What is the difference, if any, between all natural, free-range, and organic chicken?
All natural chicken is minimally processed and has no artificial ingredients or preservatives added. Minimally processed means that the fresh chicken is simply cleaned and made ready to cook, with as little handling as necessary to make it consumer-ready. Gold Kist Farms chickens are fed natural ingredients approved for use by the USDA and formulated into feeds produced to exact standards in our own feed mills. To carry the label “free-range” means only that the chickens are allowed access to the outdoors if they choose. However, chickens generally stay close to food and water, which are inside the poultry house. USDA has developed strict standards for poultry labeled “organic.” Organic chicken must be raised in qualifying conditions from the second day of life; can be vaccinated but not medicated; must be given feed from organic ingredients; and has been given suitable access to the outdoors. Organic is not a statement about food safety, nor is it a value judgment about nutrition or q
