Everybody, from the First Lady of the United States on down, is talking about getting healthier, and there's been a lot of talk about eating natural foods. There are even grocery store chains dedicated to just that, but what exactly does it mean? The assumed definition is that these foods are minimally processed and contain no additives, such as color, sweetener, preservatives, etc. It's also assumed that products like natural pork, beef, and chicken come from animals that were not treated with hormones or antibiotics. Unfortunately, the term "natural foods" is not codified and enforced like the term "organic," so it may not mean what you think it means. How can you tell, particularly with meats, that what you're getting is what you're expecting?
The best place to start is with the labels on your food. You'll need to learn to read carefully to decipher what they're really saying. For example: "cage-free" doesn't necessarily mean "cruelty-free." While they may have more room to move around and engage in more natural chicken-like behavior, they still have their beaks partially burned off, and may still be living in extremely cramped conditions. The terms you should keep an eye out for are "free range" and "humanely raised." If you know a particular brand name, you can do some research on how they raise and process their livestock online before you even go to the store. Of course, if you have a smartphone, you can do some quick research while you're in the store as well.
You should also keep an eye out for messages about what they feed the animals. Plenty of companies can claim that they don't use antibiotics, hormones, or steroids, but you want to be sure that you only by foods that say the animals were fed an all-vegetarian diet with no animal by-products. Many companies feed their animals diets containing meat and bone meal from other animals. This is what resulted in the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, which was transferred to humans who ate the meat of those cows, killing 166 people in the United Kingdom in 2009.
So now you know that not every brand that claims to be natural pork, beef, or chicken truly sells what you're expecting. Do your body and conscience a favor and read food labels carefully. Support businesses that care about the health of their animals as well as the health of their customers.