I have a conversation with Chrislyn Wood, DVM, about the threat of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and pasture raised flocks. Dr. Wood is a veterinarian with USDA APHIS and she is involved first hand with HPAI monitoring and response efforts.  We cover a lot of ground, including historical observations, risk assessment, disease identification, and prevention.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza and Pastured Poultry Flocks

Greg Gunthorp

Greg Gunthorp joins the show to talk about his decision to step away from pasture raised chickens. Covid plays into the story, of course, but the challenges started long before this virus came to be front page news.  We also dig into some processing wisdom and reality. Greg talks consolidation and Bill Gates. We dig deep and cover a lot of interconnected ground.

Greg Gunthorp joins the show to talk about his decision to step away from pasture raised chickens. Covid plays into the story, of course, but the challenges started long before this virus came to be front page news.  We also dig into some processing wisdom and reality. Greg talks consolidation and Bill Gates. We dig deep and cover a lot of interconnected ground.

The Days of Wholesale Pastured Chickens are Over for Greg Gunthorp

Cynthia Capers

Cynthia Capers, Heniscity Farm in Tennessee, shares her 20+ year journey from hobby chicken keeper to poultry farmer. Twenty years ago, the sight of six Black Australorps brought tears to her eyes. Today, she's serving her community through egg sales, chick sales, pullet sales, and community education. She's incorporated poultry into their rural bed and breakfast and has become an integral resource in her community.  As a black farmer reconnecting to the land and rediscovering her ancestral roots, the journey isn't easy, but Cynthia is right where she needs to be inspiring those around her. She brings the power of chickens to life. In the show we cover:   Her exposure to animals in an urban environment Incorporating chickens into the B&amp;B Covid challenges Eggs as the answer to hunger Connecting to the land and honoring Mother Africa Importance of friends and support ...and more  Resources:  Heniscity Farm on Facebook Nashville Scene Article:  Black Farmers Feed Their Neighbors and Connect With Their Ancestors.

Cynthia Capers, Heniscity Farm in Tennessee, shares her 20+ year journey from hobby chicken keeper to poultry farmer. Twenty years ago, the sight of six Black Australorps brought tears to her eyes. Today, she's serving her community through egg sales, chick sales, pullet sales, and community education. She's incorporated poultry into their rural bed and breakfast and has become an integral resource in her community.  As a black farmer reconnecting to the land and rediscovering her ancestral roots, the journey isn't easy, but Cynthia is right where she needs to be inspiring those around her. She brings the power of chickens to life. In the show we cover:  <ul> <li>Her exposure to animals in an urban environment</li> <li>Incorporating chickens into the B&amp;B</li> <li>Covid challenges</li> <li>Eggs as the answer to hunger</li> <li>Connecting to the land and honoring Mother Africa</li> <li>Importance of friends and support</li> <li>...and more</li> </ul> Resources:  <a href="http://facebook.com/heniscityfarm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Heniscity Farm on Facebook</a> Nashville Scene Article: <a href="https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/cover-story/article/21144248/black-farmers-feed-their-neighbors-and-connect-with-their-ancestors" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Black Farmers Feed Their Neighbors and Connect With Their Ancestors</a>.

Turning a 20 year chicken hobby into a farm with Cynthia Capers

I answer a listener question, "How can I make my small laying hen flock more profitable?" With feedback from the community, insights from The Fighting Farmer, and personal experience, we dive deep into ways to prosper from your small flock of laying hens. The answer divides into three sections: management, pricing, and markets/marketing.  Ask your questions at https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/contact. 

I answer a listener question, "How can I make my small laying hen flock more profitable?" With feedback from the community, insights from The Fighting Farmer, and personal experience, we dive deep into ways to prosper from your small flock of laying hens. The answer divides into three sections: management, pricing, and markets/marketing.  Ask your questions at <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/contact" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/contact</a>.

PPT114 - Small Layer Flock Profitability

Perdue acquires Pasturebird and becomes the biggest producer in the space. I unpack what it means on this episode and walk through some history. 

Perdue acquires Pasturebird and becomes the biggest producer in the space. I unpack what it means on this episode and walk through some history.

Perdue Acquires Pasturebird

Listener Chris asks how to utilize an all-in/all-out pullet replacement strategy without duplicating infrastructure while maintaining egg production. To help answer the question, I share insights from Mark Harrison and Dave and Ginger Shields.  The simple answer to the Chris' question is that infrastructure is required to maintain production. Listen in as I discuss the details. 

Listener Chris asks how to utilize an all-in/all-out pullet replacement strategy without duplicating infrastructure while maintaining egg production. To help answer the question, I share insights from Mark Harrison and Dave and Ginger Shields.  The simple answer to the Chris' question is that infrastructure is required to maintain production. Listen in as I discuss the details.

Maintain Production with All In/All Out Rotation for 5,000 laying hens

 In Pastured Poultry Talk episode 110, farmer Matt Steinman discussed how he used fermented feed as a solution to feed waste and fines. While fermentation can be a viable solution for some people, it's not the only way to deal with fines.  The problem with fines accumulating in your feeders instead of the birds is that that the chickens miss key nutrients, and they waste feed. The lack of nutrients cause behavioral problems and reduced production. The feed waste costs you money. Soy-free feeds tend to contain more powder and compound the issues with fines.  In this episode I detail a few approaches to dealing with the wasteful fine feed dilemma, which essentially comes down to not adding old feed on top of new feed and avoiding using a bulk feeder. When you use a bulk feeder, you trade convenience for management, and it can compound the problem with feed waste, fines, and overeating (which I don't cover in this episode).

In Pastured Poultry Talk episode 110, farmer Matt Steinman discussed how he used fermented feed as a solution to feed waste and fines. While fermentation can be a viable solution for some people, it's not the only way to deal with fines. The problem with fines accumulating in your feeders instead of the birds is that that the chickens miss key nutrients, and they waste feed. The lack of nutrients cause behavioral problems and reduced production. The feed waste costs you money. Soy-free feeds tend to contain more powder and compound the issues with fines. In this episode I detail a few approaches to dealing with the wasteful fine feed dilemma, which essentially comes down to not adding old feed on top of new feed and avoiding using a bulk feeder. When you use a bulk feeder, you trade convenience for management, and it can compound the problem with feed waste, fines, and overeating (which I don't cover in this episode).

Feed Management Tips to Reduce Waste & Maintain Egg Production

Farmer Matt Steinman (Foothills Farm in Sedro-Woolley, Washington) and Dr. Louisa Brouwer (technical advisor on the trial) share the results of a SARE-funded trial that sought to understand the economic impacts of feeding fermented feed to laying hens. The trial compared a dry feed, wet feed, and a fermented feed and then determined the net difference across to the bottom line.

Farmer Matt Steinman (Foothills Farm in Sedro-Woolley, Washington) and Dr. Louisa Brouwer (technical advisor on the trial) share the results of a SARE-funded trial that sought to understand the economic impacts of feeding fermented feed to laying hens. The trial compared a dry feed, wet feed, and a fermented feed and then determined the net difference across to the bottom line.

Is Fermented Feed Worth the Time for 1,000 hens?

I close out the pastured poultry training series with a live streamed Q&amp;A between Terrell Spencer from The Fighting Farmer and myself. We went live on Facebook and fielded questions from our listeners, and this episode of the podcast includes an edited version of that conversation. If you want to watch a replay of the stream, find it on YouTube.   Before we work into the questions, I offer some thoughts on heritage poultry's potential role in pastured community. APPPA has recently started to focus on breeding specific topics and offers monthly livestreams on breeding. Check out APPPA's work here.   We cover a range of topics on this episode including:    Using a Poultry Man Plucker to improve processing efficiency Discussing value-added poultry products and ground chicken The number one resource for all new pastured poultry producers Spence shares some knowledge on chicken sausage, including a way to sell hearts for $10 a pound Canadians are welcome in APPPA Spence touches on some USDA processing facility challenges, such as how do you keep the plant full in winter Making hay from chickens Part of pastured poultry is nutrient management What kind of feed should i buy -non-gmo, etc.  Egg washing equipment Mike breaks some soy-free pullet news 

I close out the pastured poultry training series with a live streamed Q&amp;A between Terrell Spencer from The Fighting Farmer and myself. We went live on Facebook and fielded questions from our listeners, and this episode of the podcast includes an edited version of that conversation. If you want to watch a replay of the stream, find it on <a href="https://youtu.be/xhZRJCiCG6U" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow" target="_blank">YouTube</a>. Before we work into the questions, I offer some thoughts on heritage poultry's potential role in pastured community. APPPA has recently started to focus on breeding specific topics and offers monthly livestreams on breeding. Check out <a href="https://apppa.org/breeders" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow" target="_blank">APPPA's work here</a>. We cover a range of topics on this episode including: <ul> <li>Using a Poultry Man Plucker to improve processing efficiency</li> <li>Discussing value-added poultry products and ground chicken</li> <li>The number one resource for all new pastured poultry producers</li> <li>Spence shares some knowledge on chicken sausage, including a way to sell hearts for $10 a pound</li> <li>Canadians are welcome in APPPA</li> <li>Spence touches on some USDA processing facility challenges, such as how do you keep the plant full in winter</li> <li>Making hay from chickens</li> <li>Part of pastured poultry is nutrient management</li> <li>What kind of feed should i buy -non-gmo, etc. </li> <li>Egg washing equipment</li> <li>Mike breaks some soy-free pullet news</li> </ul>

Community Q&A PIus a Heritage Poultry Monologue

When you put chickens or turkeys out on pasture, there are two fundamental questions you need to consider. Why pasture and how do you house the birds?     If you fully grasp the why of the pasture model, you won't take shortcuts in your housing and implementation. I'm primarily talking about the foundational principle of movement to fresh pasture approach that pastured poultry requires. If you choose to build a strong foundation on the principles of pastured poultry, then your system becomes healthier and more capable of surviving challenges.   There are a lot of companies that compromise the pastured poultry model today where fresh forage is replaced with access to more space. I spend a lot of time working through these issues in the podcast episode because it's important to start off with a clear vision, and that vision will inform your shelter approach.   Pasture Shelter Considerations   There are a near infinite number of designs and modifications you can make to a pastured poultry shelter. And if you go shopping for a shelter without having a purpose, you may get sidetracked easily. For example, when I built my first shelter, I just did it like Joel Salatin, but I didn't follow his instructions. That turned out to be a less than ideal shelter for our farm. After I got some experience, I realized I made a bad choice, and I chose something different, which was a smaller, lighter hoop house.   I expect you will go through multiple design iterations, but my goal in the episode to have you make a good choice, so your don't find yourself needing to radically change your approach after a single season.   Here are the pasture shelter and management practices I cover in the podcast episode.    Provide species appropriate shelters Protect from weather (including shade) and predators Make flock movement to fresh rooted-in soil vegetation possible Avoid static runs and continuous grazing Ensure ventilation and protect from drafts Add roosts where appropriate Add nest boxes for layers    I spend a fair amount of time discussing stocking density guidelines and the nuances you may encounter there. The quick guideline for a daily moved shelter where the birds are confined to a floorless shelter are as follows:    Broilers: 1.5 to 2 sq. ft. to 8 weeks; 3+ sq. ft. at 16 weeks Layers: 3-5 sq. ft. Turkeys: 5 to 7 sq. ft.    The reason you need to know stocking densities is so that you can size your shelter appropriately and build/buy the appropriate amount. When you move to a day range setup, the stocking density inside the house becomes different.   Using layers as an example day range scenario, your housing may provide one square foot of space plus your additional pasture space. I discuss the reason behind one square foot in more detail in the episode.   There's no magic formula for the paddock size. 108 square feet is a myth and a fake requirement; it's not synonymous to pasture raised. Just know that if you give your hens 20 square foot of space in the paddock, you will be able to move slightly less frequently than if you only give them 10 square feet of pasture space. The model is based on movement, not access. So, time the frequency of movement to the impact on the pasture. Dirt is not your goal.   Pasture Shelter Designs   I've spent time assembling resources, such as guides, how-tos, and links to pastured poultry coop designs over at American Pastured Poultry Producers Association. View pastured poultry shelter designs.   If you need step-by-step and cut-by-cut instructions, it's hard to beat John Suscovich's Stress Free Chicken Tractor booklet. You can purchase a copy directly from John. If you purchase any of his books or packets, I get a commission (you pay the same price).   Learn more about John's Stress Free Chicken Tractor Plans.   John also appeared on Pastured Poultry Talk to tell his story.    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/11/21/ppt029-growing-into-a-farm-with-john-suscovich-2/         Relevant Episodes    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/07/17/ppt012-whats-with-the-immaculate-chicken-houses-2/    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/09/18/ppt056-designing-movable-shelters-for-pasture-raised-broilers-and-layers-with-pastured-life-farm/    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/03/21/ppt037-pastured-poultry-is-more-than-dirt/    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/08/28/ppt018-broiler-chicken-shelter-density-and-data-collection-2/    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/04/04/latest-greenwashing-craze-pasturewashing-poultry-ppt083/    https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/12/29/does-the-failed-organic-livestock-and-poultry-practices-regulation-matter-to-pastured-poultry/   Sponsors

When you put chickens or turkeys out on pasture, there are two fundamental questions you need to consider. Why pasture and how do you house the birds? If you fully grasp the why of the pasture model, you won't take shortcuts in your housing and implementation. I'm primarily talking about the foundational principle of movement to fresh pasture approach that pastured poultry requires. If you choose to build a strong foundation on the principles of pastured poultry, then your system becomes healthier and more capable of surviving challenges. There are a lot of companies that compromise the pastured poultry model today where fresh forage is replaced with access to more space. I spend a lot of time working through these issues in the podcast episode because it's important to start off with a clear vision, and that vision will inform your shelter approach. Pasture Shelter Considerations There are a near infinite number of designs and modifications you can make to a pastured poultry shelter. And if you go shopping for a shelter without having a purpose, you may get sidetracked easily. For example, when I built my first shelter, I just did it like Joel Salatin, but I didn't follow his instructions. That turned out to be a less than ideal shelter for our farm. After I got some experience, I realized I made a bad choice, and I chose something different, which was a smaller, lighter hoop house. I expect you will go through multiple design iterations, but my goal in the episode to have you make a good choice, so your don't find yourself needing to radically change your approach after a single season. Here are the pasture shelter and management practices I cover in the podcast episode. <ul> <li>Provide species appropriate shelters</li> <li>Protect from weather (including shade) and predators</li> <li>Make flock movement to fresh rooted-in soil vegetation possible</li> <li>Avoid static runs and continuous grazing</li> <li>Ensure ventilation and protect from drafts</li> <li>Add roosts where appropriate</li> <li>Add nest boxes for layers</li> </ul> I spend a fair amount of time discussing stocking density guidelines and the nuances you may encounter there. The quick guideline for a daily moved shelter where the birds are confined to a floorless shelter are as follows: <ul> <li>Broilers: 1.5 to 2 sq. ft. to 8 weeks; 3+ sq. ft. at 16 weeks</li> <li>Layers: 3-5 sq. ft.</li> <li>Turkeys: 5 to 7 sq. ft.</li> </ul> The reason you need to know stocking densities is so that you can size your shelter appropriately and build/buy the appropriate amount. When you move to a day range setup, the stocking density inside the house becomes different. Using layers as an example day range scenario, your housing may provide one square foot of space plus your additional pasture space. I discuss the reason behind one square foot in more detail in the episode. There's no magic formula for the paddock size. 108 square feet is a myth and a fake requirement; it's not synonymous to pasture raised. Just know that if you give your hens 20 square foot of space in the paddock, you will be able to move slightly less frequently than if you only give them 10 square feet of pasture space. The model is based on movement, not access. So, time the frequency of movement to the impact on the pasture. Dirt is not your goal. Pasture Shelter Designs I've spent time assembling resources, such as guides, how-tos, and links to pastured poultry coop designs over at American Pastured Poultry Producers Association. View <a href="https://apppa.org/shelters" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow" target="_blank">pastured poultry shelter designs</a>. If you need step-by-step and cut-by-cut instructions, it's hard to beat John Suscovich's Stress Free Chicken Tractor booklet. You can purchase a copy directly from John. If you purchase any of his books or packets, I get a commission (you pay the same price). <a href="/john" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Learn more about John's Stress Free Chicken Tractor Plans.</a> John also appeared on Pastured Poultry Talk to tell his story. <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/11/21/ppt029-growing-into-a-farm-with-john-suscovich-2/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/11/21/ppt029-growing-into-a-farm-with-john-suscovich-2/</a> Relevant Episodes <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/07/17/ppt012-whats-with-the-immaculate-chicken-houses-2/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/07/17/ppt012-whats-with-the-immaculate-chicken-houses-2/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/09/18/ppt056-designing-movable-shelters-for-pasture-raised-broilers-and-layers-with-pastured-life-farm/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/09/18/ppt056-designing-movable-shelters-for-pasture-raised-broilers-and-layers-with-pastured-life-farm/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/03/21/ppt037-pastured-poultry-is-more-than-dirt/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/03/21/ppt037-pastured-poultry-is-more-than-dirt/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/08/28/ppt018-broiler-chicken-shelter-density-and-data-collection-2/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/08/28/ppt018-broiler-chicken-shelter-density-and-data-collection-2/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/04/04/latest-greenwashing-craze-pasturewashing-poultry-ppt083/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/04/04/latest-greenwashing-craze-pasturewashing-poultry-ppt083/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/12/29/does-the-failed-organic-livestock-and-poultry-practices-regulation-matter-to-pastured-poultry/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/12/29/does-the-failed-organic-livestock-and-poultry-practices-regulation-matter-to-pastured-poultry/</a> Sponsors

Perspectives on Pastured Poultry Shelters and Pasture Management

Mike Badger dives into the the production, the processing, the marketing, and the business of farming pasture-raised poultry.  Pastured Poultry Talk is THE podcast where raising chickens, turkeys, and poultry on grass meets real life opportunities, solutions, and farmers. The podcast helps you raise healthy, profitable birds for your family, your community, and your customers.

This podcast has given me the information and courage to start my own pasture poultry business. I look forward to each new episode. When I asked a question, I received a rapid and resourceful response.
Bill

Excellent source of information

I look forward to each new show. I&#39;ve learned so much and have listened to every episode.

No other show like it

Pastured Poultry Talk

Joel Salatin

Joel Salatin joins the show and we use his recent book Your Successful Farm Business (Amazon) as the back drop to the conversation. High points of the discussion:  Your Successful Farm Business dives into the people, the marketing, the time and motion studies, and the nitty gritty about how to think like a business person. Marketing is morphing rapidly, especially logistics. There’s a lot of “disturbed ground” between the farmer and how stuff gets to the customer. Is Amazon acquiring Whole Foods good? Who eats the price cut of this downward price pressure? The take on relationship marketing. Build it and they will come is a fantasy. You’ve got to grab ‘em. Earn Trust = Conviction + Consistency + Communication. Joel’s take on the biggest bottleneck: Processing or marketing? Speaking of pastured poultry processing, “How do we message living food and the whole story of helpful bacteria?” Moldy cheese is cool. But bacteria on a chicken is somehow different. The processing regulatory climate is tough for very small plants and most farmers or consumers don’t have any insight into it. What’s the reason for the high farm failure rate? Cash flow is one of the biggest issues. Pastured poultry brings cash flow as an asset, but seasonality is a challenge. People have fantasy expectations about farming. Your Successful Farm Business sets realistic expectations and helps you operate from a position of reality. Unrealistic expectations turn bumps in the road into bigger issues than they are. Need to develop mastery through repetition and nuance. Joel believes in dabbling before you commit. “It’s ok to dabble.” Create a one-year nest egg that can support you without any income. Be “cultishly” frugal. Wendell Berry’s essay “Home Economics” talks about feeding yourself first. Those dollars don’t have to be earned, and there is no tax on that. Half of America doesn’t have access to $400 in cash. What does it mean for direct marketers? Food Inc, cured Joel on what people could afford. You could get two pounds of Polyface grass-finished beef for price of one Burger King meal when that movie came out. Applebees is $15 a plate. A pastured poultry chicken can feed six people with leftovers. We need to help people understand the comparisons. At Polyface, a broiler is less per pound than boneless/skinless chicken breast in the supermarket. Joel explains why eclectic awareness is important in the context creating points of commonalities. Polyface supplies a local Wegman’s, but how does that jive with Joel’s idea that we should be spending more time trying to get people out of the grocery store? There’s an old business saying, “What got you here won’t get you there.”  Resources  Polyface Farms  Your Successful Farm Business by Joel Salatin You Can Farm by Joel Salatin (precursor and prerequisite to Your Successful Farm Business)  Sponsors   Small Farm Nation Academy with Tim Young Order Ready to Lay Pullets in Pennsylvania 

Joel Salatin joins the show and we use his recent book Your Successful Farm Business (<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=pasturedpoultrytalk-20&amp;keywords=joel%20salatin%20your%20successful%20farm%20business&amp;index=aps&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;linkCode=xm2&amp;linkId=c9fe9ea854458389982119337813aba9" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a>) as the back drop to the conversation. High points of the discussion: <ul> <li>Your Successful Farm Business dives into the people, the marketing, the time and motion studies, and the nitty gritty about how to think like a business person.</li> <li>Marketing is morphing rapidly, especially logistics.</li> <li>There’s a lot of “disturbed ground” between the farmer and how stuff gets to the customer.</li> <li>Is Amazon acquiring Whole Foods good? Who eats the price cut of this downward price pressure?</li> <li>The take on relationship marketing.</li> <li>Build it and they will come is a fantasy. You’ve got to grab ‘em.</li> <li>Earn Trust = Conviction + Consistency + Communication.</li> <li>Joel’s take on the biggest bottleneck: Processing or marketing?</li> <li>Speaking of pastured poultry processing, “How do we message living food and the whole story of helpful bacteria?”</li> <li>Moldy cheese is cool. But bacteria on a chicken is somehow different.</li> <li>The processing regulatory climate is tough for very small plants and most farmers or consumers don’t have any insight into it.</li> <li>What’s the reason for the high farm failure rate? Cash flow is one of the biggest issues. Pastured poultry brings cash flow as an asset, but seasonality is a challenge.</li> <li>People have fantasy expectations about farming. Your Successful Farm Business sets realistic expectations and helps you operate from a position of reality.</li> <li>Unrealistic expectations turn bumps in the road into bigger issues than they are.</li> <li>Need to develop mastery through repetition and nuance.</li> <li>Joel believes in dabbling before you commit. “It’s ok to dabble.”</li> <li>Create a one-year nest egg that can support you without any income. Be “cultishly” frugal.</li> <li>Wendell Berry’s essay “Home Economics” talks about feeding yourself first. Those dollars don’t have to be earned, and there is no tax on that.</li> <li>Half of America doesn’t have access to $400 in cash. What does it mean for direct marketers?</li> <li>Food Inc, cured Joel on what people could afford. You could get two pounds of Polyface grass-finished beef for price of one Burger King meal when that movie came out. Applebees is $15 a plate. A pastured poultry chicken can feed six people with leftovers. We need to help people understand the comparisons. At Polyface, a broiler is less per pound than boneless/skinless chicken breast in the supermarket.</li> <li>Joel explains why eclectic awareness is important in the context creating points of commonalities.</li> <li>Polyface supplies a local Wegman’s, but how does that jive with Joel’s idea that we should be spending more time trying to get people out of the grocery store?</li> <li>There’s an old business saying, “What got you here won’t get you there.”</li> </ul> Resources <ul> <li><a href="http://www.polyfacefarms.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Polyface Farms</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=pasturedpoultrytalk-20&amp;keywords=joel%20salatin%20your%20successful%20farm%20business&amp;index=aps&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;linkCode=xm2&amp;linkId=c9fe9ea854458389982119337813aba9" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Your Successful Farm Business</a> by Joel Salatin</li> <li><a href="http://amzn.to/2A86WC9" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">You Can Farm</a> by Joel Salatin (precursor and prerequisite to Your Successful Farm Business)</li> </ul> Sponsors <ul> <li><a href="https://smallfarmnation.com/?aff=mbadger&amp;p=Sales%20Page%20Text" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Small Farm Nation Academy with Tim Young</a></li> <li><a href="http://millsidefarm.com/shop/full-beak-ready-to-lay-pullets" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Order Ready to Lay Pullets in Pennsylvania</a></li> </ul>

PPT062: Joel Salatin talks about the marketing and business of craft foods

Terrell Spencer joins Mike as a guest host. Fresh off an APPPA related trip to the Mother Earth News Fair in Belton, Texas, the two share their impressions about the show.Highlights of the episode: Is Texas poised as the next pastured poultry hot spot? There are several processing options accessible to the DFW and Austin markets: Windy Meadows Family Farm and Cobb Creek are state inspected. Dewberry Hills Farm is USDA inspected. At the fair, Spence talked about selling beyond farmers market; he overviews a key point or two about the differences between selling to restaurant and retail outlets. We learn one of the keys to a good farming presentation. Beware of what might or might not be behind the scenes. At APPPA's dinner reception, Joel Salatin outlined a few weaknesses that he sees in the pastured poultry community right now. Spence and Mike kick those topics around and offer our perspectives on eggs, housing, processing, and pasture management.Stay tuned. Spence will be back on a future episode.

Terrell Spencer joins Mike as a guest host. Fresh off an APPPA related trip to the Mother Earth News Fair in Belton, Texas, the two share their impressions about the show. Highlights of the episode: <ul> <li>Is Texas poised as the next pastured poultry hot spot? There are several processing options accessible to the DFW and Austin markets: <a href="http://www.windymeadowsfamilyfarm.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Windy Meadows Family Farm</a> and <a href="http://www.cobbcreekfarm.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Cobb Creek</a> are state inspected. <a href="http://www.dhfarms.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dewberry Hills Farm</a> is USDA inspected.</li> <li>At the fair, Spence talked about selling beyond farmers market; he overviews a key point or two about the differences between selling to restaurant and retail outlets.</li> <li>We learn one of the keys to a good farming presentation. Beware of what might or might not be behind the scenes.</li> <li>At APPPA's dinner reception, Joel Salatin outlined a few weaknesses that he sees in the pastured poultry community right now. Spence and Mike kick those topics around and offer our perspectives on eggs, housing, processing, and pasture management.</li></ul>Stay tuned. Spence will be back on a future episode.

PPT035: What Are the Weaknesses of Pastured Poultry?

Lauryn Salatin

Chick farmer Lauryn Salatin joins the podcast to discuss her backyard chicken business. She buys chicks from Murray McMurray, raises them until they're ready to lay, and then sells them. She finds her chickens enjoyable to be around and happy. This episode was recorded live at the Fertrell open house. Resources: Polyface Farm Murray McMurray

Chick farmer Lauryn Salatin joins the podcast to discuss her backyard chicken business. She buys chicks from Murray McMurray, raises them until they're ready to lay, and then sells them. She finds her chickens enjoyable to be around and happy. This episode was recorded live at the Fertrell open house. Resources: <a href="http://www.polyfacefarms.com/contact/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Polyface Farm</a> <a href="https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/index.html" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Murray McMurray</a>

PPT081: Backyard Chicken Business with Lauryn Salatin

Ready-to-lay pullets, sometimes called point-of-lay, are one of the pastured egg farmers best competitive advantages. But it's not all upside. Pullet supplier Mike Badger discusses the advantages, disadvantages, and opportunities for farmers to save money on replacement pullet costs. It also calls out an unmet demand in the pastured layer community for a diversity and quantity of birds. [caption id="attachment_1140" align="alignright" width="300"] Look at the beautiful beak on that ready-to-lay pullet.[/caption] (Dis)Advantages of Ready-to-Lay Pullets Generally speaking, the advantages to buying point-of-lay pullets are:  Competitive cost over raising your own by leveraging commercial scale. Ready-to-lay pullets were raised with proper nutrition. Avoid risk of disease, distraction, and predation.  There are also some disadvantages:  Production system - Commonly available pullets are are not pastured and may be beak trimmed. Mike sells untrimmed beak ready-to-lay pullets through Badger's Millside Farm. Breed availability - It's typically hard and expensive to find non-commercial hybrids (i.e., the sexlinks) as ready-to-lay pullets. Feed during the grow-out - Many pastured producers feed non-gmo (not organic) or a certified organic feed, but large suppliers do not.  This episodes talks through all these issues, and puts them in context. Opportunities for Pullets Realize that if you're a pastured poultry producer, everyone of these advantages and disadvantages represents an opportunity. The advantages are easy, but often if you're left looking for something that doesn't exist, the chances are other farmers are looking for it too. That's your opportunity to provide a service to your community while generating an income for the farm. If you want to raise pastured poultry, there is no law that says you have to sell ready-to-eat products to consumers. Explore the B2B world, or in this case, the farmer-to-farmer marketplace. Economics and Cost Benefits of Ready-to-Lay Pullets A common question that many pullet dealers get is, "how can you sell started pullets for that price?" The answer is self evident, but still not believable. The only thing you need to understand is that you, as a direct-marketing farmer, need to raise a lot of birds to compete with the large suppliers and their dealer networks. This episode features some napkin math to prove the cost benefit of pullets against raising your own layers from day 1. We don't need to go very far to realize the deal. The napkin math for raising your own pullets from day old is simple: cost of chick + cost of feed + labor per bird. The episode dives into these numbers and assigns values to raising your own 17 week old laying hens in flocks of 250 and 600. For comparison, we look at a non-gmo feed and a certified organic feed. Chicken math on a napkin or the back of the envelope is beautiful. Calculating the Cost of a Replacement Pullet Based on an APPPA survey I conducted several years, the average pasture-raised  egg laying flock was 225, so I’ll  round that up to 250. At the APPPA conference in Arkansas, the median sized egg flock of that group of experienced producers was somewhere around 600 birds. Let's compare those two flock sizes. I can source a day old production hybrid layer from Moyer’s for $2.50 each. If I give the birds 30 minutes of labor each day for 17 weeks, I’ve got 60 hours of labor (it’s actually 59.5 hours, but you’ll find a way to spend that half hour). We estimate total feed consumption to be 20 pounds per hen during that time. Can it be better? Yes. I can source organic feed for approximately .40/ lb and non-gmo for .30/lb. Let’s put it all together. Cost of chick + Labor per pullet + feed cost. Labor cost here is a wild card and I think we get too bogged down in the labor, but the time and effort is real. You have to account for it.  I assume a labor rate of $15 per hour. Cost to raise 250 ready-to-lay pullets Over 250 birds, you’ll put ¼ of an hour of labor into each bird. That works out to $3.75 per bird in labor. Let's add it up: $2.50 (chick cost) + $8 (feed cost) + $3.75 (labor cost). Feed is being calculated at 20 pounds at $0.40 per pound. An estimated cost to raise a hybrid point-of-lay pullet is $14.25 each in batches of 250. If I use a non-gmo feed, at .30/lb, the feed per bird is $6 and comes down to $12.25 per pullet. You can buy a 17 week-old sexlink pullet for $7.00 each, if you buy 250 at a time. Cost to raise 600 ready-to-lay pullets Now let's consider a bigger scale of 600 birds. The chick cost is $1.95 each. The organic feed cost is the same at $8. The labor per pullet comes down to $1.50. That’s a napkin cost of $11.45 per pullet on organic feed. If you feed the non-gmo, the per pullet cost becomes $9.45. You can buy a 17 week old sexlink pullet for $7.00, if you buy 600 at a time. Economies of Scale Do you get what’s happening here? There are several really important takeaways: The smaller flock you raise, the more expensive it is in terms of cost-per bird. Scale brings down the price because you can spread the same amount of labor out over a larger quantity of birds. The chickens cost less per unit when purchased in volume. Our costs didn’t even factor in other direct costs – bedding, heating, mortality, and infrastructure. Even as you match the scale, there’s something to be said for losing 17 weeks of risk. You give up the predation risk, the health risk, the improper nutrition risks of a developing pullet. If you get the nutrition of a layer wrong in her development period, she’ll never provide a profitable return on her work, regardless of how cheaply you raised her. Pastured Poultry Headlines from the Episode Muscovy Ducks. Mike talks through his Muscovy duck, non-soy feeding trial with Fertrell's new non-soy protein pellet. He's also looking for producers who have experience hatching muscovies to be a guest on the podcast. Fighting Farmer Podcast. If you’re not listening to Spence on the Fighting Farmer, I encourage you to check his podcast out. We moved The Fighting Farmer to its own feed a few months ago; you can find it him on itunes and Google play. Pastured Poultry in Attica New York. If you’re in the neighborhood, I'll be presenting at Herm Weber's annual pastured poultry day on the differentiation of pastured poultry from field to plate. I'm going to also bring Eli Reiff (Poultry Man) with me. The day will also include a farm tour (weather permitting) and open Q&amp;A. To register, contact Herm directly at (585) 591-0795. There is a registration fee and lunch is included.    Where to Buy Ready-to-Lay Pullets? Buy Ready to Lay pullets from Badger's Millside Farm in central Pennsylvania. Badger's offers 17 week old red sexlink pullets in the spring and fall from Moyer's Chicks. All birds have a full, untrimmed beak.

Ready-to-lay pullets, sometimes called point-of-lay, are one of the pastured egg farmers best competitive advantages. But it's not all upside. Pullet supplier Mike Badger discusses the advantages, disadvantages, and opportunities for farmers to save money on replacement pullet costs. It also calls out an unmet demand in the pastured layer community for a diversity and quantity of birds. [caption id="attachment_1140" align="alignright" width="300"] Look at the beautiful beak on that ready-to-lay pullet.[/caption] (Dis)Advantages of Ready-to-Lay Pullets Generally speaking, the advantages to buying point-of-lay pullets are: <ul> <li>Competitive cost over raising your own by leveraging commercial scale.</li> <li>Ready-to-lay pullets were raised with proper nutrition.</li> <li>Avoid risk of disease, distraction, and predation.</li> </ul> There are also some disadvantages: <ul> <li>Production system - Commonly available pullets are are not pastured and may be beak trimmed. Mike sells untrimmed beak ready-to-lay pullets through <a href="http://millsidefarm.com/shop/full-beak-ready-to-lay-pullets" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Badger's Millside Farm</a>.</li> <li>Breed availability - It's typically hard and expensive to find non-commercial hybrids (i.e., the sexlinks) as ready-to-lay pullets.</li> <li>Feed during the grow-out - Many pastured producers feed non-gmo (not organic) or a certified organic feed, but large suppliers do not.</li> </ul> This episodes talks through all these issues, and puts them in context. Opportunities for Pullets Realize that if you're a pastured poultry producer, everyone of these advantages and disadvantages represents an opportunity. The advantages are easy, but often if you're left looking for something that doesn't exist, the chances are other farmers are looking for it too. That's your opportunity to provide a service to your community while generating an income for the farm. If you want to raise pastured poultry, there is no law that says you have to sell ready-to-eat products to consumers. Explore the B2B world, or in this case, the farmer-to-farmer marketplace. Economics and Cost Benefits of Ready-to-Lay Pullets A common question that many pullet dealers get is, "how can you sell started pullets for that price?" The answer is self evident, but still not believable. The only thing you need to understand is that you, as a direct-marketing farmer, need to raise a lot of birds to compete with the large suppliers and their dealer networks. This episode features some napkin math to prove the cost benefit of pullets against raising your own layers from day 1. We don't need to go very far to realize the deal. The napkin math for raising your own pullets from day old is simple: cost of chick + cost of feed + labor per bird. The episode dives into these numbers and assigns values to raising your own 17 week old laying hens in flocks of 250 and 600. For comparison, we look at a non-gmo feed and a certified organic feed. Chicken math on a napkin or the back of the envelope is beautiful. Calculating the Cost of a Replacement Pullet Based on an APPPA survey I conducted several years, the average pasture-raised  egg laying flock was 225, so I’ll  round that up to 250. At the APPPA conference in Arkansas, the median sized egg flock of that group of experienced producers was somewhere around 600 birds. Let's compare those two flock sizes. I can source a day old production hybrid layer from Moyer’s for $2.50 each. If I give the birds 30 minutes of labor each day for 17 weeks, I’ve got 60 hours of labor (it’s actually 59.5 hours, but you’ll find a way to spend that half hour). We estimate total feed consumption to be 20 pounds per hen during that time. Can it be better? Yes. I can source organic feed for approximately .40/ lb and non-gmo for .30/lb. Let’s put it all together. Cost of chick + Labor per pullet + feed cost. Labor cost here is a wild card and I think we get too bogged down in the labor, but the time and effort is real. You have to account for it.  I assume a labor rate of $15 per hour. Cost to raise 250 ready-to-lay pullets Over 250 birds, you’ll put ¼ of an hour of labor into each bird. That works out to $3.75 per bird in labor. Let's add it up: $2.50 (chick cost) + $8 (feed cost) + $3.75 (labor cost). Feed is being calculated at 20 pounds at $0.40 per pound. An estimated cost to raise a hybrid point-of-lay pullet is $14.25 each in batches of 250. If I use a non-gmo feed, at .30/lb, the feed per bird is $6 and comes down to $12.25 per pullet. You can buy a 17 week-old sexlink pullet for $7.00 each, if you buy 250 at a time. Cost to raise 600 ready-to-lay pullets Now let's consider a bigger scale of 600 birds. The chick cost is $1.95 each. The organic feed cost is the same at $8. The labor per pullet comes down to $1.50. That’s a napkin cost of $11.45 per pullet on organic feed. If you feed the non-gmo, the per pullet cost becomes $9.45. You can buy a 17 week old sexlink pullet for $7.00, if you buy 600 at a time. Economies of Scale Do you get what’s happening here? There are several really important takeaways: The smaller flock you raise, the more expensive it is in terms of cost-per bird. Scale brings down the price because you can spread the same amount of labor out over a larger quantity of birds. The chickens cost less per unit when purchased in volume. Our costs didn’t even factor in other direct costs – bedding, heating, mortality, and infrastructure. Even as you match the scale, there’s something to be said for losing 17 weeks of risk. You give up the predation risk, the health risk, the improper nutrition risks of a developing pullet. If you get the nutrition of a layer wrong in her development period, she’ll never provide a profitable return on her work, regardless of how cheaply you raised her. Pastured Poultry Headlines from the Episode Muscovy Ducks. Mike talks through his Muscovy duck, non-soy feeding trial with <a href="https://www.fertrell.com/no-soy-protein-pellets" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Fertrell's new non-soy protein pellet</a>. He's also looking for producers who have experience hatching muscovies to be a guest on the podcast. Fighting Farmer Podcast. If you’re not listening to Spence on the Fighting Farmer, I encourage you to check his podcast out. We moved The Fighting Farmer to its own feed a few months ago; you can find it him on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fighting-farmer-podcast-with-terrell-spencer/id1352656485?mt=2" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">itunes</a> and <a href="https://play.google.com/music/m/Itgidaeiqd2cnh4pwyehr4l5byy?t=The_Fighting_Farmer_Podcast_with_Terrell_Spencer" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Google play</a>. Pastured Poultry in Attica New York. If you’re in the neighborhood, I'll be presenting at Herm Weber's annual pastured poultry day on the differentiation of pastured poultry from field to plate. I'm going to also bring Eli Reiff (Poultry Man) with me. The day will also include a farm tour (weather permitting) and open Q&amp;A. To register, contact Herm directly at (585) 591-0795. There is a registration fee and lunch is included.   Where to Buy Ready-to-Lay Pullets? <a href="https://millsidefarm.com/shop/full-beak-ready-to-lay-pullets" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Buy Ready to Lay pullets from Badger's Millside Farm</a> in central Pennsylvania. Badger's offers 17 week old red sexlink pullets in the spring and fall from Moyer's Chicks. All birds have a full, untrimmed beak.

Buying Ready-to-Lay Pullets and Understanding the Competitive Advantages and Opportunities for Pastured Egg Flocks

Garoleen Wilson

Correction: In the podcast episode, I  state Garoleen is producing 7,000 broilers. That was an error in my interpretation of her numbers. She's actually on track to produce 3,500 broilers on pasture in her fourth year. That still a fantastic trajectory and that growth is the point, as the numbers will fluctuate from year to year.  Pasture-raised broilers make a great side hustle, but when you're farming a niche product in a rural community, sometimes you need to think creatively and efficiently to make the business work. That's what Garoleen Wilson from Jhawk Farm in Kansas discusses on episode 89 of the Pastured Poultry Talk podcast. I first met Garoleen through my work with APPPA in 2016 as I was planning a cross-country seminar series. We had talked about potential seminar locations in Kansas. As luck would have it, we did not go to Kansas during that tour, but Garoleen did get involved with pasture-raised broilers. Her start in pastured poultry was heavily influence by a bout with uterine cancer. Cancer caused her to focus on clean eating and made her seriously evaluate what she was eating. Garoleen's story is one we see play out regularly through the pastured poultry producer community; as people seek better food, they often times turn to producing it for themselves and others. During her research, she found the Pastured Poultry Talk podcast and binge listened. She's since sought the comfort and wisdom of the pastured poultry community through APPPA has been steadily growing her pastured poultry side hustle ever since. Garoleen went from a few family hens to thousands of broilers by the end of her third year. By her fourth year, she's adapted the pastured model to fit her farm circumstances and create some of her own efficiencies. For example, Garoleen day ranges broilers inside a electric netting with regular flock moves to keep them on fresh grass. The day range model suits her time constraints and labor requirements. Mobile Brooder To reduce stress on the chicks when moving from the brooder to the pasture, Garoleen and husband Joe use a round, mobile brooder that can be drug from the brooder barn to the pasture. This eliminates the handling stress of crating, transporting, and unhandling. The brooder has a door that allows the hens to unload themselves. Check out this video from Jhawk Farm to see the mobile brooder in action. Handling Full Chicken Crates with Ease In the podcast episode, Garoleen made a few things clear. This is a pastured poultry side hustle, so she didn't have time to waste, and she's not getting any younger. These two points really punctuate the loading and handling of crates full of market-weight broilers. The practical solution? Use to rollers to move the weight onto the trailer instead of the legs, backs, and arms of the farmers. Garoleen and her chicken catch crew can load chickens into a stack of crates. Normally, each loaded crate needs to be lifted and carried onto the trailer. The physical exertion and wear on the body from moving chickens is a real health concern. To make the handling of full crates less work, Garoleen and Joe repurposed roller conveyors to easily move the stack of crates from the pasture shelter onto a stock trailer. Two tracks sit on the floor of the trailer beside each other. Another set of rollers connect the trailer floor to the ground. Crates are stacked on a piece of plywood to make rolling the stack even easier. After the stack is loaded onto the stock trailer, short blocks of wood are placed between the bottom crates to maintain air flow around all sides of the crates. At the processor, unloading crates is a one person job. Garoleen can roll each stack off the stock trailer and onto the processors unloading area in a matter of minutes. Watch the Wilsons load crates in this video: [video width="1280" height="720" mp4="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Crate-Handling-at-Jhawk-Farm.mp4"][/video] Advice for Future Pastured Poultry Farmers Garoleen encourages people to start small if they think pastured poultry is something they're interesting in pursuing. She's taking that advice in 2019 by raising just a couple dozen turkeys for Thanksgiving. Resources Contact Jhawk Farm - Facebook | Instagram | Website Named Resources:  American Pastured Poultry Producers Association (APPPA) Crowd Cow High Plains Food Coop SWOT Analysis 

Correction: In the podcast episode, I  state Garoleen is producing 7,000 broilers. That was an error in my interpretation of her numbers. She's actually on track to produce 3,500 broilers on pasture in her fourth year. That still a fantastic trajectory and that growth is the point, as the numbers will fluctuate from year to year.  Pasture-raised broilers make a great side hustle, but when you're farming a niche product in a rural community, sometimes you need to think creatively and efficiently to make the business work. That's what Garoleen Wilson from Jhawk Farm in Kansas discusses on episode 89 of the Pastured Poultry Talk podcast. I first met Garoleen through my work with APPPA in 2016 as I was planning a cross-country seminar series. We had talked about potential seminar locations in Kansas. As luck would have it, we did not go to Kansas during that tour, but Garoleen did get involved with pasture-raised broilers. Her start in pastured poultry was heavily influence by a bout with uterine cancer. Cancer caused her to focus on clean eating and made her seriously evaluate what she was eating. Garoleen's story is one we see play out regularly through the pastured poultry producer community; as people seek better food, they often times turn to producing it for themselves and others. During her research, she found the Pastured Poultry Talk podcast and binge listened. She's since sought the comfort and wisdom of the pastured poultry community through APPPA has been steadily growing her pastured poultry side hustle ever since. Garoleen went from a few family hens to thousands of broilers by the end of her third year. By her fourth year, she's adapted the pastured model to fit her farm circumstances and create some of her own efficiencies. For example, Garoleen day ranges broilers inside a electric netting with regular flock moves to keep them on fresh grass. The day range model suits her time constraints and labor requirements. Mobile Brooder To reduce stress on the chicks when moving from the brooder to the pasture, Garoleen and husband Joe use a round, mobile brooder that can be drug from the brooder barn to the pasture. This eliminates the handling stress of crating, transporting, and unhandling. The brooder has a door that allows the hens to unload themselves. Check out this video from Jhawk Farm to see the mobile brooder in action. Handling Full Chicken Crates with Ease In the podcast episode, Garoleen made a few things clear. This is a pastured poultry side hustle, so she didn't have time to waste, and she's not getting any younger. These two points really punctuate the loading and handling of crates full of market-weight broilers. The practical solution? Use to rollers to move the weight onto the trailer instead of the legs, backs, and arms of the farmers. Garoleen and her chicken catch crew can load chickens into a stack of crates. Normally, each loaded crate needs to be lifted and carried onto the trailer. The physical exertion and wear on the body from moving chickens is a real health concern. To make the handling of full crates less work, Garoleen and Joe repurposed roller conveyors to easily move the stack of crates from the pasture shelter onto a stock trailer. Two tracks sit on the floor of the trailer beside each other. Another set of rollers connect the trailer floor to the ground. Crates are stacked on a piece of plywood to make rolling the stack even easier. After the stack is loaded onto the stock trailer, short blocks of wood are placed between the bottom crates to maintain air flow around all sides of the crates. At the processor, unloading crates is a one person job. Garoleen can roll each stack off the stock trailer and onto the processors unloading area in a matter of minutes. Watch the Wilsons load crates in this video: [video width="1280" height="720" mp4="<a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Crate-Handling-at-Jhawk-Farm.mp4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Crate-Handling-at-Jhawk-Farm.mp4</a>"][/video] Advice for Future Pastured Poultry Farmers Garoleen encourages people to start small if they think pastured poultry is something they're interesting in pursuing. She's taking that advice in 2019 by raising just a couple dozen turkeys for Thanksgiving. Resources Contact Jhawk Farm - <a href="https://www.facebook.com/jhawkfarm/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/jhawkfarm/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Instagram</a> | <a href="https://jhawkfarm.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Website</a> Named Resources: <ul> <li><a href="https://apppa.org" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">American Pastured Poultry Producers Association (APPPA)</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.crowdcow.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Crowd Cow</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.highplainsfood.org/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">High Plains Food Coop</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4245-swot-analysis.html" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">SWOT Analysis</a></li> </ul>

Doing the pasture-raised broiler side hustle in rural Kansas with Garoleen Wilson

Dangerous breeders are everywhere and the internet gives them a platform to perpetuate bad breeding habits at the expense of offspring that represents the breed. A dangerous breeder is someone who produces offspring that doesn't represent the breed. They often don't know how to selectively breed, and they're not interested in learning. I may be characterized as a dangerous breeder in that I have done things that are counter to good breeding practices, but I've not really perpetuated my lack of knowledge by selling my failed breeding projects. I understand my gap in breeding knowledge and the gap in the quality of my birds. I tend to eat my lack of understanding rather than selling it. Master breeder Kenny Troiano of the Breeders Academy and Bred to Perfection podcast joins the show to help us become better breeders. Too often, when we talk to breeders about their work, we focus on the end result--the successes they've had and that leaves a large gap in knowledge for people who want to start breeding. If you want to breed well, then your effort goes way beyond mating a rooster and a hen to hatch an egg. In this episode of Pastured Poultry Talk, Kenny lays out the foundation for any serious breeding effort. You'll still need to read, to learn, and to seek a mentor, but you'll get a clear picture of the work involved. It's not an easy effort, but that's why it becomes important for you to determine your goals. If you want a few birds on the farm to admire and eat, that will have different requirements than selectively breeding a family of birds for productivity and breed representation. What Have Commercial Breeders Done The commercial breeders understand hybrid vigor, says Kenny. That understanding has produced the 300+ eggs per year layers and the meat birds that can be slaughtered as early as 35 days. It's incredible to think about that this productivity came from within the traits that already existed within the genetics of the chickens; the hybrid crosses enhance the traits. Hybrid vigor has a ceiling, however. Cross two breeds and they increase their production. Cross two hybrids and you end up with variable, unpredictable results that produce at a rate less than the original hybrids. The commercial breeders, according to Kenny have pushed their breeding so far with proprietary crossings, that they are at risk of inbreeding depression. Disease resistance is also suffering in the commercial breeding lines. A Breeding Checklist Kenny covers a lot of ground in the episode, but here are some key points to think about as you (re)start your breeding journey.  Learn the origin and history of breed you want. Understand culling and learn about defects. If you see a defect, don't buy the bird. Defects are recessive, and if you breed two birds with the same defect, all offspring will be affected. Breeding hybrids will have a variability in size, color, shape, etc. Commercial hybrids have unknown genetic qualities. Every breeder should know what their common defect is. Hint: If you're buying breeding stock, ask what the common defect is! Always select offspring that's better than the parents. When selecting birds, go beyond the top 10%. Look for the stand outs that take the family to the next level, whether that's one or a handful. Find a breeding trio to establish your program so you can see exactly what the birds are. Hatching chicks as a way to establish your family is often problematic, variable, and disappointing. Setup a clan mating system (also called spiral mating system), which is three groups of birds. The clan mating system is a good maintenance system and helps ensure genetic diversity. Kenny has not introduced new bloodlines into his breeding in over 30 years. Understand clan mating is only one of the types of breeding programs. You'll use other programs in parallel to achieve the results you want. Another common approach is to line breed. Never mix breeding birds with production birds. Only breed birds that have the potential to advance the family by selecting offspring better than the parents. Hatch has many offspring as you can afford. Understand genetics. Get a mentor and hang out with people smarter than you!  Kenny provided this reading list. His writings and Breeders Academy make these topics more accessible:  Mendel's Law of Independent Assortment Mendel's Law of Segregation Sexlink traits and quantitative traits (polygenic) Mutation theory Punnett Square  Show Resources You can connect with Kenny through any of these resources or email him directly.  Breeders Academy Podcast Breeders Bulletin (Free Email Sign up) Breeders Academy Sign Up for Pastured Poultry Talk Listeners  Publications  Poultry Press Gamefowl Breeders Manual (Amazon)  Pastured Poultry Talk Episodes Referenced  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/05/15/ppt003-hatching-eggs-on-the-homestead-with-harvey-ussery-2/  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/07/24/ppt013-not-a-backyard-chicken-club-jim-adkins-interview-part-1-2/  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/05/20/ppt051-pat-whitaker-breeds-black-australorps-for-utility/  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/07/04/breeding-delaware-chickens/

Dangerous breeders are everywhere and the internet gives them a platform to perpetuate bad breeding habits at the expense of offspring that represents the breed. A dangerous breeder is someone who produces offspring that doesn't represent the breed. They often don't know how to selectively breed, and they're not interested in learning. I may be characterized as a dangerous breeder in that I have done things that are counter to good breeding practices, but I've not really perpetuated my lack of knowledge by selling my failed breeding projects. I understand my gap in breeding knowledge and the gap in the quality of my birds. I tend to eat my lack of understanding rather than selling it. Master breeder Kenny Troiano of the Breeders Academy and Bred to Perfection podcast joins the show to help us become better breeders. Too often, when we talk to breeders about their work, we focus on the end result--the successes they've had and that leaves a large gap in knowledge for people who want to start breeding. If you want to breed well, then your effort goes way beyond mating a rooster and a hen to hatch an egg. In this episode of Pastured Poultry Talk, Kenny lays out the foundation for any serious breeding effort. You'll still need to read, to learn, and to seek a mentor, but you'll get a clear picture of the work involved. It's not an easy effort, but that's why it becomes important for you to determine your goals. If you want a few birds on the farm to admire and eat, that will have different requirements than selectively breeding a family of birds for productivity and breed representation. What Have Commercial Breeders Done The commercial breeders understand hybrid vigor, says Kenny. That understanding has produced the 300+ eggs per year layers and the meat birds that can be slaughtered as early as 35 days. It's incredible to think about that this productivity came from within the traits that already existed within the genetics of the chickens; the hybrid crosses enhance the traits. Hybrid vigor has a ceiling, however. Cross two breeds and they increase their production. Cross two hybrids and you end up with variable, unpredictable results that produce at a rate less than the original hybrids. The commercial breeders, according to Kenny have pushed their breeding so far with proprietary crossings, that they are at risk of inbreeding depression. Disease resistance is also suffering in the commercial breeding lines. A Breeding Checklist Kenny covers a lot of ground in the episode, but here are some key points to think about as you (re)start your breeding journey. <ul> <li>Learn the origin and history of breed you want.</li> <li>Understand culling and learn about defects.</li> <li>If you see a defect, don't buy the bird. Defects are recessive, and if you breed two birds with the same defect, all offspring will be affected.</li> <li>Breeding hybrids will have a variability in size, color, shape, etc. Commercial hybrids have unknown genetic qualities.</li> <li>Every breeder should know what their common defect is. Hint: If you're buying breeding stock, ask what the common defect is!</li> <li>Always select offspring that's better than the parents. When selecting birds, go beyond the top 10%. Look for the stand outs that take the family to the next level, whether that's one or a handful.</li> <li>Find a breeding trio to establish your program so you can see exactly what the birds are. Hatching chicks as a way to establish your family is often problematic, variable, and disappointing.</li> <li>Setup a clan mating system (also called spiral mating system), which is three groups of birds. The clan mating system is a good maintenance system and helps ensure genetic diversity. Kenny has not introduced new bloodlines into his breeding in over 30 years.</li> <li>Understand clan mating is only one of the types of breeding programs. You'll use other programs in parallel to achieve the results you want. Another common approach is to line breed.</li> <li>Never mix breeding birds with production birds.</li> <li>Only breed birds that have the potential to advance the family by selecting offspring better than the parents.</li> <li>Hatch has many offspring as you can afford.</li> <li>Understand genetics.</li> <li>Get a mentor and hang out with people smarter than you!</li> </ul> Kenny provided this reading list. His writings and Breeders Academy make these topics more accessible: <ul> <li>Mendel's Law of Independent Assortment</li> <li>Mendel's Law of Segregation</li> <li>Sexlink traits and quantitative traits (polygenic)</li> <li>Mutation theory</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punnett_square" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Punnett Square</a></li> </ul> Show Resources <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/BreedersAcademy" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"></a>You can connect with Kenny through any of these resources or <a href="https://www.breedersacademy.com/contact/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">email him</a> directly. <ul> <li><a href="https://www.breedersacademy.com/category/podcast_show/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Breeders Academy Podcast</a></li> <li><a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/BreedersBulletin" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Breeders Bulletin</a> (Free Email Sign up)</li> <li><a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/BreedersAcademy" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Breeders Academy Sign Up</a> for Pastured Poultry Talk Listeners</li> </ul> Publications <ul> <li><a href="https://www.poultrypress.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Poultry Press</a></li> <li>Gamefowl Breeders Manual (<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gamefowl-Breeders-Manual-Cockers-Guide/dp/1426960247" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a>)</li> </ul> Pastured Poultry Talk Episodes Referenced <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/05/15/ppt003-hatching-eggs-on-the-homestead-with-harvey-ussery-2/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/05/15/ppt003-hatching-eggs-on-the-homestead-with-harvey-ussery-2/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/07/24/ppt013-not-a-backyard-chicken-club-jim-adkins-interview-part-1-2/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/07/24/ppt013-not-a-backyard-chicken-club-jim-adkins-interview-part-1-2/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/05/20/ppt051-pat-whitaker-breeds-black-australorps-for-utility/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/05/20/ppt051-pat-whitaker-breeds-black-australorps-for-utility/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/07/04/breeding-delaware-chickens/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/07/04/breeding-delaware-chickens/</a>

How to avoid being a dangerous chicken breeder

Episode 70. Beginning pastured poultry farmers have a common question: "What are the margins in raising pastured poultry?" In other words, "will it work?" The margins in your pasture-raised broiler business is what's left over after you pay for expenses. The margin is the profit that goes back into the business. Mike Badger answers that listener question in this episode by showing you how to calculate the cost of the raising a broiler. This question has been answered before by Mike and Grady Phelan. In episode 28, Mike and Grady walk through calculating price in different housing systems and at different scale. Listen to PPT028 How to set broiler prices that show a profit. Pastured Poultry Headlines Pastured Poultry Nutrition: A European study, “Fatty acid composition of breast meat in two lines of slow-growing chickens reared conventionally or on pasture by Teodora Popova” concluded that the the pastured poultry production model contributed to higher omega 3 and lower omega 6:3 ratio. The study looked at the effect of genetics and pastured poultry model and concluded that the pasture had a greater impact. The lines of birds were La Belle and Bresse Gauloise. Read the report. Speckled Sussex Hatched: Mike sourced, incubated, and hatched a small batch of Speckled Sussex chicks. 20 chicks are in the brooder right now. The Speckled Sussex is a dual purpose breed with a great disposition. Hens lay a large egg. It's an all around great homestead bird. More info coming soon. The Badger's love this breed. Muscovy Ducks: Mike is currently evaluating Fertrell's non-soy protein crumble by custom feeding a group of Muscovy Ducks from Fifth Day Hatchery. Stay tuned for updates on the ducks and the feed. What are the margins on pasture-raised broilers? Listener Alex is contemplating a move to back to the farm and simply asks, is pastured poultry feasible and is there enough margin to support a family? Mike walks through the basic formula for figuring out how much it costs to raise each pound of pasture-raised chicken for a group of 250 birds to a 4 pound carcass. The big variables are feed cost, feed conversion, and labor, but you need to start somewhere. This exercise yields a conservative and ideal price per pound that can be adjusted for local markets and goals. Episode 52 of PPT is recommended because it shows how Mike uses Pastured Poultry to make a living. Spoiler alert: it's not all from raising and selling chicken to consumers. Also mentioned in this episode: Fighting Farmer 22 - complementary farm enterprises. Fighting farmer 21 - Value-adding poultry.

Episode 70. Beginning pastured poultry farmers have a common question: "What are the margins in raising pastured poultry?" In other words, "will it work?" The margins in your pasture-raised broiler business is what's left over after you pay for expenses. The margin is the profit that goes back into the business. Mike Badger answers that listener question in this episode by showing you how to calculate the cost of the raising a broiler. This question has been answered before by Mike and Grady Phelan. In episode 28, Mike and Grady walk through calculating price in different housing systems and at different scale. <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2015/11/14/ppt028-how-to-set-broiler-prices-that-show-a-profit-2/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Listen to PPT028 How to set broiler prices that show a profit</a>. Pastured Poultry Headlines Pastured Poultry Nutrition: A European study, “Fatty acid composition of breast meat in two lines of slow-growing chickens reared conventionally or on pasture by Teodora Popova” concluded that the the pastured poultry production model contributed to higher omega 3 and lower omega 6:3 ratio. The study looked at the effect of genetics and pastured poultry model and concluded that the pasture had a greater impact. The lines of birds were La Belle and Bresse Gauloise. <a href="https://www.ijfsab.com/index.php/fsab/article/view/7" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Read the report</a>. Speckled Sussex Hatched: Mike sourced, incubated, and hatched a small batch of Speckled Sussex chicks. 20 chicks are in the brooder right now. The Speckled Sussex is a dual purpose breed with a great disposition. Hens lay a large egg. It's an all around great homestead bird. More info coming soon. The Badger's love this breed. Muscovy Ducks: Mike is currently evaluating <a href="https://www.fertrell.com/no-soy-protein-pellets" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Fertrell's non-soy protein crumble</a> by custom feeding a group of Muscovy Ducks from <a href="https://www.freedomrangerhatchery.com/details.asp?List=1&amp;Product=5" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Fifth Day Hatchery</a>. Stay tuned for updates on the ducks and the feed. What are the margins on pasture-raised broilers? Listener Alex is contemplating a move to back to the farm and simply asks, is pastured poultry feasible and is there enough margin to support a family? Mike walks through the basic formula for figuring out how much it costs to raise each pound of pasture-raised chicken for a group of 250 birds to a 4 pound carcass. The big variables are feed cost, feed conversion, and labor, but you need to start somewhere. This exercise yields a conservative and ideal price per pound that can be adjusted for local markets and goals. <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2017/08/29/ppt052-pastured-poultry-set-me-free/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 52 of PPT</a> is recommended because it shows how Mike uses Pastured Poultry to make a living. Spoiler alert: it's not all from raising and selling chicken to consumers. Also mentioned in this episode: Fighting Farmer 22 - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ff-022-complementary-farm-enterprises/id1352656485?i=1000414276197&amp;mt=2" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">complementary farm enterprises</a>. Fighting farmer 21 - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ff-021-beyond-the-whole-bird-adding-value-to-pasture-poultry/id1352656485?i=1000413507690&amp;mt=2" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Value-adding poultry</a>.

How to calculate the margins of a pasture-raised broiler business

It's no surprise that I'm hot on the  podcasting medium. Pastured Poultry Talk is a podcast, after all. In Episode 93 of the show, Kenny Troiano referenced his podcast, Bred to Perfection, as a primary marketing asset for his membership site. The publication of the episode was well timed because it happened soon after I returned from the Podcast Movement conference in Orlando. If you want to hone your pastured poultry business, you associate with expert people (through APPPA, for example). If you want to develop your podcasting craft, you seek out the smartest people you can and spend time with them. That's what Podcast Movement was for me. Here are the key points:  Don't be afraid to selectively focus on a niche group for your products and farm. Success will demand it. Don't measure your success by impressions or population; there's a subset of the existing population who is your customer. Develop your marketing so that it creates relationships, so you can connect with your niche. If you're already engaged in relationship based marketing, you can power up your approach with a podcast targeted to your customers (not other farmers). You're already creating the content; repurpose it.  Resources  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/08/13/ppt073-exploring-the-intersection-of-podcasting-pastured-poultry-farming-and-business/  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/08/27/dangerous-breeder/

It's no surprise that I'm hot on the  podcasting medium. Pastured Poultry Talk is a podcast, after all. In Episode 93 of the show, Kenny Troiano referenced his podcast, <a href="https://breedersacademy.com" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Bred to Perfection</a>, as a primary marketing asset for his membership site. The publication of the episode was well timed because it happened soon after I returned from the Podcast Movement conference in Orlando. If you want to hone your pastured poultry business, you associate with expert people (through APPPA, for example). If you want to develop your podcasting craft, you seek out the smartest people you can and spend time with them. That's what Podcast Movement was for me. Here are the key points: <ol> <li>Don't be afraid to selectively focus on a niche group for your products and farm. Success will demand it.</li> <li>Don't measure your success by impressions or population; there's a subset of the existing population who is your customer.</li> <li>Develop your marketing so that it creates relationships, so you can connect with your niche.</li> <li>If you're already engaged in relationship based marketing, you can power up your approach with a podcast targeted to your customers (not other farmers). You're already creating the content; repurpose it.</li> </ol> Resources <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/08/13/ppt073-exploring-the-intersection-of-podcasting-pastured-poultry-farming-and-business/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/08/13/ppt073-exploring-the-intersection-of-podcasting-pastured-poultry-farming-and-business/</a> <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/08/27/dangerous-breeder/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/08/27/dangerous-breeder/</a>

PPT094: What podcasting teaches us about marketing pastured poultry

Rebecca Thistlethwaite

Rebbeca Thistlethwaite and her co-author and husband Jim Dunlop wrote the book The New Livestock Farmer: The Business of Raising and Selling Ethical Meats and the author of Farms of the Future. Between them, they have a diverse livestock, orchard, and vegetable farming history. Their pastured poultry production includes layers (flocks as large as 5,000), broilers (up to 10,000 a year), a few hundred turkeys.We cover: The challenges of marketing underground broilers. The marketing reality of Broad Breasted and heritage turkeys. How writing the book helped Rebecca and Jim decide the future of their commercial farming ventures. What is an ethical meat? The three questions you can ask yourself to be more like a hedgehog. Principled marketing and the 80/20 rule to the lifetime value of a customer. Should your customer pay increasingly higher prices for your inefficiencies?Links to Resources: Buy The New Livestock Farmer* by Thistlethwaite and Dunlop Good to Great* by Jim Collins (a book mentioned in the podcast by Rebecca) Rebecca Thistlethwaite*Amazon affiliate link

Rebbeca Thistlethwaite and her co-author and husband Jim Dunlop wrote the book The New Livestock Farmer: The Business of Raising and Selling Ethical Meats and the author of Farms of the Future. Between them, they have a diverse livestock, orchard, and vegetable farming history. Their pastured poultry production includes layers (flocks as large as 5,000), broilers (up to 10,000 a year), a few hundred turkeys. We cover: <ul> <li>The challenges of marketing underground broilers.</li> <li>The marketing reality of Broad Breasted and heritage turkeys.</li> <li>How writing the book helped Rebecca and Jim decide the future of their commercial farming ventures.</li> <li>What is an ethical meat?</li> <li>The three questions you can ask yourself to be more like a hedgehog.</li> <li>Principled marketing and the 80/20 rule to the lifetime value of a customer.</li> <li>Should your customer pay increasingly higher prices for your inefficiencies?</li></ul>Links to Resources: <ul> <li>Buy <a href="http://amzn.to/20PR3b6" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The New Livestock Farmer</a>* by Thistlethwaite and Dunlop</li> <li><a href="http://amzn.to/20PRiTi" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Good to Great</a>* by Jim Collins (a book mentioned in the podcast by Rebecca)</li> <li><a href="http://rebeccathistlethwaite.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Rebecca Thistlethwaite</a></li></ul>*Amazon affiliate link

PPT034: Author Rebecca Thistlethwaite Discusses Producing and Marketing Ethical Meats

Members of the UC Davis pastured poultry research farm join the podcast to tell us about their project. Mike is joined by Dr. Richard Blatchford and Carine Elkhoraibi. The project describes itself as "a new education, research and innovation hub for pastured poultry producers (layers and broilers), master gardeners, backyard flock keepers, academia, students, food buyers, food safety and animal welfare auditors."In this episode, the UC Davis teams introduces the project and its goals. At the time of the recording, the farm's first batch of 150 layers were approaching laying age. We talked about brooding, egg mobile design, predators, research, Avian Influenza, Proposition 2 and more.Resources Learn more about the UC Davis pastured poultry  project. Plans for an Egg Mobile and portable shade structure are available in the Innovations at the Farm PDF.

Members of the UC Davis pastured poultry research farm join the podcast to tell us about their project. Mike is joined by Dr. Richard Blatchford and Carine Elkhoraibi. The project describes itself as "a new education, research and innovation hub for pastured poultry producers (layers and broilers), master gardeners, backyard flock keepers, academia, students, food buyers, food safety and animal welfare auditors." In this episode, the UC Davis teams introduces the project and its goals. At the time of the recording, the farm's first batch of 150 layers were approaching laying age. We talked about brooding, egg mobile design, predators, research, Avian Influenza, Proposition 2 and more. Resources <ul> <li>Learn more about the UC Davis pastured poultry <a href="http://ucanr.edu/sites/poultry/UC_Davis_Pasture_Poultry_and_Innovation_Farm/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> project</a>.</li> <li>Plans for an Egg Mobile and portable shade structure are available in the <a href="http://ucanr.edu/sites/poultry/files/230117.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Innovations at the Farm PDF</a>.</li></ul>

PPT033: UC Davis Builds an Egg Mobile and Joins the Pastured Poultry Community

[caption id="attachment_1113" align="alignright" width="300"] Plucked chickens ready to be examined along with healthy hearts, liver, and gizzard.[/caption] Episode 68, I help you identify poultry production problems from your gutting table. When your chickens are laying on your table naked and unafraid, they hold no secrets. It's the perfect time to observe them as a way to identify production problems. This episode examines the scratches, bruises, hearts, livers, gizzards, green muscle disease, ascites, and uneven growth and ties it back what happened during the growout period. Pastured Poultry News Round Up  A Small Business Administration report identifies over $1 billion in bad loans for contract poultry barns. At issue is whether or not poultry contract growers are really independent businesses or just affiliates of the integrators. Spoiler alert. SBA calls them affiliates and therefore finds they aren't entitled to taxpayer subsidized and guaranteed loans. Read article. Ding. Dong. The Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices update to the NOP is officially dead. Fertrell announces a non-soy protein pellet that doesn't sacrifice growth. Check them out. Poultry Man developed a new universal, round kill cone for broilers, hens, ducks, geese, and heritage turkeys. Contact info@millsidefarm.com for details.  Ascites (aka water belly) You identify ascites by the belly full of fluid and purple skin. Ascites likely happened weeks before and many times can be traced to a traumatic event in the brooder-at least for most pastured poultry producers. Scratches on Back of Broilers When the back of your broilers are scratched up, you have feeding problem. It's time to reevaluate your approach to feeding and management. Bruises and Dislocations Did you know that a bruise requires blood, and the color of a bruise is an indicator of the age of the bruise? It is. Many times you blame the plucker for breaking your chicken's wing, but if there is bruising, look at handling errors or other injuries in the field. Runts and Uneven Growth Of all the things I talk about on this episode, identifying the cause of uneven growth is the most difficult to diagnose. I share some common places to investigate. It's not always genetic, and it's not always your feed. Green Muscle Disease Also called deep pectoral myopathy. Green muscle is discovered by the green decaying tender of large breasted birds. You only see it when you cut open the bird. While green muscle is likely genetically predisposed, a high incidence rate is a signal that you should look for problems in the field. Healthy Hearts, Livers, and Gizzards Always examine the organs. Healthy livers have crisp edges, a uniform color, and are firm. Hearts should be firm, have a bit of fat on the tip, and muscular walls. The gizzard should be firm, large, and muscular. There's a good test when dealing the organs and judging their health. Ask yourself, "would I eat that?" If the answer is no, then there's a problem.  ==&gt; Download a live processing cost calculator that Mike uses to estimate equipment costs, labor costs, and total cost of processing your own chickens.   Have some feedback? mike@pasturedpoultrytalk.com

[caption id="attachment_1113" align="alignright" width="300"] Plucked chickens ready to be examined along with healthy hearts, liver, and gizzard.[/caption] Episode 68, I help you identify poultry production problems from your gutting table. When your chickens are laying on your table naked and unafraid, they hold no secrets. It's the perfect time to observe them as a way to identify production problems. This episode examines the scratches, bruises, hearts, livers, gizzards, green muscle disease, ascites, and uneven growth and ties it back what happened during the growout period. Pastured Poultry News Round Up <ul> <li>A Small Business Administration report identifies over $1 billion in bad loans for contract poultry barns. At issue is whether or not poultry contract growers are really independent businesses or just affiliates of the integrators. Spoiler alert. SBA calls them affiliates and therefore finds they aren't entitled to taxpayer subsidized and guaranteed loans. <a href="http://sustainableagriculture.net/blog/sba-oig-report-2018/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Read article</a>.</li> <li>Ding. Dong. The Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices update to the NOP is officially dead.</li> <li>Fertrell announces a non-soy protein pellet that doesn't sacrifice growth. <a href="http://fertrell.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Check them out</a>.</li> <li>Poultry Man developed a new universal, round kill cone for broilers, hens, ducks, geese, and heritage turkeys. Contact info@millsidefarm.com for details.</li> </ul> Ascites (aka water belly) You identify ascites by the belly full of fluid and purple skin. Ascites likely happened weeks before and many times can be traced to a traumatic event in the brooder-at least for most pastured poultry producers. Scratches on Back of Broilers When the back of your broilers are scratched up, you have feeding problem. It's time to reevaluate your approach to feeding and management. Bruises and Dislocations Did you know that a bruise requires blood, and the color of a bruise is an indicator of the age of the bruise? It is. Many times you blame the plucker for breaking your chicken's wing, but if there is bruising, look at handling errors or other injuries in the field. Runts and Uneven Growth Of all the things I talk about on this episode, identifying the cause of uneven growth is the most difficult to diagnose. I share some common places to investigate. It's not always genetic, and it's not always your feed. Green Muscle Disease Also called deep pectoral myopathy. Green muscle is discovered by the green decaying tender of large breasted birds. You only see it when you cut open the bird. While green muscle is likely genetically predisposed, a high incidence rate is a signal that you should look for problems in the field. Healthy Hearts, Livers, and Gizzards Always examine the organs. Healthy livers have crisp edges, a uniform color, and are firm. Hearts should be firm, have a bit of fat on the tip, and muscular walls. The gizzard should be firm, large, and muscular. There's a good test when dealing the organs and judging their health. Ask yourself, "would I eat that?" If the answer is no, then there's a problem. ==&gt; <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/processing-cost-calculator/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Download a live processing cost calculator</a> that Mike uses to estimate equipment costs, labor costs, and total cost of processing your own chickens.  Have some feedback? mike@pasturedpoultrytalk.com

Troubleshooting Chicken Health Problems During Processing

Charlotte Smith

Farmer, marketer, and author Charlotte Smith joins the podcast to talk about relationship marketing, or as she puts it, farm marketing from the heart. The farm's signature product is raw milk with diversified offerings of eggs, chicken, and turkey. The inspiration for Charlotte's 3 Cow Marketing service came from the realization that she sold out of her products when the neighboring farms struggled even though they were selling comparable productions. People started asking her for help. In this show we talk about what it means to know your dream customer and discuss:  The high failure rate of new farms. 80% fail within the second year. How to avoid competition and price push back. The differences between an on-farm store with hours versus an honor system. Why it's important to set aside marketing time. What farmers can do to position their farms for success. Advice for marketing pastured poultry while employed at an off-farm job. Growing beyond those first 20 customers. Building relationships with people you may never meet. The difference between talking and listening with your customers. You're a rockstar and your customer wants to hear what you have to say. Should you as a farmer write a book for your customers?  Charlotte's favorite resource: Email marketing software from MailerLite (It's free for the first 1,000 emails). Recommended book: Joel Salatin's  Your Successful Farm Business. Contact Charlotte 3 cow Marketing The Profitable Farm Faceboook Group Books from Episode

Farmer, marketer, and author Charlotte Smith joins the podcast to talk about relationship marketing, or as she puts it, farm marketing from the heart. The farm's signature product is raw milk with diversified offerings of eggs, chicken, and turkey. The inspiration for Charlotte's 3 Cow Marketing service came from the realization that she sold out of her products when the neighboring farms struggled even though they were selling comparable productions. People started asking her for help. In this show we talk about what it means to know your dream customer and discuss: <ul> <li>The high failure rate of new farms. 80% fail within the second year.</li> <li>How to avoid competition and price push back.</li> <li>The differences between an on-farm store with hours versus an honor system.</li> <li>Why it's important to set aside marketing time.</li> <li>What farmers can do to position their farms for success.</li> <li>Advice for marketing pastured poultry while employed at an off-farm job.</li> <li>Growing beyond those first 20 customers.</li> <li>Building relationships with people you may never meet.</li> <li>The difference between talking and listening with your customers.</li> <li>You're a rockstar and your customer wants to hear what you have to say.</li> <li>Should you as a farmer write a book for your customers?</li> </ul> Charlotte's favorite resource: Email marketing software from <a href="http://www.mailerlite.com/a/8cqgxf8yko" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">MailerLite</a> (It's free for the first 1,000 emails). Recommended book: Joel Salatin's <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0963810987/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=pasturedpoultrytalk-20&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;creativeASIN=0963810987&amp;linkId=9d495441859df2513270012378dbc9d6" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Your Successful Farm Business</a>. Contact Charlotte <a href="http://www.3cowmarketing.com?ppt" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">3 cow Marketing</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/theprofitablefarm/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Profitable Farm Faceboook Group</a> Books from Episode

PPT058: Interview with Charlotte Smith | Building Relationships with Farm Marketing from the Heart

Ready-to-Lay pullets, also called started pullets, are an economical way for pastured poultry producers and family egg flocks replace their laying hen flock. By buying started pullets, you typically pay less for each bird than it would cost you to produce it, and you eliminate up to 17 weeks of risk from disease, depredations, and management. When I hold pullet days through Badger's Millside Farm, I find myself answering many questions about bringing pullets into lay and acclimating them to the farm. This episode was inspired by my last ready-to-lay pullet day. Here's what I cover in the episode with timestamps [mm:ss]:  [01:59] How to transport ready-to-lay pullets. [05:22] The Fighting Farmer podcast talks about crating and transporting broilers. [05:41] Mixing ready-to-lay pullets with older hens. [06:15] Practice all-in all-on flock rotations with new started pullets. [11:11] Each type of bird has a management guide available from breeder. [12:34] Should you provide supplemental light and if so, how? [14:44] Don't stimulate your pullet with light if she doesn't weigh enough. [15:31] Supplemental light schedule for pullets. [16:51] how to acclimate the flock too food and water. [22:26] How much should started pullets weigh? [24:45] Phased feeding overview for layer rations. [26:10] What lay rate should I expect? [28:28] Molting hens into a second lay cycle. [30:32] An overview of the ready-to lay-pullet on-boarding plan.  Recommended listen  http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/04/26/buying-ready-to-lay-pullets-and-understanding-the-competitive-advantages-and-opportunities-for-pastured-egg-flocks/

Ready-to-Lay pullets, also called started pullets, are an economical way for pastured poultry producers and family egg flocks replace their laying hen flock. By buying started pullets, you typically pay less for each bird than it would cost you to produce it, and you eliminate up to 17 weeks of risk from disease, depredations, and management. When I hold <a href="http://millsidefarm.com/shop/full-beak-ready-to-lay-pullets" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">pullet days through Badger's Millside Farm</a>, I find myself answering many questions about bringing pullets into lay and acclimating them to the farm. This episode was inspired by my last ready-to-lay pullet day. Here's what I cover in the episode with timestamps [mm:ss]: <ul> <li>[01:59] How to transport ready-to-lay pullets.</li> <li>[05:22] The Fighting Farmer podcast talks about <a href="http://thefightingfarmer.libsyn.com/ff-027-live-transporting-poultry-to-the-processor" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">crating and transporting broilers.</a></li> <li>[05:41] Mixing ready-to-lay pullets with older hens.</li> <li>[06:15] Practice all-in all-on flock rotations with new started pullets.</li> <li>[11:11] Each type of bird has a management guide available from breeder.</li> <li>[12:34] Should you provide supplemental light and if so, how?</li> <li>[14:44] Don't stimulate your pullet with light if she doesn't weigh enough.</li> <li>[15:31] Supplemental light schedule for pullets.</li> <li>[16:51] how to acclimate the flock too food and water.</li> <li>[22:26] How much should started pullets weigh?</li> <li>[24:45] Phased feeding overview for layer rations.</li> <li>[26:10] What lay rate should I expect?</li> <li>[28:28] Molting hens into a second lay cycle.</li> <li>[30:32] An overview of the ready-to lay-pullet on-boarding plan.</li> </ul> Recommended listen <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/04/26/buying-ready-to-lay-pullets-and-understanding-the-competitive-advantages-and-opportunities-for-pastured-egg-flocks/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/04/26/buying-ready-to-lay-pullets-and-understanding-the-competitive-advantages-and-opportunities-for-pastured-egg-flocks/</a>

PPT075: Bringing Ready-to-Lay Pullets onto Your Farm

Dr. Michael Rothrock of USDA joins the show to discuss bacteria on pastured poultry. He overviews his research into the common food safety bacteria: campylobacter, salmonella, listeria, and E. Coli. He's not trying to figure out how pastured poultry compares to conventional poultry production. Rather, he's trying to figure out how "well" each individual farm is doing, and then work in the context of that farm. Not all bacteria has human health impacts, so it's vitally important to know what we're dealing with. In other words, not all salmonella is equal. And in Dr. Rothrock's research, he's setting out to identify as much bacteria as possible and then determine its type.   Contact:  Michael J. Rothrock Jr., Ph.D. Research Microbiologist USDA-ARS US National Poultry Research Center 706-546-3072 (office) Michael.rothrock@ars.usda.gov Sponsors: This podcast brought to you by Henlight, a fully automated solar powered lighting system for pastured egg flocks.

Dr. Michael Rothrock of USDA joins the show to discuss bacteria on pastured poultry. He overviews his research into the common food safety bacteria: campylobacter, salmonella, listeria, and E. Coli. He's not trying to figure out how pastured poultry compares to conventional poultry production. Rather, he's trying to figure out how "well" each individual farm is doing, and then work in the context of that farm. Not all bacteria has human health impacts, so it's vitally important to know what we're dealing with. In other words, not all salmonella is equal. And in Dr. Rothrock's research, he's setting out to identify as much bacteria as possible and then determine its type.   Contact:  Michael J. Rothrock Jr., Ph.D. Research Microbiologist USDA-ARS US National Poultry Research Center 706-546-3072 (office) Michael.rothrock@ars.usda.gov Sponsors: This podcast brought to you by <a href="http://www.henlight.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Henlight</a>, a fully automated solar powered lighting system for pastured egg flocks.

PPT057: Interview with a USDA Scientist About Pastured Poultry Food Safety and (non)Pathogenic Bacteria

In the week or so preceding this episode, Polyface announced it was slaughtering one of its sacred cows. They were going to ship product. Social media was a angry throng of pastured poultry injustice warriors. If you're looking for commentary on Daniel and Joel's decision, you're in the wrong spot. My commentary is for the people commenting, and I'll place that commentary in the context of pastured poultry. Episode 89 of the podcast featured Garoleen Wilson and Jhawk Farm in Kansas. That chat Garoleen brought into focus the context from which we should be evaluating whether or not shipping is a viable option for your farm. It won't be for everybody, but that doesn't mean it's wrong for the community at-large. A critical distinction, from my perch, is to ask yourself, what are the principles that can't be compromised and what are the limiting beliefs (for you Ravenscraft listeners)? Shipping is a limiting belief, an obstacle that could prevent you from growth. It could keep you and the community from relevance. Or it could fizzle from the consumer demand. I implore you to go beyond the copy cat-style of production. Don't adopt another farms business vision, mission, and beliefs just because you idolize what they're doing.  Learn your craft. Learn the principles to stand on and then innovate around those principles. In pasture-raised poultry, two principles to stand on are rotational grazing and seasonally appropriate outdoor production. Should you ship pasture-raised poultry? Not all of us live on the coast or have easy access to population centers that can sustain a direct-to-consumer model. Garoleen lives in a county that is 30 miles x 30 miles and has a population of 3,600 people. It's over two hours to a town that's big enough to support a Wal-Mart. She's producing as many chickens as there are people in her county. And we know not everyone in the county is eating pastured poultry. Garoleen has the foundation for her pastured poultry business - she can articulate a why, a how, and a what. To make it a business, she has to work through coops and distributors. The coop takes the chicken to the Denver and Golden, Colorado markets and stretches local to about 200 miles. She also works with Crowd Cow who consigns the chicken and then ships it through the mail to customers. These two sales channels enable Jhawk Farm to grow a business that wouldn't have been feasible 10 years ago. The coop would have been possible, but the expanded regional or national distribution would not. And it's that additional option that builds scale within the community or at least provides potential. The fight for relevance is real. Pastured poultry gets an upsized exposure due to social media and the ease of information delivery. But if we want to impact the health of the environment, the health of the chickens, the health of our rural economies, and the health of our eaters, we need to slaughter some sacred cows. If shipping product bothers you, take a personal stand.  Don't abstain just because you heard a presentation five, ten, or twenty years ago. Resources  https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/07/16/side-hustle-kansas/

In the week or so preceding this episode, Polyface announced it was slaughtering one of its sacred cows. They were going to ship product. Social media was a angry throng of pastured poultry injustice warriors. If you're looking for commentary on Daniel and Joel's decision, you're in the wrong spot. My commentary is for the people commenting, and I'll place that commentary in the context of pastured poultry. Episode 89 of the podcast featured Garoleen Wilson and Jhawk Farm in Kansas. That chat Garoleen brought into focus the context from which we should be evaluating whether or not shipping is a viable option for your farm. It won't be for everybody, but that doesn't mean it's wrong for the community at-large. A critical distinction, from my perch, is to ask yourself, what are the principles that can't be compromised and what are the limiting beliefs (for you Ravenscraft listeners)? Shipping is a limiting belief, an obstacle that could prevent you from growth. It could keep you and the community from relevance. Or it could fizzle from the consumer demand. I implore you to go beyond the copy cat-style of production. Don't adopt another farms business vision, mission, and beliefs just because you idolize what they're doing.  Learn your craft. Learn the principles to stand on and then innovate around those principles. In pasture-raised poultry, two principles to stand on are rotational grazing and seasonally appropriate outdoor production. Should you ship pasture-raised poultry? Not all of us live on the coast or have easy access to population centers that can sustain a direct-to-consumer model. Garoleen lives in a county that is 30 miles x 30 miles and has a population of 3,600 people. It's over two hours to a town that's big enough to support a Wal-Mart. She's producing as many chickens as there are people in her county. And we know not everyone in the county is eating pastured poultry. Garoleen has the foundation for her pastured poultry business - she can articulate a why, a how, and a what. To make it a business, she has to work through coops and distributors. The coop takes the chicken to the Denver and Golden, Colorado markets and stretches local to about 200 miles. She also works with Crowd Cow who consigns the chicken and then ships it through the mail to customers. These two sales channels enable Jhawk Farm to grow a business that wouldn't have been feasible 10 years ago. The coop would have been possible, but the expanded regional or national distribution would not. And it's that additional option that builds scale within the community or at least provides potential. The fight for relevance is real. Pastured poultry gets an upsized exposure due to social media and the ease of information delivery. But if we want to impact the health of the environment, the health of the chickens, the health of our rural economies, and the health of our eaters, we need to slaughter some sacred cows. If shipping product bothers you, take a personal stand.  Don't abstain just because you heard a presentation five, ten, or twenty years ago. Resources <a href="https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/07/16/side-hustle-kansas/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2019/07/16/side-hustle-kansas/</a>

PPT090: Is it time for pastured poultry to slaughter some sacred cows?

Mark Kastel

Mike interviews Mark Kastel of Cornucopia Institute to discuss the Institute's report "Scrambled Eggs: Separating Factory Farm Egg Production from Authentic Organic Agriculture." The gold standard in organic egg production, according to Mark, is smaller, pasture-raised flocks, and these are the farms that earn the coveted 5-egg rating in the accompanying egg scorecard.  At about 14 minutes, Mark starts drawing a distinction between pasture-raised and enhanced outdoor access. Enhanced outdoor access (a 4 egg rating), he says, is what mainstream organic consumers think they're getting, but the prevailing marketplace reality is not even close. This short interview will give you insights into the organic egg production, but the full report is recommended reading as it demonstrates a understanding of pasture-raised in the context of the issues facing farmers. Resources: Organic Egg Scorecard Cornucopia's Scrambled Egg Report

Mike interviews Mark Kastel of Cornucopia Institute to discuss the Institute's report "Scrambled Eggs: Separating Factory Farm Egg Production from Authentic Organic Agriculture." The gold standard in organic egg production, according to Mark, is smaller, pasture-raised flocks, and these are the farms that earn the coveted 5-egg rating in the accompanying egg scorecard.  At about 14 minutes, Mark starts drawing a distinction between pasture-raised and enhanced outdoor access. Enhanced outdoor access (a 4 egg rating), he says, is what mainstream organic consumers think they're getting, but the prevailing marketplace reality is not even close. This short interview will give you insights into the organic egg production, but the full report is recommended reading as it demonstrates a understanding of pasture-raised in the context of the issues facing farmers. Resources: <a href="http://www.cornucopia.org/organic-egg-scorecard/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Organic Egg Scorecard</a> <a href="http://www.cornucopia.org/scrambled-eggs-separating-factory-farm-egg-production-from-authentic-organic-agriculture/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Cornucopia's Scrambled Egg Report</a>

PPT031: Mark Kastel of Cornucopia Institute discusses organic egg production

Certified organic is a systems based certification; it doesn't actually certify the product through testing. As a producer, the current system bugs me because consumers are paying for something they think is different and often times, the only difference is feed. Even that difference can be questionable and uncertain. The real question for consumers is, "Do you really want something different, or are you ok with being lied to?" In other news, we've got Ready To Lay pullets available in NW Arkansas in the spring  and some old hens that are looking for new homes. (contact Mike for Pennsylvania needs). Connect with Spence: Web | Facebook.

Certified organic is a systems based certification; it doesn't actually certify the product through testing. As a producer, the current system bugs me because consumers are paying for something they think is different and often times, the only difference is feed. Even that difference can be questionable and uncertain. The real question for consumers is, "Do you really want something different, or are you ok with being lied to?" In other news, we've got Ready To Lay pullets available in NW Arkansas in the spring  and some old hens that are looking for new homes. (contact <a href="http://millsidefarm.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mike</a> for Pennsylvania needs). Connect with Spence: <a href="http://acrossthecreekfarm.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Web</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Across-the-Creek-Farm-189882817701977/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Facebook</a>.

The Fighting Farmer Takes on Fake Organic

Travis Salatin

In this Kids in Commerce episode, Travis Salatin of Polyface discusses his Khaki Campbell duck business. Travis' advice to other kids who are starting a business: "start slow." Resources: Polyface Yum Premiere 1 Supplies

In this Kids in Commerce episode, Travis Salatin of Polyface discusses his Khaki Campbell duck business. Travis' advice to other kids who are starting a business: "start slow." Resources: <a href="http://www.polyfacefarms.com/food-sales/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Polyface Yum</a> <a href="https://www.premier1supplies.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Premiere 1 Supplies</a>

PPT080: Selling Duck Eggs with Travis Salatin

Episode 72 takes on the soy-free poultry feed for your chickens, ducks, and turkeys. Up to this point, if you’ve fed soy-free feeds to your chickens, then you’ve likely experienced slower growth, more expensive feed, and improperly feathered birds, just to name a few problems. Jeff Mattocks from The Fertrell Company joins the show to discuss the problems of soy-free poultry feed, the solution, and then discuss Fertrell’s response. Jeff has developed a new soy-free feed ration using 5 different protein sources and that formulation is available in two new products – one for production-based flocks and another for family flocks. Fertrell is a Pastured Poultry Talk show sponsor. If you're new to Fertrell, check them out and let them know Pastured Poultry Talk with Mike Badger sent you. Upcoming Events Check out the Appearances page to see where Mike Badger will be speaking and attending. Show Topics  The biggest problem with soy-free feed. How do producers overcome problems with a no-soy poultry feed? Feed trial results. Performance gains in soy-free feeds Cost of feeding soy-free feeds. Will Fertrell's no-soy formulation work for turkeys?  Fertrell is having an open house with Daniel Salatin as the featured speaker. Fertrell products discussed on the show.  Soy-free protein crumble for poultry and pigs. Homeowner collection in 20 pound bags. (Just add corn!) soy-free protein blend (with vitamins and minerals). Contact Fertrell.  Previous Episodes with Jeff PPT041: Jeff Mattocks Provides a Primer for On-Farm Feed Mixing for Freshness, Health, and Profitibility  PPT042: Definitive Guide to Feather Pecking with Jeff Mattocks  PPT043: The Richard Simmons Approach to Molting Hens with Jeff Mattocks  PPT044: Understanding the Nutritional Benefits of Black Soldier Fly As Poultry Feed

Episode 72 takes on the soy-free poultry feed for your chickens, ducks, and turkeys. Up to this point, if you’ve fed soy-free feeds to your chickens, then you’ve likely experienced slower growth, more expensive feed, and improperly feathered birds, just to name a few problems. Jeff Mattocks from The Fertrell Company joins the show to discuss the problems of soy-free poultry feed, the solution, and then discuss Fertrell’s response. Jeff has developed a new soy-free feed ration using 5 different protein sources and that formulation is available in two new products – one for production-based flocks and another for family flocks. <a href="http://www.fertrell.com" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Fertrell</a> is a Pastured Poultry Talk show sponsor. If you're new to Fertrell, check them out and let them know Pastured Poultry Talk with Mike Badger sent you. Upcoming Events Check out the <a href="http://appear" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Appearances</a> page to see where Mike Badger will be speaking and attending. Show Topics <ul> <li>The biggest problem with soy-free feed.</li> <li>How do producers overcome problems with a no-soy poultry feed?</li> <li>Feed trial results.</li> <li>Performance gains in soy-free feeds</li> <li>Cost of feeding soy-free feeds.</li> <li>Will Fertrell's no-soy formulation work for turkeys?</li> </ul> Fertrell is having an open house with Daniel Salatin as the featured speaker. Fertrell products discussed on the show. <ul> <li><a href="https://www.fertrell.com/no-soy-protein-pellets" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Soy-free protein crumble</a> for poultry and pigs.</li> <li>Homeowner collection in 20 pound bags. (Just add corn!) soy-free protein blend (with vitamins and minerals). <a href="https://www.fertrell.com/contact-us" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Contact Fertrell</a>.</li> </ul> Previous Episodes with Jeff <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/04/29/ppt041-jeff-mattocks-provides-a-primer-on-on-farm-feed-mixing-for-freshness-health-and-profitibility/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">PPT041: Jeff Mattocks Provides a Primer for On-Farm Feed Mixing for Freshness, Health, and Profitibility</a> <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/05/31/ppt042-definitive-guide-to-feather-pecking-with-jeff-mattocks/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> PPT042: Definitive Guide to Feather Pecking with Jeff Mattocks</a> <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/06/09/ppt043-the-richard-simmons-approach-to-molting-hens-with-jeff-mattocks/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> PPT043: The Richard Simmons Approach to Molting Hens with Jeff Mattocks</a> <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2016/06/14/ppt044-understanding-the-nutritional-benefits-of-black-soldier-fly-as-poultry-feed/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> PPT044: Understanding the Nutritional Benefits of Black Soldier Fly As Poultry Feed</a>

Cracking the performance problems of soy-free poultry feeds with Fertrell

On-farm chicken and turkey processing holds a special place in my heart. It paid the mortgage. It introduced us to great people with great farms. It created speaking opportunities. Perhaps, most importantly, on-farm chicken butchering  has been demystified and I think it's one of the keys to unlocking a self sufficient life. In this episode, I share some reasons to process on-farm, talk through why I believe the scalder is the single most important purchase you should make, and provide some cost analysis to owning and operating your own processing equipment. Pastured Poultry Headlines and News I take a few moments to share some recent events:  The APPPA Professional Pastured Poultry Producers Conference in Fayetteville, Arkansas, wrapped up in January 2018. Listen to Spence and I on the  Fighting Farmer for some discussion. Figure out a way to attend this great farmer-to-farmer event in 2019. Mike Badger edited and published the Third Edition of  Pastured Poultry Feeding and Management by Jeff Mattocks in 2017. The book has approximately 20% more content and more than 37 feed rations for all types of poultry, including heritage poultry. The Fighting Farmer podcast with Terrell Spencer will soon have its own show feed. Stay tuned for details.  Advantages of Processing Chickens On-Farm The expense of purchasing equipment, the regulatory climate, or even the mystery of slaughtering chickens are often cited disadvantages of processing your own chicken, but here are some of the reasons you should do it anyway:  Control of the final product. Pay yourself for the processing and recapture the drive time to the processor. Access markets not available with customer slaughter. Flexible timing and scheduling of processing day.  The Manual Chicken Scalder Is the Most Important Piece of Equipment If you can only afford a plucker or a scalder, you choose the scalder. That's how important a properly scalded chicken is. I use and recommend the Poultry Man line of commercial equipment for the small scale processor. How to Calculate the Cost of On-Farm Processing How much does it cost you to get your chickens processed by someone else? How much expense do you lose traveling to the processor? You need this basic information so that you can have an accurate comparison of the costs of purchasing your own equipment. In this episode, Mike Badger walks through an example cost analysis of a 23" Poultry Man Plucker, a Poultry Man Manual Scalder, and accessories. Using some real-world numbers, this calculation explains how you can easily pocket $1.00 per chicken, if you process and bag your own birds. That's $1.00 you're not paying out as an expense. Add in another $1.50 per chicken cost to own the equipment (at 500 birds per year), and you're packaged bird cost is $2.50, excluding any facility overhead. Here are your key calculations:  Yearly Equipment Cost = Equip Cost / # Years to depreciate cost Equipment Cost per Chicken = Yearly Equipment Cost / Birds per Year Processing Hours = Batch size / Birds per Hour per Person Packing Hours = Batch size / Birds bagged per Hour per Person Total Labor Per Chicken = (Processing Hours + Packing Hours) / Batch Size  Many things affect the actual results of these calculations, including equipment cost, labor rate, scale, and your skill. The idea is not to give you exact numbers, but to share a process that helps you analyze the costs for yourself. Your decisions will flow from that analysis.  ==&gt; Download a live processing cost calculator that Mike uses to estimate equipment costs, labor costs, and total cost of processing your own chickens.

On-farm chicken and turkey processing holds a special place in my heart. It paid the mortgage. It introduced us to great people with great farms. It created speaking opportunities. Perhaps, most importantly, on-farm chicken butchering  has been demystified and I think it's one of the keys to unlocking a self sufficient life. In this episode, I share some reasons to process on-farm, talk through why I believe the scalder is the single most important purchase you should make, and provide some cost analysis to owning and operating your own processing equipment. Pastured Poultry Headlines and News I take a few moments to share some recent events: <ul> <li>The APPPA Professional Pastured Poultry Producers Conference in Fayetteville, Arkansas, wrapped up in January 2018. Listen to Spence and I on the <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/2018/02/13/the-fighting-farmer-community-based-pastured-poultry-and-analyzing-the-costs-of-switching-feeds/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Fighting Farmer</a> for some discussion. Figure out a way to attend this great farmer-to-farmer event in 2019.</li> <li>Mike Badger edited and published the Third Edition of <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/pastured-poultry-feeding-and-management/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Pastured Poultry Feeding and Management</a> by Jeff Mattocks in 2017. The book has approximately 20% more content and more than 37 feed rations for all types of poultry, including heritage poultry.</li> <li>The Fighting Farmer podcast with Terrell Spencer will soon have its own show feed. Stay tuned for details.</li> </ul> Advantages of Processing Chickens On-Farm The expense of purchasing equipment, the regulatory climate, or even the mystery of slaughtering chickens are often cited disadvantages of processing your own chicken, but here are some of the reasons you should do it anyway: <ul> <li>Control of the final product.</li> <li>Pay yourself for the processing and recapture the drive time to the processor.</li> <li>Access markets not available with customer slaughter.</li> <li>Flexible timing and scheduling of processing day.</li> </ul> The Manual Chicken Scalder Is the Most Important Piece of Equipment If you can only afford a plucker or a scalder, you choose the scalder. That's how important a properly scalded chicken is. I use and recommend the <a href="http://millsidefarm.com/product-tag/poultry-scalders" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Poultry Man</a> line of commercial equipment for the small scale processor. How to Calculate the Cost of On-Farm Processing How much does it cost you to get your chickens processed by someone else? How much expense do you lose traveling to the processor? You need this basic information so that you can have an accurate comparison of the costs of purchasing your own equipment. In this episode, Mike Badger walks through an example cost analysis of a 23" <a href="http://millsidefarm.com/shop/poultry-man-stainless-steel-plucker" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Poultry Man Plucker,</a> a <a href="http://millsidefarm.com/shop/manual-scalder" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Poultry Man Manual Scalder,</a> and accessories. Using some real-world numbers, this calculation explains how you can easily pocket $1.00 per chicken, if you process and bag your own birds. That's $1.00 you're not paying out as an expense. Add in another $1.50 per chicken cost to own the equipment (at 500 birds per year), and you're packaged bird cost is $2.50, excluding any facility overhead. Here are your key calculations: <ul> <li>Yearly Equipment Cost = Equip Cost / # Years to depreciate cost</li> <li>Equipment Cost per Chicken = Yearly Equipment Cost / Birds per Year</li> <li>Processing Hours = Batch size / Birds per Hour per Person</li> <li>Packing Hours = Batch size / Birds bagged per Hour per Person</li> <li>Total Labor Per Chicken = (Processing Hours + Packing Hours) / Batch Size</li> </ul> Many things affect the actual results of these calculations, including equipment cost, labor rate, scale, and your skill. The idea is not to give you exact numbers, but to share a process that helps you analyze the costs for yourself. Your decisions will flow from that analysis. ==&gt; <a href="http://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/processing-cost-calculator/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Download a live processing cost calculator</a> that Mike uses to estimate equipment costs, labor costs, and total cost of processing your own chickens.

Advantages and cost analysis of on-farm chicken processing

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