Our family has butchered chickens several times but recently we went into the Pastured Poultry business. After careful consideration and much concern from our children (who are usually the poultry pluckers) we decided to dive in.
We purchased 2 chicken tractors that are 10 x 12. These tractors can hold lots of grass fed, happy chickens! We also received 44 plump, ready to butcher Cornish rocks from the purchase. During the freezing rain last week we lost one chicken, so we had 43 to butcher. The icing on the cake was that the deal included a chicken plucker! This wonderful invention can pluck clean 3 chickens in 15 seconds. People who have never plucked a chicken cannot appreciate these numbers but those of us who have spent 30 minutes pulling the feathers and down out of a chicken can applaud it! People, the chicken plucker ranks up there with space travel in my book!
The children and I started the day with several set backs but by 10:30 am we had the butchering in progress. It is important that people realize it is not traumatic for children to butcher animals for consumption. They realize that every cute yellow chick and fuzzy rabbit is for their consumption and they can appreciate that. No one in our family likes the butchering end of things but it is a means to an end and must be done. (Your chicken mcnugget producers have to do it too) . Back to the work at hand, we were completely finished with our chore in 3 hours! This is amazing to us, since it usually takes us 3 hours to pluck the chickens. Our beautiful chickens were then placed in shrink wrap bags and carefully dipped into 180 degree water for about 3 seconds and amazingly the chicken looked like a Wal-Mart processed bird!
The Scoggins Family Farm has decided to provide these Non-Medicated, Preservative Free birds to their customers with our standard vegetables, dressed rabbits, canned goods and honey. The State of Louisiana does not allow individuals to sell a home processed animal at the farmers market. We are allowed to sell 999 of them out of our farm though. Strange rules and regulations but that is how it is. I'm sure the USDA could explain it to everyone but at this point I'm a little confused at their legal jargon.
Pastured Poultry will be offered to our customers for $3.25 a pound. The birds range from small 2.5 lb ones to large 7.5 lb roasters. We try to butcher so everyone can have 4 1/2 to 5 lb birds. You may set up a time to pick them up at our farm or I can meet you if I am in town that day. Realize that we live 1 hour from Lake Charles so my trips to town are once every 1-2 weeks. I hope that you enjoy the chicken as much as we do! Have a Blessed Day!
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