SALISBURY, Maryland (PRNewswire) — Perdue Farms Incorporated announced today that it is introducing PERDUE@ fresh, all natural chicken products with the premier third-party stamp of approval, the USDA Process Verified Seal, in North Carolina. Perdue is the first and only chicken company to receive this seal of verification for its practices and be allowed to make the claim on its product packaging.
"In our pursuit to provide families the highest quality product, Perdue has made a commitment to undergo the rigorous process to develop the USDA Process Verified Programs," says Jim Perdue, Chairman of Perdue. "We know that today, Americans don't just care about their own diet; they also care about the diet of the foods they eat. The seal verifies our chickens are fed an all vegetarian diet, with no animal by-products. It also verifies they are raised cage free and humanely raised."
"We know that our consumers are looking for an added level of assurance in the poultry products that they purchase," Perdue adds. "The USDA is a trusted resource for consumers and we believe the USDA Process Verified seal will make it easier for consumers to choose chicken products they can feel good about feeding their families. We're proud to be the first and only chicken company to provide this added level of assurance to our consumers."
The USDA Process Verified Seal indicates that USDA has audited the company's processes behind claims made on the product's packaging. "We are pleased to allow Perdue to use the USDA Process Verified Program Seal in recognition of their adherence to their vegetarian diet and humanely raised process points," says Charles Johnson, Poultry Programs Grading Branch Chief of USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). "AMS has reviewed and audited Perdue's production processes and determined that they comply with the requirements of the USDA Process Verified Program and the criteria outlined in their approved quality management systems."
Products carrying the Humanely Raised claim are verified to come from birds raised in accordance with the Perdue Farms Poultry Welfare Program, which ensures humane treatment of chickens from hatching through processing. The program is based on the poultry welfare guidelines of the National Chicken Council and Perdue's own best practices to create scientifically sound, industry-leading standards for the humane treatment of poultry. Perdue is the only chicken company with third-party audits by the USDA to verify a humanely raised claim.
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