Salmonella Egg Recall

Well you have heard it all over the news.  Salmonella poisoning in eggs.  Millions of eggs have been recalled in numerous states.  If its not eggs, its other contaminated vegetables.  Not too long ago there was a recall on tomatoes and once for salads.

Perfect example:  If you raise your own food, you have control over the quality of your food, like eggs.  This is a perfect example why I promote and encourage people to raise their own chickens.  Salmonella in eggs can be prevented.  Its no telling what those egg producers are feeding their chickens.  Them chickens are probable feed food with byproducts.  You will never know, right?  Can you really trust what they say?  I sure don't.

Raising your own chickens is easy, inexpensive, fun, healthy, and comes with rewarding benefits.  Like I said before, you will be in control of what you feed your chickens and ultimately your family.  So go ahead and get some chickens!  More and more people are reaping the benefits of homegrown eggs, organically! Once you have tasted homegrown chicken eggs, you will never want store eggs again.

Why should you choose a Heritage Breed Chicken vs. a Cornish (Broiler)?

Not all Backyard Chickens are equal.  My goal here is to try to differentiate between “broilers”, whether it’s grown in your backyard or from the grocery store already packaged, and a true “Heritage Chicken” that is “Organic.”

A Heritage Chicken is one that has been around since the early to mid 1900’s.  They have a much slower growth rate than the Cornish Chickens (Cornish X Rock or Cornish Roasters) you buy for the store or hatchery for your own raising.  A Heritage breed usually reaches maturity in about 16 weeks or longer.  They are able to reproduce naturally and are able to withstand harsher climates.  Heritage Chickens are supposed to be pastured and do much better when they are not confined in tight spaces.  They should be allowed to naturally forge on grass bugs, and grubs.  They do not need to be babied as do the Cornish Chickens (broilers) because Heritage birds are hardy.  There is nothing humane about how these kinds of chickens are produced, the broilers that is.

The flavor of a Heritage Chicken is much better too.  It has a TRUE chicken taste.  I was raised on home grown Heritage Chickens and I am here to tell you it’s true.  The eggs and meat are full of flavor, and 100% natural protein.

A Cornish Chicken (Cornish X Rock or Cornish Roasters) is a Hybrid which means it is genetically modified to grow super fast.  There are some implications to this sort of chicken.  First, is has health implications.  They spend a lot of time lying down on their breast eating all day long.  They grow so fast that their legs can not always support their body weight and therefore in many cases can cause leg problems.  Second, because of their poor genetics, they should not be allowed to breed.  Where is the originality in that?

Cornish Hybrids can be pastured too, but Cornish Chickens are genetically engineered to stay in small tight spaces and eat, eat, eat, eat, all day and grow, grow, grow so they can make it to your local grocery store faster.  Productivity is the key with this kind of poultry, as far as the poultry industry is concerned.  The more the producers grow FAST, the more $$$$$ they make. 

A Heritage Chicken would break the producer’s banks.  It would cost much more to feed them, more labor cost, and therefore less marginal profits.  It’s not cost effective for the poultry industry.  Not only that, but it would be harder to keep up with the demand for chicken.   

Just think, if you were raising chickens to sell and you choose to raise the Heritage Breeds, you would have more time, money and work invested in these chickens.  You would have to sell it for 2-3 times more than your competitor to make a profit.  The only way you could survive would be to have a niche market.  You would have to target the people who want quality, wholesome chicken meat.  Raising just a few backyard chickens for yourself is very inexpensive, especially if you allow them to pasture as much as possible.

Let’s get back to the basics.  Remember, if you are thinking about starting your own backyard chicken flock, choose a Heritage Breed.  What’s more important to you, your health or money?  It’s cheaper to be healthy than sick, right?  And the long term health benefits far out weight the short term savings that can cost you more money in the long run. 

Take care of you and your family, support the Heritage values, eat and live a happy healthy life. J

How to Butcher a Chicken

10 Easy Step-By-Step instructions showing you how to butcher a chicken with plenty of pictures and lots attention to detail.  After seeing these easy steps, you will be well on your way to becoming a Master Butcher.

I like the first link better, but the second one is good too.  Good Luck Friends!

1. How to Butcher a Chicken: Introduction
2. http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/grim79.html

See also this video on how to kill a chicken (HERE)

Benefits of Raising Backyard Chickens

Raising your own backyard chickens is not only fun, but self gratifying. Best of all, you know where your food comes from.  Here are just a few wonderful benefits.

Healthy:
The single most important benefit is that you know what you’re putting into your body. I’m sure you heard of the phrase “You are what you eat.” That is so true; if you eat healthy you will be healthy…only makes sense. Eating eggs from your own backyard chickens are 100% natural. That is if you feed them ORGANIC feed, and let them forge naturally on grass, insects, etc. Eggs from homegrown chickens do not contain antibiotics, chemicals, and added hormones. 


Eggs you get from the store come from chickens that are isolated in a controlled environment and force fed to make the chickens produce eggs faster so the company who sells the eggs make more money. 

CAUTION: Yes, you can buy eggs from the grocery store that state “Free-range”, or “100% natural,” or “Cage Free,” and “Organic,” But that is not the same! They classify “Free Range if the birds are let out for just minutes a day. Or “Cage free” if they are not in tight wire cages, but companies that raise these chickens for egg production still keep the so called “Cage Free” chickens in climate controlled building with little or no access to fresh air, sunshine, organic grass or grubs like chickens were made to forge on.


If you take a so-called “100% natural or “Cage Free, and Organic” egg from the store and crack it open along side a REAL free-range chicken egg and you will see the difference right away.

Taste:
The taste of homegrown chicken eggs are far better that store bought eggs. Besides taste, the yolks on home grown chicken eggs are a dark orange color verses light yellow color on store bought eggs. If you have never tried fresh eggs from a TRUE FREE-RANGE CHICKEN you do not know what you’re missing out on. And once you try it, you will not want the store bought ones again.

Meat Consumption:
There are 3 noticeable differences between a “Real 100% Natural Homegrown Chicken” and a so called 100% Natural Chicken from the store. 


First, a backyard chicken is tougher than a store bought chicken. The reason is simply “100% NATURAL.” Well, you might say, “So are the ones in the store?” Nope, read carefully the small print that says it’s enhanced other ingredients to preserve flavor. Also, the large chicken farmers keep the chickens confined in tight controlled buildings where all they do is eat a certain diet. The chickens do not have access to natural light, unable to free range or get fresh air to name a few. And the store bought chicken is a HYBRID. They are mainly Cornish which have a very fast growth rate. They were mixed bread (HYBRID) for fast production. A Cornish hen is not recommended to be naturally reproduced because of their fast growth rate. 


Second, a backyard chicken has a better chicken flavor you can not beat. You do not have to season and marinade a backyard chicken. The real flavor is in the meat already…..naturally! 


Third, the meat is darker, even the breast. What fast food chicken restaurants call dark meat, is light on a backyard chicken. Now shades may vary slightly depending on breeds.

Natural Fertilizer:
Backyard Chicken droppings are the BEST fertilizer in the world! It is CHEMICAL FREE! As the chickens graze, they will fertilize your soil naturally. Also, when periodically cleaning their coop, you can pile the droppings in your compost pile and use it in your garden or flower beds. You don’t have to buy chemical fertilizer for your garden. 


Use it first for your fruit and vegetable plants and any extra you may have use in flower beds, or even spread it in your yard to help your grass grow. Prioritize the natural fertilizer (chicken droppings) on fruits and vegetable plants since you will be eating them. Insect Control:


Chickens naturally forge on insects. It will eliminate most if not all the pest that are lurking around in your yard. Insects are great source of protein, minerals and vitamins. That is their nature to scratch for food. Plus, letting them free-range not only makes a healthier happy bird, but saves you money on having to buy feed.

Great for Children:
What a great way to teach your children the basics. I grew up with chickens on our farm and I have some fond memories that will last a lifetime. It teaches children responsibilities taking care of the birds, where their food source comes from and gives the child something fun and exciting to do outdoors. It is a great chore for your kids and fun too.

Cost: Fairly inexpensive, depending on what scale you chose to raise the chickens. A few chickens will not eat much feed, especially if they free-range a lot. (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) The initial cost of shelter and fencing also depends on other factors. Like, how many birds you chose to raise, if you use new or used material etc.