This Tuesday (June 15) we will be processing our first batch of chickens. We have about 40 cornish cross chickens that are old enough to be processed (about 8 weeks). Remember, these are the fast growing chickens, bred to eat. We have a licensed portable chicken processor coming right out to the land to process them on site. They will be packaged on site also. Talk about fresh! Pickup will be all day Wednesday at our house. They will be priced at $3.95 per pound. Most will probably be between three and five pounds. These 40 will go fast, but we have several hundred coming in the future! Thanks for sharing this adventure with us!
Some reasons people buy our chicken:
Local: Knowing who grows/raises your food is so important. You can even come down to the farm for a visit. Buying local keeps your dollars in your community. It saves money in the resources used to transport food across the country and world. It is also reliable because there are very few steps and exchanges to get this food right to your table.
Antibiotic/hormone free: Our chickens are not given any antibiotics or growth hormones. We have telephone access to a poultry nutritionist who has been very helpful in providing natural ways to keep the birds healthy and happy. At this time, we are not yet feeding them organic feed, but we are working towards that and will keep you posted.
Happier animals: Our chickens are given ample space outdoors to run around and do what chickens do. They have access to food and water at all times (chickens can only get up to 20% of their nutrition from eating grass and bugs, so most of it does have to come from feed). They also have access to shelter from rain, wind, and sun. Their shelters are moved daily, and the electric fencing is moved weekly to allow the chickens fresh, clean pastured areas in which to run around. Rotating their living areas helps keep them cleaner and therefore more healthy. The chickens do prefer the sun so we're glad the weather is improving!
Taste: Although this first batch won't taste too different from other chicken (because it's the exact same breed as the chicken we already eat), we hope the freshness will come through in the taste! The breed influences the taste even more than the chicken's diet, so we expect our white plymouth rock, delaware, naked neck, and red range chickens to taste differently. Those will be processed in several months. But...you tell us. We want your feedback!
Stay tuned for some recipes on how to cook whole chicken (at this time we are only selling whole chicken...cut up pieces cost more but if you want it, let us know because we can offer it for the next batch). Thanks!
