Free range
Free range denotes a method of farming husbandry where the animals can roam freely outdoors for at least part of the day, rather than being confined in an enclosure for 24 hours each day.
On many farms, the outdoors ranging area is fenced, thereby technically making this an enclosure, however, free range systems usually offer the opportunity for the extensive locomotion and sunlight that is otherwise prevented by indoor housing systems. Free range may apply to meat, eggs or dairy farming.
The term is used in two senses that do not overlap completely: as a farmer-centric description of husbandry methods, and as a consumer-centric description of them. There is a diet where the practitioner only eats meat from free-range sources called ethical omnivorism.
In ranching, free-range livestock are permitted to roam without being fenced in, as opposed to intensive animal farming practices such as the concentrated animal feeding operation. In many agriculture-based economies, free-range livestock are quite common.
History
If one allows "free range" to include "herding", free range was a typical husbandry method at least until the development of barbed wire and chicken wire. The generally poor understanding of nutrition and diseases before the twentieth century made it difficult to raise many livestock species without giving them access to a varied diet, and the labor of keeping livestock in confinement and carrying all their feed to them was prohibitive except for high-profit animals such as dairy cattle.In the case of poultry, free range is the dominant system until the discovery of vitamins A and D in the 1920s, which allowed confinement to be practised successfully on a commercial scale. Before that, green feed and sunshine were necessary to provide the necessary vitamin content. Some large commercial breeding flocks were reared on pasture into the 1950s. Nutritional science resulted in the increased use of confinement for other livestock species in much the same way.
Environmental impact
Extended grazing on open grasslands can stimulate plant growth that sequesters additional carbon dioxide. However, grass-fed cows generally grow more slowly and are smaller at slaughter compared to grain-fed cows. Because they take longer to reach market weight and convert feed into meat less efficiently, their total lifetime emissions—particularly methane—are typically higher. As a result, grass-fed beef tends to have a higher carbon footprint per kilogram than grain-fed beef. A study by Daniel Blaustein-Rejto and colleagues estimated that emissions from grass-fed beef were approximately 20% higher than those from grain-fed cattle.Compared to caged hens, free-range hens produce fewer eggs and required more feed, which resulted in a carbon footprint around 16% higher per kilogram of egg.
United States
In the United States, the Department of Agriculture free range regulations currently apply only to poultry and indicate that the animal has been allowed access to the outside. To be considered "free range," the poultry must have access to the outdoors for more than 51% of the animal's life. However, USDA regulations make no mention of the quality or size of the outside range. The Certified Humane Program offers third-party certification for producers who meet minimum standards, including providing access to grass pastures, traditional nests, and "dust areas to perform natural behaviors".The term "free range" is mainly used as a marketing term rather than a husbandry term, meaning something on the order of, "low stocking density", "pasture-raised", "grass-fed", "old-fashioned", "humanely raised", etc.
There have been proposals to regulate USDA labeling of products as free range within the United States. what constitutes raising an animal "free range" is almost entirely decided by the producer of that product, and is frequently inconsistent with consumer ideas of what the term means.
Free-range poultry
In poultry-keeping, "free range" is widely confused with yarding, which means keeping poultry in fenced yards. Yarding, as well as floorless portable chicken pens may have some of the benefits of free-range livestock but, in reality, the methods have little in common with the free-range method.A behavioral definition of free range is perhaps the most useful: "chickens kept with a fence that restricts their movements very little." This has practical implications. For example, according to Jull, "The most effective measure of preventing cannibalism seems to be to give the birds good grass range." De-beaking was invented to prevent cannibalism for birds not on free range, and the need for de-beaking can be seen as a litmus test for whether the chickens' environment is sufficiently "free-range-like".
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service requires that chickens raised for their meat have access to the outside in order to receive the free-range certification. However, what qualifies as "access" is not defined. There is no requirement for access to pasture, and there may be access to only dirt or gravel. Free-range chicken eggs, however, have no legal definition in the United States. Likewise, free-range egg producers have no common standard on what the term means.
The broadness of "free range" in the U.S. has caused some people to look for alternative terms. "Pastured poultry" is a term promoted by farmer/author Joel Salatin for broiler chickens raised on grass pasture for all of their lives except for the initial brooding period. The Pastured Poultry concept is promoted by the American Pastured Poultry Producers' Association, an organization of farmers raising their poultry using Salatin's principles. This term is not defined by the USDA and has no legal definition. To use a term like pasture-raised, producers must submit documentation to the FSIS of continuous free access to the outdoors, but do not need to include additional terminology to define pasture-raised on its label.
Free-range livestock
Traditional American usage equates "free range" with "unfenced", and with the implication that there was no herdsman keeping them together or managing them in any way. Legally, a free-range jurisdiction allowed livestock to run free, and the owner was not liable for any damage they caused. In such jurisdictions, people who wished to avoid damage by livestock had to fence them out; in others, the owners had to fence them in.The U.S. Department of Agriculture has no specific definition for "free-range" beef, pork, and other non-poultry products. All USDA definitions of "free-range" refer specifically to poultry.
In a December 2002 Federal Register notice and request for comments, the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service proposed "minimum requirements for livestock and meat industry production/marketing claims". Many industry claim categories are included in the notice, including breed claims, antibiotic claims, and grain fed claims. "Free Range, Free Roaming, or Pasture Raised" would be defined as "livestock that have had continuous and unconfined access to pasture throughout their life cycle" with an exception for swine. In a May 2006 Federal Register notice, the agency presented a summary and its responses to comments received in the 2002 notice, but only for the category "grass fed" which the agency stated was to be a category separate from "free range". Comments received for other categories, including "free range", are to be published in future Federal Register editions.
European Union
The European Union regulates marketing standards for egg farming which specifies the following minimum conditions for the free-range method:- hens have continuous daytime access to open-air runs, except in the case of temporary restrictions imposed by veterinary authorities,
- the open-air runs to which hens have access is mainly covered with vegetation and not used for other purposes except for orchards, woodland and livestock grazing if the latter is authorised by the competent authorities,
- the open-air runs must at least satisfy the conditions specified in Article 4 of Directive 1999/74/EC whereby the maximum stocking density is not greater than 2500 hens per hectare of ground available to the hens or one hen per at all times and the runs are not extending beyond a radius of from the nearest pophole of the building; an extension of up to from the nearest pophole of the building is permissible provided that a sufficient number of shelters and drinking troughs within the meaning of that provision are evenly distributed throughout the whole open-air run with at least four shelters per hectare.
There are EU regulations about what free-range means for laying hens and broilers as indicated above. However, there are no EU regulations for free-range pork, so pigs could be indoors for some of their lives. In order to be classified as free-range, animals must have access to the outdoors for at least part of their lives.
United Kingdom
Pigs:Free-range pregnant sows are kept in groups and they are often provided with straw for bedding, rooting and chewing. Around 40% of UK sows are kept free-range outdoors and farrow in huts on their range.
Egg laying hens:
Cage-free egg production includes barn, free-range and organic systems. The UK is the largest free-range egg producer in the Europe. Free-range systems are the most popular of the non-cage alternatives, accounting for around 57% of all eggs, compared to 2% in barns and 2% organic. In free-range systems, hens are housed to a similar standard as the barn or aviary.
Free-range rearing of pullets:
Free range rearing of pullets for egg-laying is now being pioneered in the UK by various poultry rearing farms. In these systems, the pullets are allowed outside from as young as 4 weeks of age, rather than the conventional systems where the pullets are reared in barns and allowed out at 16 weeks of age
Meat chickens:
Free-range broilers are reared for meat and are allowed access to an outdoor range for at least 8 hours each day. RSPCA standards state that in order for chickens to be free range, there must not be more than 13 chickens per square meter. Free-range broiler systems use slower-growing breeds of chicken to improve welfare, meaning they reach slaughter weight at 16 weeks of age rather than 5–6 weeks of age in standard rearing systems.
Turkeys:
Free-range turkeys have continuous access to an outdoor range during the daytime. The range should be largely covered in vegetation and allow more space. Access to fresh air and daylight means better eye and respiratory health. The turkeys are able to exercise and exhibit natural behaviour resulting in stronger, healthier legs. Free-range systems often use slower-growing breeds of turkey.
Free range dairy:
Farms supplying milk under the free range dairy brand abide by the pasture promise, meaning the cows will have access to pasture land to graze for a minimum of 180 days and nights a year. There is evidence to suggest that milk from grass contains higher levels of fats such as omega-3 and conjugated linoleic acid. Additionally free range dairy is giving consumers more choice as to where their milk comes from. Free range dairy provides the consumer with reassurance that the milk they drink has come from cows with the freedom to roam and can graze in their natural habitat.