The cost of chicken and eggs

The cost of chicken is going up, is anyone surprised? I know how much feed prices have increased. Here’s another reason, there’s a bird flu outbreak. Centered in Minnesota but affecting factory farms and hatcheries throughout the U.S. Utah’s dept. of agriculture in fact placed a brief moratorium on the import of live poultry. Utah has since modified their rules now only requiring hatcheries to provide a copy of their bio-security plan to the State.

We raise all of the chicken, turkey, beef and pork we consume. Most folks think its a huge cost saver for us but here’s the truth, it’s not. . It actually costs us more to produce our own meat than to buy it. So, why do it you might ask. We like the work, we like the meat quality and we like to know how the animals we consume were treated in their short time here. Factory farms, optimize their farms and faclities for lower cost. Not what’s best for the animal, the environment or the meats taste. Forgotten in their process is doing what’s best instead of what’s cheapest. Best means, we provide open space for our pigs. So, our pigs get to act like pigs. They can root in the dirt, roll in mud and generally do what nature intends for them. Our poultry gets plenty of room and fresh pasture to roam. We are also not in any hurry to get them to the freezer. A typical factory chicken is only six weeks old. We raise ours for nine, or 30% more. We dont get bigger chickens but we do get a better developed chicken. A chicken who’s had time to grow at a more healthy pace. One where the meat has had time to develop flavor and the fat is actually good for you. We optimize for other better things with our farm animals. We appreciate their life, their death and the substance they provide. That’s what’s on my mind at the meat shop.