Farm Produce Market, Haycrest Organics (Winnipeg).
Pork Super Valu (B.C.), Choices Markets, Famous Foods (Vancouver); Sebastian & Co. (West Vancouver); Community Natural Foods (Calgary); eatit.ca, Crampton’s Farm Produce Market, Haycrest Organics (Winnipeg).
Chicken London Station Market (Richmond); Community Natural Foods (Calgary); eatit.ca, Crampton’s Farm Produce Market, Haycrest Organics (Winnipeg).
Eggs Save on Foods (B.C. and Alberta); Choices Markets, Capers Community Markets, Famous Foods, Whole Foods (Vancouver); Thrifty Foods (Victoria); Small Potatoes Urban Delivery (Calgary, Vancouver Island, Vancouver); DeLuca’s, Portage Meats and Deli, Harry’s Foods, House of Nutrition, La Grotta Mediterranean Market, Organza (Winnipeg).
Cheese IGA, Thrifty Foods (Victoria), Choices Markets, Capers Community Markets, Stongs (Vancouver); Small Potatoes Urban Delivery (Calgary, Vancouver Island, Vancouver)
For a complete list, see spca.bc.ca/farm.
Farm Direct Sales
B.C. Painted River Farm, paintedriverfarm.ca; http://www.paintedriverfarm.ca Rockweld Farms 604-859-1199; Vale Farms Grassroots valefarms.com; Celista Springs Ranch celistaspringsranch.com;
Little Qualicum Cheeseworks cheeseworks.ca.
Alberta First Nature Farms, firstnaturefarms.ab.ca; Sunworks Farms, sunworksfarm.com; TK Ranch, natural-beef.net.
Manitoba Prairie Grass Fed Meats, 204-376-2369; Natural Pork, naturalpork.ca.
|
|
