The Soil-to-Table Field Guideby moss & marrow

The Soil-to-Table Field Guide Inclusion Criteria

A farm, producer or shop is listed when at least one product it sells meets the criteria for that product. Products from the producer's own animals that don't meet the criteria, or that we haven't checked, are named on the listing with the reason. Resold products with no traceable source aren't shown.

criteria version 27 september 2026 · each listing shows the month we checked it

The criteria in brief

Meat, milk and eggs come from the producer's own animals, or from named farms, and the animals graze or have outdoor access. Certified organic and Demeter farms qualify on their certificate.
Eggs are code 0 (organic) or code 1 (free range).
Fruit, vegetables, herbs and mushrooms are grown by the producer without synthetic pesticides or fertiliser (certified or stated by the grower) and sold direct. Bread is sourdough, or made with organic or stone-ground flour.
Organic claims are checked in the EU organic register (SKAL) and Demeter's register.
Each product is assessed separately, and for meat, milk and eggs each animal species.
Organic shops and markets are assessed as a whole and listed in their own categories.

Criteria per product

Each product has its own criteria. For meat, milk and eggs we check each animal species separately, and only the producer's own animals, or named source farms, qualify.

The criteria decide who is on the map. On the map you can then filter further: under each product are the filters that apply to it, such as certified organic or 100% grass-fed. The buying filters (open now, self-service, delivers, pickup points) work for every product. Zero waste appears for any product where a listing sells without packaging.

Meat

EU law bans growth hormones and routine antibiotics for all farm animals, so no farm here uses them.

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Beef, lamb, goat meat

Certified organicorDemeterorBeter Leven 2 or 3 stars (beef)orGrazes outdoors in the grazing season

Grazing animals must also eat mainly grass and forage.

Kept indoors all yearorNo information on how the animals are kept

Pork, poultry (chicken, turkey, duck)

Certified organicorDemeterorBeter Leven 3 starsorBeter Leven 2 stars (chicken only)orOutdoor access: free range, woodland or pasture

Grain feed is allowed.

Indoor systemsorBeter Leven 1 starorBeter Leven 2 stars for pork (covered run only)

Veal

Certified organicorDemeterorBeter Leven 3 starsorOutdoor access

Kept indoorsorBeter Leven 2 stars (paved run only)

Bones, organ meats, lard, tallow, bone broth

From animals that meet the meat criteria

Bones and organ meats are named separately, for example marrow bones, liver, tongue.

From animals below the meat criteriaorOrigin unknown

Wild game

Shot in the NetherlandsandThe seller states where it was shot

Farmed deer and wild boar are assessed as meat.

ImportedorNo stated origin

Butchers

Sells certified organic meatorNames its source farms, and those farms meet the meat criteria

No named source farmsorA wholesaler named as the source

then filter by

Grazing / outdoors100% grass-fedOrganic or own-grown feedNo synthetic sprays or fertiliser on their landOrganic methodsCertified organicBiodynamicHeritage breedsRegenerativeBones & organ meatsGoes the extra mile

Dairy

EU law bans growth hormones and routine antibiotics for all farm animals, so no farm here uses them.

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Milk, butter, cream, yoghurt

Certified organicorDemeterorGrazing: Weidemelk or a specific statement from the farm

Raw, low-pasteurised and pasteurised milk all qualify.

Animals kept indoors all year

Farm cheese

Made from the farm's own milkandThe milk meets the milk criteria

Boerenkaas is made on the farm from raw milk. Raw milk alone doesn't qualify.

Cheese bought in from elsewhere

Farm ice cream

Made from milk that meets the milk criteria

Always labelled as ice cream.

Made from milk below the milk criteria

then filter by

Raw milkA2 milk (incl. goat & sheep)Grazing / outdoors100% grass-fedOrganic or own-grown feedNo synthetic sprays or fertiliser on their landOrganic methodsCertified organicBiodynamicHeritage breedsGoes the extra mile

Eggs

EU law bans growth hormones and routine antibiotics for all farm animals, so no farm here uses them.

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Eggs

Code 0: organicorCode 1: free range (vrije uitloop)

Codes 0 and 1 are at least the equivalent of Beter Leven 2 stars for laying hens.

Code 2: barn (scharrel)orCode 3: cages

then filter by

Organic or own-grown feedNo synthetic sprays or fertiliser on their landOrganic methodsCertified organicBiodynamicHeritage breedsGoes the extra mile

Honey

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Honey

Sold by the beekeeper who keeps the bees

Beekeeping supply shopsorAssociations

then filter by

Organic methodsGoes the extra mile

Fruit and vegetables

No genetically modified crops are grown in the Netherlands: the only GM crop allowed to be grown in the EU is one maize variety, grown in Spain and Portugal.

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Vegetables, fruit, herbs, mushrooms

Certified organicorDemeterorOrganic methods: the grower states it uses no synthetic pesticides or fertiliser

Grown by the producer and sold direct: farm shop, stall, pick-your-own, CSA or market stall. Growers who don't say either way are asked, and listed once they confirm.

Integrated or reduced sprayingorPlanetProoforConventional growingorResold produceorSold only to shops and wholesalers

then filter by

Certified organicBiodynamicRegenerativeGoes the extra mile

Organic methods isn't a filter here: every grower listed already meets it.

Bread, flour and pantry

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Bread

Sourdough (desem) without added baker's yeastorOrganic flourorStone-ground flour

As stated by the bakery.

Other bakeries, including industrial chains

Flour and grain

A working mill selling its own stone-ground flourorA farm selling its own grain

Mills without a shop

Pantry: oils, nuts, seeds

Pressed or grown by the producerorFrom named local farms

Resold, no named source

then filter by

Organic methodsCertified organicBiodynamicRegenerativeGoes the extra mile

Ferments

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

Ferments, kombucha, kefir

Made by a small producerandSold direct or at markets

CafésorCaterersorWorkshops

then filter by

Organic methodsCertified organicGoes the extra mile

CSAs and community farms

Product

Listed when

Not listed when

CSAs, community farms, food forests

Food for membersorFood for the public

Includes Herenboeren farms and food co-ops that buy direct from farms.

Advisory bodies and research projects without food for the public

then filter by

Organic methodsCertified organicBiodynamicRegenerativeGoes the extra mile

Organic status

There are three organic filters, from broadest to strictest. Each one includes every listing in the filters below it.

Organic methods: Organic in everything except the certificate. For crops: the producer states that it uses no synthetic pesticides or synthetic fertiliser. For meat, milk and eggs, also: the animals get organic, GM-free or home-grown feed, or only grass. Certified organic producers are included too. On the listing of an uncertified producer this reads "Organic methods: no synthetic pesticides or fertiliser, not certified", with their own statement quoted. Biologisch and "organic" are protected terms under EU Regulation 2018/848, so an uncertified producer is never called organic without "methods" and "not certified".
No synthetic sprays or fertiliser on their land: For meat, milk and eggs: the farm states it uses no synthetic pesticides or fertiliser on its land, but we haven't confirmed its feed. Certified organic farms are included.
Certified organic: Official definition (EU Regulation 2018/848): no synthetic pesticides or fertilisers and no GMOs; animals get organic feed and outdoor access; farms are checked by an inspection body. An issued certificate in the EU organic operator register (SKAL, code NL-BIO-01), matched on the producer's street address. We check the register for every organic claim; the register decides when it disagrees with a website. Shop branches are covered by their head office's certificate. EKO and Demeter are included in certified organic.
Biodynamic: Official definition (Demeter International standard): certified organic, plus the whole farm converted, at least half the animal feed grown on the farm, biodynamic compost and field preparations, and no dehorning of cattle. Listed in Demeter's operator register. A certificate applies only to the business named on it.
Not organic: PlanetProof is not included in any organic filter.

Animal feed

Feed isn't part of the criteria for meat, milk and eggs; grazing and outdoor access are. Two filters show which farms tell us more:

100% grass-fed: Cattle, sheep and goats eat only grass: pasture in the grazing season, hay and silage in winter, with no grain or soy. For meat this includes the last months before slaughter (grass-finished). Only where the farm states it.
Organic or own-grown feed: The farm states its animals get organic, GM-free or home-grown feed, or only grass, and says nothing about bought-in conventional feed.

Most farms don't publish what they feed. We ask them, and add it when they tell us.

Beter Leven

Beter Leven (1 to 3 stars) is the animal welfare label of the Dierenbescherming. It isn't a filter: most farms that sell direct don't have it. Where a producer has the label, the listing shows the stars per animal, checked in the Beter Leven register.

Eggs in the guide are at least the equivalent of Beter Leven 2 stars for laying hens: the hens have an outdoor run.
3 stars qualifies for every animal. 2 stars qualifies for laying hens, chicken, beef and dairy, and not for pork or veal. 1 star never qualifies.
For beef and dairy we check grazing, not the number of days outside that Beter Leven 2 stars requires (180 for beef, 150 for dairy), so we don't claim a star level for them.

Raw milk and A2 milk

Raw milk: Marked only when the producer states that the milk is raw (rauwe melk). A milk tap (melktap) can sell raw, low-pasteurised or pasteurised milk.
A2 milk: Cow's milk is marked A2 only when the producer states that the herd is A2; we don't infer it from breed. Goat and sheep milk are marked A2 because they contain no A1 beta-casein. The listing names the animal.

Labels on a listing

An example listing, with what each part means.

Checked: at least one product meets the criteria.
Goes the extra mile: see below.
Type and town.
Products that meet the criteria, with the animal named.
Own products we haven't verified yet, or from animals kept indoors. Left out of filters.
How the food is produced: grazing, organic status, extra-mile practices.
Open now, from published opening hours.

Goes the extra mile

Practices beyond the criteria. A producer gets the solid mark when we find evidence of at least one of these, in its own words or in a register:

Demeter certified (biodynamic) Heritage breeds Calves stay with their mothers Regenerative farming No ploughing Cover crops Nature-inclusive farming Closed-loop farming Food forest Agroforestry Permaculture

The listing names which practice it is, with the source.

Other labels

They also make: Non-food products such as salves, candles or wool. Not assessed.
Zero waste: The producer or shop states on its own website that it sells without packaging, lets you bring your own jars, bottles, bags or containers (for example at a milk tap), or uses returnable deposit bottles. Refill bottles sold at a milk tap and chain-wide statements such as "as little packaging as possible" don't count.

Shops and markets

Organic shops and markets are assessed as a whole and listed only under Organic shops or Markets, with no grazing, welfare or raw milk labels. Online farm platforms follow the same rule and appear under "Delivered to your door". Food co-ops are listed with CSAs.

Organic shops: independent natuurvoedingswinkels and organic chains such as Odin and Ekoplaza.
Markets: farmers' markets (boerenmarkt, streekmarkt, organic markets) and weekly markets with food stalls.

What we don't list

Supermarkets, specialist cheese shops and delicatessens.
Restaurants, cafés and caterers, unless they also run a farm shop.
Wholesalers, associations, schools and supply shops.
Wine and other alcohol.
Honesty stalls and home sales whose location the owner hasn't published. We ask the owner first.
Fish, until we have set criteria for it.
Farms, producers and shops that have closed permanently.

Why these criteria

The criteria follow four rules: animal and plant products are judged on different things, farms that use organic methods are included without certification, organic claims are checked in the register, and each product is assessed on its own.

Animal products and plant products

Synthetic pesticides matter most for plants: they are sprayed on the crop you eat. So fruit and vegetables are judged on how the land is farmed. For meat, milk and eggs, how the animals are kept matters more: whether they graze or have outdoor access, and whose animals they are. That shapes the animals' welfare and the food itself; milk and beef from grazing animals contain more omega-3 fatty acids (Średnicka-Tober et al. 2016, Daley et al. 2010).

So a farm with grazing cattle is listed for its beef whether or not it is certified organic. The Organic methods filter shows which of these farms also farm their land without synthetic pesticides or fertiliser.

Farms without organic certification

We include farms that use organic methods but aren't certified, because the criteria are about how the food is produced. A certificate is one way to show that; a farm's own clear statement, quoted on its listing, is another. Of the 222 producers listed now, 66 are certified organic and 37 use organic methods without certification.

Certification means registering with SKAL, an annual inspection at €136 an hour and annual contributions of €1,236 in 2026. Fully organic farms with a turnover under €80,000 can ask to be exempted from the contributions (SKAL tariffs 2026).

Register checks

We have looked up 459 farms, producers and shops in the EU organic register. Some certified farms don't mention their certificate on their website, and some websites use biologisch without one.

Each product separately

One farm shop can sell beef from its own grazing cattle next to cheese bought in from elsewhere. The beef qualifies. Bought-in cheese with no traceable source isn't shown.

What we accept as evidence

We check each listing from published sources, or ask the producer when those are missing.

Accepted: A specific statement on the producer's own website, webshop, social media or packaging (for example "de koeien lopen van april tot november buiten"). An entry in the EU organic operator register (TRACES, where SKAL certificates are published) or in Demeter's operator register. Regional or farming press about that producer.
Leads only: Directories and listing sites. We use them to find producers, then confirm from one of the sources above.
Not accepted: General words such as duurzaam, ambachtelijk or met liefde.
Not a criterion: Growth hormones and preventive antibiotics for groups of animals. Both are banned for all livestock in the EU (antibiotics: Regulation 2019/6, since January 2022), so every Dutch farm complies.
No evidence found: It is not listed. We contact the producer and list it if they confirm.

Corrections

Each listing shows the month we checked it and the source we used. If something has changed, such as opening hours, what is for sale or how the animals are kept, tell us and we will re-check it.