A number of you are probably familiar with our vacuum sealed packages with a very plain looking butcher sticker on them. It conveys little to no information about the animals that are raised for the co-op which might mislead customers to think that there's nothing separating LFFC meats and any other local or conventional meats.
This, fortunately, couldn't be farther from the truth.
The plain labels on our meats are a by-product of bureaucratic hold ups and some slow moving processes within the food industry at large, but nearly endemic to the small farmers of the world. It's a situation that we always hope to rectify, but it's a long and slow process.
It's what's not on the labels that matters most: our standards.
Lancaster Farm Fresh Co-op, and the farmers that it represents, are an anomaly in this modernized world, the unifying goal is to produce high quality products that are ecologically responsible, locally centered, sustainable, and, most importantly, ethically sound. In a market saturated by profit-driven consequences, there's a steady demand on well-intentioned farmers to slip under the heavy hand of market demands. While we strive to keep our pricing affordable, we don't cut corners to make sales.
The meats and poultry that are offered by LFFC are based in a pasture-driven philosophy. Our animals are always pastured and all efforts push towards maintaining each animals natural behaviors. We don't want to just offer up an ideal image, we strive for the ideal.
We use the following standards as a starting point and constantly build with the best ecological and humane interests in mind;
*All animals shall be on pasture.
*The pasture will provide the highest possible percentage of each animal's diet.
*All efforts must be towards enriching the pasture with a diversified growth and maintaining pasture health. This means cycling pastures, encouraging the growth of native plants, and offering as much acreage for pasture as possible.
*Absoluetly no GMO feed. No hormones, no antibiotics. Sick or injured animals should be treated by natural methods and practices. If those fail, animals should be treated humanely and pulled from production.
*Absolutely no debeaking of poultry. No physical alternations to inhibit an animal's natural behavior. No docking of tails or ears. Any dehorning or castration must be done immediately and no later than when an animal is older than 6 weeks. Dehorning and castration must be done humanely, quickly, and dehorning should be done without cutting.
*Absolutely no confinement of animals. If an animal must be quarantined for health reasons, it can be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
*When animals are in-doors, they shall have ample space, light, and access to water.
*LFFC seeks to transform conventional farming practices and encourages all farmers to attain the highest humane and/or organic standards for all animals, whether sold through the co-op or not.
*Animals must always be treated humanely. Period.
To put it simply, the meat we sell is the meat that we would eat. Raised to the highest standards, ecologically sound, local, and humane. It's a difference that you can taste.
So don't be fooled by the often lacking information on our pricelist or the wanting labels on our meats. The purpose of this blog is to fill in those blanks and open our doors, so to speak.
If you have questions, please ask them.
Thanks,
LFFC Meats and Poultry
