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(San Bernardino County, California)
Free range, grass fed, grass finished and pastured heritage meats.
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An important bill, brought to our attention by our friend Katherine W.
Washington, DC— Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) today introduced the Equality for Women Farmers Act. She was joined by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo (CA-14), an original co-sponsor of the bill, and by six women farmers who shared their stories of discrimination by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) simply because of their gender.
To read the entire story, from the original source, please click the link.
http://delauro.house.gov/release.cfm?id=2701
free range poultry, heritage poultry, heritage turkeys, grass fed poultry, pastured poultry, rainbow ranch farms
Posted by Poly
@ 06:45 AM CST
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Turkey breed facts: Broad breasted white
INSERT FROM RAINBOW RANCH FARMS: Check to see if your thanksgiving turkey, meets your standards, sometimes, not all turkeys qualify as a turkey breed. Try to educate your farmer, encourage your local farmer to try real turkey breeds, instead of comercial strains of turkey, grown on commercial feed, requiring medications, just to stay alive.
Photo is from www.biologybiozine.com 
Turkey breed facts: Broad breasted white
From Our Freinds at www.Heliuim.com
A wonderful and informative article by JUDY EVANS
The Broad-breasted White turkey is a commercial strain of turkey and does not qualify as a ‘breed’. Although the American Poultry Association only recognises eight breeds, other countries recognise other breeds as well and there are many more variants and/or strains in America. The broad-breasted white turkey has been bred to put on more meat in a shorter time and at a lower cost.
The predecessors of the turkey go back 50 or 60 million years. Slightly nearer to present day, between 200BC and 700AD turkeys were domesticated in Mexico, probably by the Aztecs. The Spanish conquistadors shipped turkeys back to Spain in the early 1500s and from there the turkey has spread through Europe.
The early American colonists brought domesticated turkeys to America with them. Some of these bred with wild turkeys and the hybrids had more vigour and were better fleshed.
Turkeys (and chickens) belong to the order Galliformes. Like many of the species in this order the hen is smaller and usually less resplendent than the cock (normally called a tom or stag). The tom has a conical, fleshy appendage that hangs from the beak, called a snood. This becomes elongated and distended when the tom is aroused and will contract at other times. The tom also has a wattle or skin flap down the neck and below this is the caruncle which are small, wart-like structures. The wattle and caruncle change from pale blue and cream to bright red during courtship. On the chest is a ‘beard’ which consists of coarse, usually dark, vestigial hair. There may be two or three beards and occasionally hens will also develop a beard.
Depending on the breed and management conditions, hens average around 3.6 kg to7.2 kg and take 4 months to fully mature. Toms are fully mature at around 19 weeks and weigh from 7.2 to 10.8 kg. They may even get to around 18 kg if given time to fully develop. The wingspan can measure 1.5 to 1.8 metres.
Hens have a six month laying cycle and produce perhaps 45 to 60 live chicks in that time. Incubation takes 28 days. Mortality of baby chicks is high and in general, turkeys are harder to raise than chickens.
These birds have been produced for a specific purpose – that of producing a large, well-fleshed carcase. The broad-breasted white turkey came about through crossing the White Holland with the Broad Breasted Bronze. It is especially popular because white birds have lighter coloured quills and pin feathers and there are very few, if any,
dark spots on the dressed carcase.
For every benefit there is usually a balancing deficit and in the case of the broad-breasted white turkey, the toms have so much meat on their breasts and such short, widely spaced legs that they are normally unable to mate naturally which means artificial insemination is required. Breast meat comprises 70% of the carcase value, 73% of the carcase yield and has only 1% fat. The fast growth and heavy weight at a young age can cause leg problems in the birds.
The broad-breasted white turkey has been developed specifically to grow faster than pure varieties and to have an excellent conversion rate of food to flesh. During the development of this type, the focus was on choosing those individuals with meatier thighs and breasts. With a well-balanced ration and under good management the broad-breasted white turkey may reach 6 kg by 10 weeks of age. The ratio of feed consumed to body weight gained (called the feed conversion ratio) is around 2:1.
Unfortunately, although the most numerous turkey around, the broad-breasted white turkey cannot breed, cannot fly and cannot survive with human assistance. There is, therefore, a great need for enthusiasts to continue to produce the so-called ‘heritage’ breeds.
Sources:
http://www.poultryhub.org/inde x.php/Turkey
http://www.burkesbackyard.com. au/2003/archives/2003/roadtest s/birds/turkey_roadtest
http://www.feathersite.com/Pou ltry/Turkeys/BRKTurkey.html
 Learn more about this author, Judy Evans.
Posted by Poly
@ 03:44 AM CST
Growing Your Own Chickens For Meat
By Katie Pepper Morgan
The decision to raise your own chickens for their meat is one that many more people are making. By raising your own meat you will control what your chickens eat. If you are choosing to feed your family only free range chickens, then you can insure your chickens are free range.
COST OF RAISING CHICKENS FOR MEAT: You will be surprised to learn you probably won't save much money growing your own chickens for meat unless you plan on raising a large number of chickens and filling up your freezer.
ARE ALL CHICKEN MEATS THE SAME?: Meat you raise yourself may not taste exactly like the chicken you buy at your local grocery store. Most people think the fresh meat you raise yourself actually tastes better, while other people think the taste takes some getting used to. Some people can not tell the difference between the store bought chicken and home grown chicken meat.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE?: How long it'll take to raise chicks to butcher depends on what type of chicks you choose to purchase. You can purchase fast growing chicks from online hatcheries which will be ready to butcher in about 15-16 weeks or so. This is a very fast turn around time. If you choose to raise a standard breed like New Hampshire's or Rhode Island Reds then it may take a little longer until they are ready to be butchered.
If you are concerned about the treatment chickens may be in commercial farms while they are being raised for meat then you may wish to raise your own chicks for meat. This isn't a decision for everyone. Butchering can be hard, especially if you form a close bond to the chickens. If you are unsure if you will be able to handle the butchering, then you can probably hire someone to do it for you.
Please click on the link for the original article http://ezinearticles.com/?Growing-Your-Own-Chickens-For-Meat&id=4084810
Posted by Poly
@ 08:17 AM CST
What’s Different about Heritage Breeds?
The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy states that heritage chicken breeds must be an American Poultry Association (APA) standard breed. The chickens also must be allowed to mate naturally, lead a long, productive outdoor life, and maintain a slow growth rate. It takes heritage chicken breeds at least 16 weeks to reach market weight.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/blogs/blog.aspx?blogid=1508&tag=chicken Original LINK
Posted by Poly
@ 08:20 AM CST
Heritage Chicken Breeds’ Various Values
Monday, September 20, 2010 11:00 AM
By Abbie Stutzer
Tags: heritage breeds, chicken, raising chickens
Yum, yum … and more yum. The wonderful aroma and succulent taste of grilled, fried, baked (the list goes on) chicken. Although almost no one can resist fresh fried chicken, some diners might think twice before placing that standard pack of chicken in their shopping basket at the grocery store.
A discerning buyer may think:
“Where did this chicken come from?”
“Is this chicken free-range?”
“What’s the real nutritional value of this chicken?”
“I wonder if this chicken was raised locally …”
If only these concerned consumers knew they could purchase (or raise) a chicken that had noteworthy nutritional value. The nutritious chicken breeds I’m referring to are heritage breeds. Meat from heritage chicken breeds is nutrient rich and has myriad other natural benefits.
With a bit of research, reading and planning, conscientious chicken connoisseurs can easily purchase fresh heritage chicken meat, or raise heritage chicken breeds in their own backyards.
By Abbie Stutzer
Posted by Poly
@ 06:22 AM CST
Tuesday, September 01, 2009 10:34 AM
By Troy Griepentrog
Tags: cooking, chicken, poultry
On April 17, 2009, the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy (ALBC) and Good Shepherd Poultry Ranch hosted an event in Lindsborg, Kans., announcing the definition of heritage chicken. The event included tasting meat of four breeds of heritage chickens. The tasting was divided into a meal (including side dishes) for each season, because different breeds of chickens mature at different rates and the meat is better suited to different uses depending on the maturity of the bird at slaughter.
Here’s an overview of the menu. Some of the recipes are available on the recipe page of the Good Shepherd Poultry Ranch website.
Fall — New Hampshire Red
Fried Chicken
Chicken Osso Buco
Winter — Jersey Giant
Baked Chicken
Tropical Mole’ Chicken
Spring — Cornish (Indian Game)
Cottage Pie
Chicken Soup with Knaidlach
Summer — Plymouth Rock
Pressed Chicken
Chicken Salad
So what’s different about heritage chicken? Everything! The size and shape of the pieces of meat is remarkable; the drumsticks are nearly as long as that of a small turkey. The texture is firmer. It’s similar to tender beef — you can cut it with a fork, but you can’t mash it like industrially raised chicken.
By the way, cooking heritage chicken requires different methods to make it turn out right. In brief, you have to cook it more slowly, at lower temperatures and with more moisture.
It’s more flavorful, even to an untrained, dull palate (such as mine). The meat, regardless of which dish it was used in, tasted great. But the flavor of the broth was dramatic. I’ve tried to make chicken broth from industrial chicken without adding commercial bouillon, but it always ends up flat. The broth from the heritage chicken was wonderful, and I confirmed it was not “fixed up” with bouillon.
For the original article, click link.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/blogs/blog.aspx?blogid=1508&tag=chicken
Posted by Poly
@ 06:34 AM CST
Winter at Rainbow Ranch Farms: Photo Album
The snow is about 2 feet deep, some of the chickens and turkeys came out to snow play, others chose to stay in their cozy coops. If you can not see the photos, click on the link to open it.
 
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Posted by Poly
@ 02:19 PM CST
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