Product Labeling, Certification or Regulation

New Product Tests Spare the Animals

Carol L. Glasser — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 08:45:00 -0700

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a toxicity test for Botox developed by the company Allergan Inc. that does not use animals. Researchers have developed a toxicity test that utilizes nerve cells in a petri dish to replace the Lethal Dose 50% test that was previously used to test every batch of Botox the company made.

New Humane Trends Study and Website Released Today

Carol L. Glasser — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 10:45:00 -0700

Today we are launching our new Humane Trends report and the accompanying website, www.HumaneTrends.com. Put simply, Humane Trends is a barometer of the status of animal protection in the United States. The study brings together a collection of 25 diverse indicators to assess the status and progress of animal well-being, providing a comprehensive view of animal use and abuse in the United States to help inform animal advocates as well as policymakers and the public.

The Animal Tracker (Wave 4 - March 2011)

HRC Admin — Mon, 02 May 2011 09:43:18 -0700

This report summarizes results from Wave 4 of the Animal Tracker annual survey of U.S. adults regarding their attitudes and behavior toward animals. In summary, the results continue to show strong support for humane education and many other advocacy tactics. However, support for all tactics is lower than it was in 2008 and there appear to be fewer people engaging in animal-friendly behaviors, perhaps in part due to the economic downturn.

On Mandatory Labeling of Animal Welfare Attributes

Kmunsell — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 09:21:17 -0700

This article examines U.S. consumer support for the mandatory labeling of animal welfare information on food products, and also suggests an economic framework for use in considering such policies.

Willingness to Pay for Other Species' Well-Being

Kmunsell — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 09:38:10 -0700

This study measures consumers' incremental willingness to pay for "free range," "humanely-raised," and "conventionally-raised" poultry and finds that the premium consumers are willing to pay for humanely-raised products is inversely related to household size and the consumer's self-rating of his or her own ideological conservatism. In addition, willingness to pay varies directly with level of education and extent of concern with antibiotics, growth hormones and genetic engineering. Likewise, willingness to pay also varies directly with the extent to which the consumer believes that humanely raised products are healthier for humans, and with the extent to which the consumer believes that such humane standards will actually improve the well-being of these animals.

"Local" Meat Isn't so Local in the UK

Kmunsell — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 10:25:35 -0800

Authorities have discovered frequent cases of improperly labeled "local" food products, including meat and dairy, within the United Kingdom.

Year Four of HRC's Animal Tracker Launching Soon

HRC Admin — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 14:24:18 -0800

We're getting ready to launch year four of HRC's Animal Tracker annual survey of the public opinion and behavior of adults in the U.S. This year's survey, which will field in March, addresses specific behaviors that people change (or not) due to their concern for animals, perceived importance of humane education, and support for various advocacy tactics. We asked the exact same questions in 2008 and will be able to analyze changes over time. When the results are available in April, we’ll also refresh the Animal Tracker graphing tool that we launched in 2010.

HumaneSpot.org's Most Popular (and Important) Items of 2010

Che Green — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 22:47:05 -0800

2010 was the biggest year yet for HumaneSpot.org, with more users and more research content to help advocates help animals. The website is the Humane Research Council's primary means of sharing new research and we're excited to see that so many of you are making use of HumaneSpot.org and finding it valuable in your work for animals!

'Humane' Food Sparks Excitement, Labeling Controversy

Kmunsell — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 09:38:02 -0800

Increasing consumer demand for higher animal welfare products has set off a controversy over labeling standards for meat and eggs, resulting in charges that some producers may misrepresent their products and practices. Supermarket chains Whole Foods, Supervalu, and Safeway have pledged to inform shoppers with new labels and in-store signs.

Dutch Vote "Barn Eggs" Most Misleading

Kmunsell — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:21:30 -0800

According to an informal web survey conducted by Dutch animal welfare group, Wakker Dier, consumers in The Netherlands consider the term "barn eggs" to be the most misleading label on food packaging in the country.