The Lawyer's Role in Improving "Humane" Meat Labeling
USA
Mar 21, 2022
Governmental regulations of meat labeling claims have largely focused on consumer welfare instead of the animals themselves. One of the only governmental standards addressing farmed animal welfare is the regulation of the term “organic.” However, even this standard is lamentably underenforced. Other standards, such as the Animal Welfare Act and the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, provide some requirements for humane treatment for some animals in some circumstances. There has been success when existing regulations are violated and brought to the government’s attention. Such success shows a promising path towards more rigorous public labeling standards that meet the desires of the public and lend themselves to ready enforcement. In this morass, lawyers have had and will continue to play a role in improving and enforcing labeling standards in three different realms.