HERNDON, Va. — Humane Farm Animal Care has launched a new, interactive website that enables consumers to find out easily which retailers in their area carry HFAC's Humane Certified products, and which of the certified products a particular retailer carries.
The user-friendly website, which can be accessed at either certifiedhumane.org or humanefarmanimalcare.org, invites visitors to type in their ZIP code or their city and state to bring up a list of retailers in their area.
“This is bound to give more business to retailers because consumers are excited about being able to find the products they want near them,” said Adele Douglass, executive director and founder of HFAC.
“Consumers had asked where they could get products that are certified by us and they also wanted to know what products and what brands were available.”
A quick search for New York retailers who carry HFAC Certified Humane products brought up D'Agostino's, Morton Williams, Food Emporium and Fairway, among many others. Murray's Chicken, Smart Chicken and Nellie's Nest Eggs were the products seen listed most often.
The new HFAC website, unveiled just this month, has received a lot of positive attention, Douglass told SN.
“We've had overwhelmingly positive feedback from consumers. Zero negative.”
In addition to the directory showing where certified products can be found, there's a “Take Action” button on the website. A click on that button can download cards to give to retailers with comments or to ask them to carry certified humane products.
There is also a farm/ranch/business section on the website that outlines to suppliers the benefits of becoming certified.
The site includes a video about HFAC and a blog by Douglass. Right now, her blog is a welcome-to-the-website message, but she said she'll use the blog in the future to comment on news or events regarding HFAC happenings and on humane farm animal treatment in general.
HFAC is a non-profit certification organization improving the lives of farm animals in food production. The Certified Humane designation assures consumers that meat, poultry, egg or dairy products they purchase have been produced according to HFAC's precise standards for humane farm animal treatment. HFAC's standards dictate that animals must receive a nutritious diet without antibiotics or hormones and must be raised with shelter, resting areas and space sufficient to support natural behavior. Since the HFAC program was unveiled in May 2003, more than 60 companies, representing hundreds of farms and millions of farm animals have been certified.