With Thanksgiving fast upon us, the subject of poultry—specifically turkey—has been top of mind for many.

Serious slow food proponents know that the best option for our health, the planet, great flavor, and the birds themselves, is to steer clear of factory farming and buy your Thanksgiving bird from a local producer—preferably from a farm whose birds are pasture-raised, foraging on grass that isn’t treated with chemicals, and given supplemental feed that is certified organic.

That’s the gold standard, and, yes, poultry produced in this way is higher in price. Much less costly are the brands you can find in markets that are labeled “organic.” But, while these may seem like a reasonable money-saving choice, The Cornucopia Institute, which works as a watchdog of the organic industry, says: “Buyer beware.”

Cornucopia has created an eyebrow-raising “Who Owns Organic Poultry” info graphic, which shows that a handful of massive agribusiness companies, such as Perdue, Tyson, and Hormel, own many of the organic poultry brands out there. And, in many cases, their standards are quite low. According to a handy “Organic Poultry Scorecard” compiled by Cornucopia, more than 30 of the poultry brands labeled “organic” received a paltry score of “1” in a rating scale of 1-5. While better than conventional poultry, some brands, according to Cornucopia, were even suspected of sourcing from what the organization would describe as “factory farms.” Among the organic poultry brands receiving the lowest score were Nature’s Promise, Costco, Whole Foods 365 Organic, and Trader Joe’s.

Among the small number of  brands garnering a score of 5 (“top-rated”) was Hershberger Heritage Farm, in nearby Sellersville. Among the widely available brands receiving a 4 rating (“excellent”) were Wegman’s and Bell & Evans, and receiving a score of 3 (“very good”) were Applegate Farms and Organic Prairie. (For ratings for many more brands, see the scorecard.)

Interested in finding out more about the standards for assessing high quality organic poultry? Check out Cornucopia’s excellent “Do-it-yourself Guide to Choosing the Best Chicken and Turkey.”

—Eils Lotozo