The “Halo Effect” – Label Confusion & Dishonesty

Commodity producers have figured out there’s money to be made in the natural and organic markets. Price used to drive most food purchasing decisions, but today there’s a greater demand for premium, natural and organic items. Commodity producers are responding by either acquiring smaller, niche businesses that specialize in these areas or transitioning a small portion of their business to a specialized line.

All broiler chickens are “cage free”, and Federal Regulations prohibit artificial hormones in poultry.

Then they spend big bucks promoting that small portion of business, leading consumers to believe that all their products are produced with the same level of care. That’s not the case, and, often, even their “specialized” lines aren’t all that special. There’s even a name for this – the “halo effect” – when one good claim makes the consumer think the whole company is good.

The term “All Natural” has been muddied.

The terms “natural” and “organic” have been muddied so much that Bell & Evans now uses “true natural” and “true organic” to give credit to our higher standards and practices. We don’t cut corners to use these labels – in fact, our standards are higher than the USDA-mandated standards. We’ve always been a premium poultry producer, having pioneered natural chicken and innovating every step of the way to lead the natural and organic chicken movements. We don’t raise commodity chickens. Period. We even created The 100% Rule so our customers know that ALL our chickens are raised and processed humanely and under the highest set of standards. No guesswork here!

We don’t compromise on our standards and you shouldn’t compromise on quality. Know what you’re buying and trust in 100%!