Going organic?

[ottbmom]

I just got my first little flock, and I don't know much about organic eggs. I didn't have much interest in it, but I've already had people offer to buy up my extra eggs if they were organic. So I figured it would be worth it to learn.

What strategies do you use to get organic eggs? Can you make this cost efficient? Does this mean I have to cut out table scraps and treats that aren't organic? Any tips/thoughts in general?

Thanks in advance

 

[ChickenCanoe]

If you want to be "certified organic" then yes, everything non organic has to be cut out. And you'll have to start with organic birds, I'm pretty sure you can't switch birds to organic feed and become certified.
That said, If they're on organic pasture and get only organic feed, you can probably safely tell your friends they're raised organically, they're just not certified.
IMO, certified is extremely difficult.

ETA
They couldn't certify them if they knew they were eating table scraps that may contain artificial ingredients or anything that had been exposed to pesticides or were grown with chemical fertilizers. That includes anything on your property.

 

[ottbmom]

Thanks! I'm not worried about becoming certified or anything. We're keeping most of the eggs for ourselves, and I'm more concerned with self-sufficiency for my family. But I thought it's worth it to check for those willing to be regular "sharers"

 

[azelgin]

IMO, certified is extremely difficult.

I looked into this years ago. I decided that, unless I was going into the egg business, instead of just wanting chickens around and selling off a few extra dozen, it was going to be a major pain in the butt. Technically, If you're going to certify your chickens organic, they can't eat a stray bug, that might have wandered in from an area where pesticides have been used. The soil they walk on, can't have had any petroleum products dripped off of equipment. No access to pressure treated building materials, etc. . . .
The list of no no's is long and complicated, for those that are truly following all the rules.
I know of someone that doesn't have true organic eggs, that sells his at the farmers market as such anyway. $7 a dozen. How many other "organic" eggs are sold this way?
I recently had a customer that was disappointed, that my chickens get a little corn and scratch. She was worried about GMO corn, all this as she puffed on her Marlboro. Which is going to kill you first? Eggs from corn fed chickens, or?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

...
I recently had a customer that was disappointed, that my chickens get a little corn and scratch. She was worried about GMO corn, all this as she puffed on her Marlboro. Which is going to kill you first? Eggs from corn fed chickens, or?

Good one. I'm concerned with consuming GMO too, or more importantly feeding it to the chickens, But then again, I've never smoked cigarettes.

 

[azelgin]

Originally Posted by ChickenCanoe

~~Yea, I figure GMO is kind of like asbestos: It's going to take years to figure out what the exposure effects are.
I knew an asbestos removal contractor, that wouldn't hire anyone under fifty years old. He figured they would die of old age, before they would get sick from inhaling the fibers and sue him. I'm in the same catagorey as his employees. I'm old enough that something else is going to kill me, before I get some GMO induced mutation.

 

[Island Roo]

Mine are organic (not certified) and I charge a little less than the grocery store does for organic eggs. I call mine "Organically raised".

I'm not going to get rich selling eggs but it pays for my supply of eggs, chicken.

My customers (mostly friends) are excited about getting local farm fresh truly free-range eggs. Its satisfying for me to supply a food product that's higher quality than you can get just about anywhere else.

The organic feed is much more expensive but so are the eggs that I sell. It all works out in the end. I give my birds kitchen scraps but much of that is organic too.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Originally Posted by ChickenCanoe

~~Yea, I figure GMO is kind of like asbestos: It's going to take years to figure out what the exposure effects are.
I knew an asbestos removal contractor, that wouldn't hire anyone under fifty years old. He figured they would die of old age, before they would get sick from inhaling the fibers and sue him. I'm in the same catagorey as his employees. I'm old enough that something else is going to kill me, before I get some GMO induced mutation.

I'm old, but I don't think I'll die any time soon, unless in an accident.
Breeding rare chickens, my biggest concern is infertility in the birds. There's some reports overseas of some species of livestock suffering fertility issues within 3 generations on GMO foodstuffs. That's a year with chickens. If I can avoid it I will.
http://www.iowasource.com/food/2010_05_gmo.html

Mine are organic (not certified) and I charge a little less than the grocery store does for organic eggs. I call mine "Organically raised".

I'm not going to get rich selling eggs but it pays for my supply of eggs, chicken.

My customers (mostly friends) are excited about getting local farm fresh truly free-range eggs. Its satisfying for me to supply a food product that's higher quality than you can get just about anywhere else.

The organic feed is much more expensive but so are the eggs that I sell. It all works out in the end. I give my birds kitchen scraps but much of that is organic too.

I found a less expensive source of organic feed but it was still too pricey until I started fermenting feed. It goes so much farther that I can now feed that for what it was costing me to feed conventional dry.

 

[Azure Acres]

We are feeding non-GMO feed and the chickens are pastured in tractors that are moved daily. We are advertising our eggs as non-GMO. When people ask about organic I explain that we don't feed anything that isn't orgNic, but that the birds do eat bugs they find throughout the day.

 

[Island Roo]

I found a less expensive source of organic feed but it was still too pricey until I started fermenting feed. It goes so much farther that I can now feed that for what it was costing me to feed conventional dry.

I've noticed my birds seem more healthy, vibrant and active with fermented feed.

I also had a sense that they were eating less of if but there were too many variables to measure it. How much savings in food do you notice?