What / where is the best chicken / poultry

[Guest guest]

Hey everyone,

I was wondering if there is a concensus of what is considered

the " best " chicken/poultry from a nutritional standpoint. There

seems to be a lot of discussion on the grass fed vs. corn fed beef,

but I was wondering about chicken, turkey, duck, ect. These are the

criteria I think are important, but I'm not 100% sure:

Organic (no chemicals, growth hormones, animal byproducts etc.)

Fully (primarily) pastured, (access to fresh bugs, grass, etc.)

No Soy

No Corn

I'm not sure if soy and corn are negative elements for chickens or

not... they seem to be less than desirable for cows.

If there are other factors to consider in quality poultry, please

shed some light. Also, does anyone know where to get this " best "

source of chicken?

Lastly, does anyone know where to get eggs that fit this " best "

criteria. I have heard that the duck eggs referenced here often are

supposed to be the " best " . Any other options?

Thanks,

Luke

[Guest guest]

Hey everyone,

Nobody responded to this message so I thought about it some more and

thought maybe it was offensive as if I were trying to isolate one

source over another. I'm not sure if it came accross that way, but

that was not my intent at all. My apologies if it did come accross

that way.

I guess what I was trying to say is there is a general concensus of

what type of beef is best... grass fed, pastured, no corn. Corn and

other grains affect the fat content. Knowing what is necessary to

raise the healthiest beef will allow anyone to know what type of

questions to ask a grower. We then can make informed decisions on

where to buy the beef. It is also understood that some breeds of

cows produce more butterfat that others...etc.

I was just wondering if there are any guidelines as to raising the

most nutritious chicken, turkey, duck, etc. I have only been able

to pick up some basic info, but nothing definitive. Maybe it

doesn't really matter what chickens eat... not sure.

I hope that clarifies what I mean and I am really looking forward to

what you all have to say about this.

Thanks a bunch,

Luke

[Guest guest]

Hi Luke-

I do not htink it was offensive, I did not respond because 1) I am not the most

knowledgeable on the board and 2) there was a thread going on pertaining to this

very subject. Did you read the thread called free range chock? BAsically, from

what I understand, free range is best, and a diet that includes flax but not soy

or corn is best. HTH.

Carol F.

[Guest guest]

The term you're looking for is " pastured " . That means the chick is out on

pasture/grass

and sunshine. Free range legally means " has access to the outside " this can

mean a little 2

foot square cement slab all the way up to 200 acres. " Natural " of course means

whatever

the farmer wants it to mean.

Of course you also want to be sure that the chicks have been raised chemical and

medication free.

It is very difficult to find any chick feed without corn or soy, especially if

the farmer is

raising the typical cornish cross broilers. Those are bred to grow very fast

(harvest at 6-9

weeks) and need a high protein level and don't do well on low protein feeds.

Soy is a high

protein feed component. I've worked with my local feed provider to reduce soy

levels, but

they don't feel they can eliminate it. Heritage breeds don't need as high of

protein levels

so they would probably get away with lower protein levels, but few people raise

them for

meat since they take twice as long to mature and aren't what people expect from

chicken

now days- not as meaty, more dark meat and a little tougher, all of which is

good, unless

you're trying to sell volume to the general public. My dh and therefore my dd

wouldn't eat

my heritage birds unless it was well disguised.

Lynn