Pasture Raised Chicken, Free Range, and Organic: What’s the Difference?
Updated: Oct 12
How to Decode Chicken and Turkey Labels:
Grocery store meat cases filled with chicken can be confusing – how can you tell the differences between such similar-looking products? Pasture raised vs. organic vs. free range vs. natural – how do you evaluate how this chicken was raised? At Eat Pasture Raised, we help you find products from animals actually raised outdoors, in conditions that match the marketing.
Poultry labeling is primarily overseen by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). Some terms describe how a bird was raised, while others describe what it ate, the medication it used, or how the meat was processed. That means that while there’s often a lot of different terms and information on the package, it can be hard to understand whether the chicken ever went outside. When you understand which terms are meaningful and which aren't, you can better understand the origins of the food you're buying.
Here’s how to decode the labels on poultry at your local grocery store.
Pasture Raised Chicken and Turkey
Overview: Under current USDA guidance, poultry products labeled “Pasture Raised” must submit documentation to USDA substantiating how the animal was raised. USDA guidance says that producers should document that animals spent the majority of their lives on pasture, which it describes as land where the majority is rooted in vegetative cover (in plain English, that means plants!). To ensure that you’re buying chicken from animals raised outside, look for the following language and certifications:
Pasture Raised. Chicken, turkey and poultry products that say “Pasture Raised” on the product have had to submit documentation to the USDA supporting that the animal has lived outside, on pasture, for the majority of its life.
Certified Humane® + “Pasture Raised” Language. Look for the Certified Humane® certification combined with the words “Pasture Raised” on the packaging. The seal alone doesn't guarantee outdoor access — it's the combo of Certified Humane and Pasture Raised that matters. The Certified Humane® certification provides additional requirements and auditing of participating farms, in addition to the USDA pasture-raised review, to ensure that the animals are spending the majority of their lives outside.
G.A.P. Step 4 or above. G.A.P.® Step 4 or Step 5 provides additional requirements and auditing of participating farms, in addition to the USDA pasture-raised review, to ensure that the animals are spending the majority of their lives outside.
What this tells you: When you see the words “Pasture Raised”, or “Pasture Raised” combined with “Certified Humane” or “G.A.P.® Step 4” on a product, you can feel confident that you're buying chicken, turkey, or other poultry that spent the majority of its life outside, on pasture.
Free Range Chicken and Turkey
Overview: "Free Range" sounds a lot like "Pasture Raised," but there's an important difference. For products labeled ‘Free Range,’ the producer has demonstrated to the USDA that the birds had access to the outdoors. But the USDA does not set a universal minimum for how much outdoor space birds receive, they do not require that the outdoor area be pasture, or guarantee that the birds actually spend any time outside.
What this tells you: Free Range tells you that a bird had the opportunity to go outside, but it doesn't tell you how much time the bird actually spent outside, how much outdoor space was available, or whether that outdoor area was pasture. That's why we don't consider "Free Range" a meaningful standard for outdoor living. Look for Pasture Raised, instead.
USDA Organic Chicken and Turkey
Overview: The "Organic" label is regulated by the USDA and requires that chickens are fed 100% organic feed, are not given antibiotics, and have year-round access to the outdoors, with some restrictions allowed. However, the organic standard is primarily focused on feed and environmental practices – it doesn't set the same bar for outdoor space or time on pasture that the Pasture Raised standard does. Under new organic standards that are currently being phased in, broiler chickens must receive at least one square foot of outdoor space for every five pounds of live bird weight, at least 75% of the outdoor area must be soil, and that soil area must include appropriate vegetative cover. USDA has not established a specific outdoor stocking density for organic turkeys, although they must still have outdoor access. These standards provide more meaningful outdoor requirements than a Free Range claim without an Organic certification, but Organic does not require that birds spend the majority of their lives on pasture.
What this tells you: USDA Organic covers both feed and some living conditions, including outdoor access. New organic poultry standards are also phasing in more specific requirements for outdoor space, soil, and vegetation. But Organic does not require that chickens or turkeys spend the majority of their lives outdoors, or on pasture. If you want poultry from birds raised outdoors for meaningful periods of time, look for Pasture Raised instead.
Natural Chicken and Turkey
Overview: “Natural” sounds like it might describe how a chicken or turkey was raised, but it doesn’t. Under USDA rules, “Natural” refers to the meat itself: it means the product contains no artificial ingredients or added color and is only minimally processed. The claim says nothing about whether the bird had outdoor access, lived on pasture, or was raised under higher-welfare conditions.
What this tells you: Natural tells you about how the meat was processed, not how the animal lived. A chicken or turkey labeled “Natural” may have spent its entire life indoors. If you want poultry from birds raised outdoors, look for Pasture Raised instead.
Cage Free Chicken and Turkey
Overview: “Cage Free” is primarily an egg-labeling term, but you may also see it on packages of chicken or turkey meat. For poultry raised for meat, the claim is much less meaningful than for eggs: chickens and turkeys are generally not raised in cages in the first place. Instead, they are typically housed in barns where they can move around on the floor. A Cage Free claim therefore does not tell you whether the birds had any outdoor access at all.
What this tells you: Cage Free tells you very little about how a chicken or turkey was raised for meat. Because meat birds are generally not kept in cages anyway, the claim does not meaningfully distinguish higher-welfare or outdoor-raised poultry. If you want poultry from birds raised outdoors, look for Pasture Raised instead.
Other Common Chicken and Turkey Claims
Overview: Poultry packaging is full of claims that can sound like they describe how a chicken or turkey was raised, but many of them actually tell you something completely different.
Humanely Raised / Responsibly Raised. These phrases can sound reassuring, but unless they are backed by a specific independent certification with clear standards and/or the words “Pasture Raised”, they do not necessarily tell you whether birds were raised outdoors.
No Antibiotics Ever / Raised Without Antibiotics. These claims relate to antibiotic use, not housing. A bird raised without antibiotics can still spend its entire life indoors.
No Added Hormones. Federal regulations prohibit the use of hormones in raising poultry, so this claim does not distinguish one chicken or turkey product from another.
Vegetarian Fed. This tells you something about what the birds were fed, not where or how they lived. It does not indicate outdoor access.
Air Chilled. This describes how the poultry was cooled after slaughter rather than how the animal was raised.
What this tells you: These claims may provide useful information about other aspects of a poultry product, but none of them on their own tells you that the bird was raised outside. We recommend looking for Pasture Raised on the package.
Buying Better Chicken
Want to buy chicken that was actually raised outside? Look at our Shopping Guide for store-by-store recommendations.
Sources and Standards
This guide is based primarily on federal labeling regulations and guidance, along with the published standards of the animal-welfare certifications we recommend. Standards and regulations can change; this page was last reviewed in September 2026.
USDA background on commercial chicken and turkey production, including conventional floor- and litter-based housing systems.
USDA explanations of commonly used meat and poultry labeling claims, including Natural, No Antibiotics, and No Added Hormones.
Federal regulations governing living conditions for organic poultry, including outdoor access, stocking density, soil and vegetation requirements, and permitted temporary confinement.
USDA overview of updated Organic livestock and poultry requirements, including outdoor space, soil and vegetation standards and the timeline for implementation.
USDA guidance for substantiating animal-raising claims on meat and poultry, including Pasture Raised, Free Range, Cage Free, and other production claims.
Published G.A.P. welfare standards for chickens raised for meat, including outdoor-access and pasture requirements associated with Step 4 and higher.
USDA notice explaining its updated guidance for animal-raising and environment-related claims, including how claims such as Pasture Raised and Free Range should be substantiated.
Published Certified Humane standards for chickens, including requirements for Cage Free, Free Range, and Pasture Raised production systems and the additional standards that apply to Pasture Raised birds.
How we evaluate labels: We prioritize primary sources, including federal regulations and guidance and the published standards of independent certification programs. Our recommendations focus specifically on whether a label provides meaningful evidence that animals were raised outdoors.
Published: September 11, 2026
Last reviewed: September 2026
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