What Stream B asks
Does the listing identify the species the producer raises?
What you’ll usually find in a directory listing
Universally available. Every directory profile names the species — it’s the primary search facet on most directory sites. State directories filter by species at the search-form level (cattle, hogs, broilers, layers, lamb, goat; for seafood: salmon, oyster, catfish, trout, etc.). Producers self-classify into those buckets when they sign up. This is one of the few categories where directory listings outperform retail labels: a label says “beef” or “pork” by regulation, but a directory listing typically says “Black Angus beef from a 200-head cow-calf operation in Madison County.”
Three-step spine for Species on a directory listing
Required basics — what the directory itself surfaces. Every directory profile has at least one species tag. If the producer sells multiple species, all of them are usually listed. The producer is searchable by species on the directory’s search page.
Verified programs — what a third-party seal proves. Species-specific certifications (Animal Welfare Approved is species-aware; Certified Humane is species-aware; American Grassfed is by definition cattle, sheep, goat, or bison) confirm the species when the producer claims the seal. A “Certified Grassfed by AGW for beef cattle” claim, verified against the AGW roster, gives Species a third-party-certified ceiling.
Unverified marketing — what the producer says about themselves. Phrases like “ranch” or “homestead” without a specific species, or “we raise a few different things” without enumeration, sit at Partial. Stream B records what’s been disclosed and notes the gap.
Stream A vs. Stream B for this category
A retail label discloses species by regulation but rarely says more. A directory listing discloses species enthusiastically and usually adds the breed, the farm size, and the management style alongside it. This is one of the cleanest wins for Stream B: the question is answered better here, with more context, than on any package label.
There’s no current Stream A LEARN page on Species — it’s the most universally disclosed category and hasn’t required a consumer explainer.
Verification ceiling callout
Stream B can score Species up to: Third-party-certified, when an AWA, Certified Humane, AGA, or other species-aware seal is verified in the certifier’s public roster. Otherwise, Producer-attested.
See the Stream B methodology for the full rubric and the four verification-ceiling tiers.
Sources
- 9 CFR Part 317 (FSIS labeling regulations, generic species nomenclature for meat).
- 21 CFR Part 101 (FDA food labeling, including seafood species declarations).
- A Greener World standards — Animal Welfare Approved, Certified Grassfed (species-specific scope).
- Certified Humane standards — Humane Farm Animal Care (species-specific scope).
- American Grassfed Association — producer member directory, organized by species.
Last reviewed: May 2026