Just saw Food Inc...

[Beekissed]

Goodluck on the meat chickens Bekissed. Im thinking of doing the same. It would be a local product that other people are not doing.

What type of chicken are you doing? I was thinking of those sussex crosses.

I have the CXs birds for my first meaty birds...usually I just cull nonlayers and extra roos for meat. I bought 20 of them this year at TSC to put under one of my broodies.

We processed 12 of them today, my mother and I, and found out a few things about these birds. It was interesting and we have quite a bit of meat....but I don't know if I will ever raise them again. They all finished out big and healthy, except the obvious health problems of being too heavy for their own bones.

I have a thread on BYC documenting their progress as free ranged meat birds and will post pics there tomorrow of the finished birds, the killing cones made from bleach jugs, the wagonload of birds awaiting slaughter.

 

[valmom]

I really don't like the taste of lamb- I never have, even from a good restraunt. It tastes sweet to me. Meat should not taste sweet!

 

[Farmfresh]

Don't judge lamb by what you got eating out. Too many places use "mint jelly" or other odd seasonings on it.

I was VERY fortunate to live next to a native Australian when I first got married. She is the one that not only introduced me to lamb, she taught me to cook it. Her MIL was always trying to make the meat sweet since she read somewhere about mint being used on lamb. According to my friend Roseanna lamb should be either seared or cooked gently, medium is best and it is a savory meat finished with garlic, pepper, a touch of rosemary, maybe thyme and IF mint is used (not at my house) thin strips of fresh mint are sauteed in with the other herbs. Salt is added at the end of cooking to retain moisture.

DELICIOUS!!

 

[Farmfresh]

Add this to your repetoire:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvGd...E835B729B&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=2

The World According to Monsanto

I watched this last night. VERY informative and well done. Now I just need to get hubby to watch it.

I think it would be great to organize community movie nights and feature these documentaries. It would be great to get a good venue, and offer the movies FREE to the public. The more people we educate about this stuff the better.

Our local movie theater has a FREE movie night occasionally in the summer, by means of a promotion. They show an older movie on the side of the building and set up a viewing area in the parking lot for the public. If someone could figure out all of the legal loopholes and get movies like Food Inc., World According to Monsanto, and King Corn out there. Maybe then things would change.

 

[Mackay]

I just thought I would mention that most of those cattle roaming the grass lands of Kansas that look so peaceful do end up at the feed lot. That is their last month or so of life, where they get fattened. Same deal here in Idaho. The first part of their life is great, the last sucks.

Seems those places,the feed lots and slaughter houses, many are raging with MRSA bacteria and even workers get it and some die, others fight for their lives.

We are busy getting pasture grass to grow. Hope to raise grass fed beef and free range chickens for meat that will never see a manure mound. Lucky you who are already there.

 

[Mackay]

Goodluck on the meat chickens Bekissed. Im thinking of doing the same. It would be a local product that other people are not doing.

What type of chicken are you doing? I was thinking of those sussex crosses.

I have the CXs birds for my first meaty birds...usually I just cull nonlayers and extra roos for meat. I bought 20 of them this year at TSC to put under one of my broodies.

We processed 12 of them today, my mother and I, and found out a few things about these birds. It was interesting and we have quite a bit of meat....but I don't know if I will ever raise them again. They all finished out big and healthy, except the obvious health problems of being too heavy for their own bones.

I have a thread on BYC documenting their progress as free ranged meat birds and will post pics there tomorrow of the finished birds, the killing cones made from bleach jugs, the wagonload of birds awaiting slaughter.

We have a very good article on the process of raising cornish crosses... that include some of the pitfalls. We decided that we could probably do it... my husband agreed that he could slaughter if I can help take on the rest. I think it would be a great service to the community to provide this quality type meat...... I'm sure we could sell some. Pretty darn hard to find an organic range free bird to eat unless you raise your own around here.

Did you manage to raise yours organic, with organic feed?

 

[bibliophile birds]

We have a very good article on the process of raising cornish crosses... that include some of the pitfalls. We decided that we could probably do it... ?

have you thought about a slower growing meat bird? the poulet rouge that is used in the Label Rouge program in France is gaining a lot of attention here in the states now. JM Hatchery sells them as freedom rangers but others sell them as colored rangers.

they grow a little slower than the cornish X so they have fewer health problems and they are perfectly adapted to being pasture grown. they reach slaughter weight around 12 weeks, instead of 9 for cX or 18+ for heritage.

 

[Libertyhomestead]

We have a very good article on the process of raising cornish crosses... that include some of the pitfalls. We decided that we could probably do it... ?

have you thought about a slower growing meat bird? the poulet rouge that is used in the Label Rouge program in France is gaining a lot of attention here in the states now. JM Hatchery sells them as freedom rangers but others sell them as colored rangers.

they grow a little slower than the cornish X so they have fewer health problems and they are perfectly adapted to being pasture grown. they reach slaughter weight around 12 weeks, instead of 9 for cX or 18+ for heritage.

I agree. The poulet rouge type broilers are great. We are starting our own breeding flock this year, producing our own meat year after year after that. No need for a hatchery.

I also have Beltsville turkeys in the incubator right now. Beltsville are a prefect small meat turkey, supposedly heavier breasted than regular heritage but not freaks of nature like BBW. We're starting our breeding flock of those also.

DH stopped eating meat at age 6. He only eats fish and turkey. We eat turkey like most eat ground beef. It only makes sense to raise turkey.

I only buy local now after watching FOOD INC. We are lucky to have a great local food market, and a new small scale meat processor just opened. All the homesteaders and small farmers now can get their meat processed right here locally. Really, our community does just fine without big ag. I'm sure many more could too.