Humane Farm Animal Care was established to promote and administer its certification and labeling program, Certified Humane Raised & Handled, for meat

Meat

Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...

, dairy

Dairy

A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...

, eggs

Egg (food)

Eggs are laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and have probably been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird and reptile eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen , and vitellus , contained within various thin membranes...

, and poultry

Poultry

Poultry are domesticated birds kept by humans for the purpose of producing eggs, meat, and/or feathers. These most typically are members of the superorder Galloanserae , especially the order Galliformes and the family Anatidae , commonly known as "waterfowl"...

 raised under its animal care standards. It is a non-profit organization

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

  governed by a Board of Directors

Board of directors

A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...

 and retains a Scientific Committee which includes scientist

Scientist

A scientist in a broad sense is one engaging in a systematic activity to acquire knowledge. In a more restricted sense, a scientist is an individual who uses the scientific method. The person may be an expert in one or more areas of science. This article focuses on the more restricted use of the word...

s and veterinarians. The organization is endorsed by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing cruelty towards animals...

 and the Humane Society of the United States

Humane Society of the United States

The Humane Society of the United States , based in Washington, D.C., is the largest animal advocacy organization in the world. In 2009, HSUS reported assets of over US$160 million....

.

History

Both the organization and the Certified Humane Raised & Handled program were founded in 2003 by Adele Douglass.
In the late 1990s Douglass had traveled to England to study "Freedom Food," a single brand of farm products which claimed to derive from "humanely raised" animals.

Mission

Humane Farm Animal Care's mission is "to improve the welfare of farm animals by providing viable, credible, duly monitored standards for humane food production and ensuring consumers that certified products meet these standards."

"Certified Humane Raised and Handled" Program

The certification program requires the inspection of aspects of production, including raising of live animals, slaughter, and the processing/packaging of animal products, to ensure the authenticity of the Certified Humane Raised & Handled label. It publishes an annual Policy Manual which describes its certification program requirements and specifications. The program has obtained International Organization for Standardization

International Organization for Standardization

The International Organization for Standardization , widely known as ISO, is an international standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Founded on February 23, 1947, the organization promulgates worldwide proprietary, industrial and commercial...

, ISO Guide 65 certification and is the only humane organization in the US to have received this designation.