Agricultural Marketing Service
   
 
Grading Certification and Verification
 
Naturally Raised Marketing Claim Standards  
Claim and Standard

 
Naturally Raised – Livestock used for the production of meat and meat products that have been raised entirely without growth promotants, antibiotics (except for ionophores used as coccidiostats for parasite control), and have never been fed animal (mammalian, avian, or aquatic) by-products derived from the slaughter/harvest processes, including meat and fat, animal waste materials (e.g., manure and litter), and aquatic by-products (e.g., fishmeal and fish oil). All products labeled with a naturally raised marketing claim must incorporate information explicitly stating that animals have been raised in a manner that meets the following conditions: 1) no growth promotants were administered to the animals; 2) no antibiotics (other than ionophores used to prevent parasitism) were administered to the animal; and 3) no animal by-products were fed to the animals. If ionophores used only to prevent parasitism were administered to the animals, they may be labeled with the naturally raised marketing claims if that fact is explicitly noted.

 

 

 
News
 
  January 28, 2008 -- USDA Reopens and Extends Comment Period  
 
 
 
  Naturally Raised Information Collection Notice and Request for Comment - March 11, 2009 - PDF  
 
  Notice - Naturally Raised Claim Comment Period Extended  
 
  November 28, 2007 - Naturally Raised Claim Proposed Rule and Comments  
 
Media Help
 
  Download Adobe Acrobat Reader  
 
 
  Last Modified Date: 01/21/2009