CHARLOTTE — There’s a new word popping up on everything from cereal and eggs to dairy and meat: “regenerative.” It may sound like a guarantee that your food was produced in a way that improves the land, but Consumer Reports says that’s not necessarily the case — even when the product comes with a higher price tag.
Farmer Grant Breitkreutz says the rich soil on his Stoney Creek Farm is evidence that certain farming practices can rebuild the land rather than deplete it. He says soil on the farm that traditionally would have been expected to take hundreds or even thousands of years to develop has been built up significantly over the past 15 years.
The approach is often called regenerative agriculture, and the term is showing up more frequently in government discussions and on food packaging from major brands.
Consumer Reports science reporter Kevin Loria says shoppers need to know that “regenerative” on a food label doesn’t necessarily guarantee anything because there is no legal definition or government regulatory standard for the term.
That can make it difficult to separate meaningful claims from greenwashing. So what should shoppers look for instead?
Consumer Reports says the USDA Organic label is a good place to start because it is backed by federal standards. Shoppers can also look for certifications that build on organic standards, including Regenerative Organic Certified and the Real Organic Project.
Other certifications indicate that regenerative practices were used to produce food, even though they don’t build specifically on USDA Organic standards. Those include Demeter Biodynamic, Certified Regenerative by A Greener World, and the Savory Institute’s Land to Market seal.
Whenever possible, Consumer Reports also recommends learning more about who produces your food. Buying directly from a farm or from a retailer that vets its growers can give you more information about the farming practices behind a product.
Be cautious about relying on a single claim such as “no-till.” Consumer Reports points to a USDA analysis that found about one-third of pesticide use in the U.S. occurs on no-till and minimum-till corn and soybean crops.
The bottom line: a “regenerative” claim may sound environmentally friendly, but the word alone doesn’t tell you how the food was produced. Looking for meaningful certifications and knowing more about the farm behind your food can help you decide which claims are worth paying for.
Read more about regenerative farming here.