"Local" simply refers to food that is grown or raised within a state or region (or within a 100-mile or 250-mile radius of the point of sale). "Local" offers no information about how animals were raised. While it makes a lot of sense to buy food from local farmers, dig a little deeper and never assume that local equals humane. A local chicken farm could house birds in cramped barns. A local pork farm might never let pigs outside.