Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what definition her Department uses of the term grass-fed; and what guidance her Department issues to farmers on the use of the term grass-fed when marketing meat.

There is no legal definition of “grass-fed“ in relation to livestock rearing practice, although there is a general obligation in food labelling and consumer law that food labelling should not mislead the consumer and this obligation remains in place. Previous voluntary labelling guidance defined grass-fed as “fed primarily on grass in the field”.

Defra is currently working on a range of proposals to inform discussions about the shape of a future agriculture policy and we want to ensure that the future regulatory framework continues to provide consumers with confidence in the food that they are buying, and continues to secure our world-leading reputation for high quality and standards.