Free Range Farmer's Association Victoria - Member is one of the declarations under the Ekko Score No Exploitation Standard.
Free Range Farmers Association Victoria members must be able to demonstrate to the independent third party inspector that they practice genuine extensive Free Range Poultry farming to the highest standards of animal welfare, land sustainability and food integrity. Members do not debeak or beak trim egg laying hens or confine them in cages, barns or aviaries.
The free range system incorporates natural poultry keeping methods. It is land based to ensure that the hens are happy, healthy and free and limited stocking density per hectare is to provide both land and environmental sustainability. Free Range Farmers Association Victoria have a stocking density limit of 750 hens per hectare, half the maximum set by the Model Code. You can get more information on this Certification on the Free Range Farmer's Association Victoria Website.
These are the claimable declarations & certifications under the Societal Standard: Multi Sector & Business. Please note that different certifications and declarations may be relevant to each category.
Yes, where the impact of the claim is similar. This is how it works.
IMPORTANTLY, SELF DECLARATIONS ARE GOVERNED BY CONSUMER LAW. IT IS AGAINST THE LAW FOR BUSINESSES TO MAKE FALSE CLAIMS (INCLUDING IMPLIED CLAIMS IN A CONTEXT LIKE EKKO SCORE).
EVEN IF A PRODUCT HAS A FORMAL CERTIFICATION, THAT CERTIFICATION DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ENTIRE INTEGRITY OF THE PRODUCT'S MAKE UP.
An example might be a Handmade, Australian, Certified Organic chocolate that contains Palm Oil. Under Ekko Score, this product would claim Certified Organic and would self declare: Zero Waste Production and Australian made, but could not claim the No Palm Oil declaration. This would mean a lower score under the No Exploitation Standard, making the inclusion of Palm Oil clear to potential consumers, without detracting from its other assets.
No product is perfect, but some products are definitely better than others. Ekko Score allows you to make the best decision you can, or to put it another way, the least worst decision. And to make that decision with the confidence of not being green washed. Find out more about how Ekko Score works.