Interesting article regarding commercially raised meat chickens in US

[Brunty_Farms]

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People want crappy food... and they want cheap food.

I kind of explained what I meant in my last post. It won't be cheap forever. It will only be cheap as long as oil is cheap.

But again, it isn't cheap even now. The environmental and health costs alone make it far more expensive than the actual price tag would indicate, never mind the cost in tax dollars to prop it up through subsidies.

Gas was over $4.00 a gallon this past year. McDonalds still had their $1.00 cheeseburgers....

 

[WalkingWolf]

Quote:
I kind of explained what I meant in my last post. It won't be cheap forever. It will only be cheap as long as oil is cheap.

But again, it isn't cheap even now. The environmental and health costs alone make it far more expensive than the actual price tag would indicate, never mind the cost in tax dollars to prop it up through subsidies.

Gas was over $4.00 a gallon this past year. McDonalds still had their $1.00 cheeseburgers....

I don't eat at McDonalds, are they still the same size? I have noticed things staying the same price getting smaller in the store.

 

[bigredfeather]

Quote:
I kind of explained what I meant in my last post. It won't be cheap forever. It will only be cheap as long as oil is cheap.

But again, it isn't cheap even now. The environmental and health costs alone make it far more expensive than the actual price tag would indicate, never mind the cost in tax dollars to prop it up through subsidies.

Gas was over $4.00 a gallon this past year. McDonalds still had their $1.00 cheeseburgers....

I think they import most of their beef from Australia.

 

[WalkingWolf]

Big McD used to proclaim they raised their own beef, and that it was USDA inspected. Now whether that is or was true I do not know.

 

[bigredfeather]

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I could be wrong. :dunno

 

[Brunty_Farms]

I'm saying (along with other Food Elitists like me) that there is a better way. For you the farmer, for the animals you raise, and for the consumer who consumes them. And for the planet. The farmer should be more respected and better paid for the work he or she does.

Amen to that.... I completely agree with you.​

 

[Brunty_Farms]

All of the beef McDonalds uses is form all over... think about it... they are in just about every country. They don't use just USA beef.... and they don't use USDA inspections in China.

But yes, they fare good sized... I don't eat them but I know people that do. However I will sneak their fries from time to time!

 

[Andi]

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I'm sorry, Bossroo, that your request for learning has been missed amongst all the heightened talk of industrial poultry farming.

The trick is to simply take the time to make sure feces doesn't come in contact with the meat while you are processing the bird. Keeping the bird in ice water while you're not in the process of plucking or gutting is another important part.

Here's a link to a thread with some fabulous links on how to go about it. These links are the ones that I used to guide me in my first time processing. I must say I'm a proud (former) city girl that did it and I didn't contaminate the meat with feces. By the way, one thing that I personally did that I don't recall reading in any of these threads, and do believe helped, is I took them off of feed a day before butchering. I may be wrong, but it gave me a piece of mind knowing there wouldn't be as much in the digestive tract to worry about. Best of luck in your processing! Its a good feeling being able to accomplish it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=22610&p=1

 

[Buster52]

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I'm sorry, Bossroo, that your request for learning has been missed amongst all the heightened talk of industrial poultry farming.

 

[Buster52]

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None taken.

But you should raise and process your own. Not only does it taste better, it is better for you, not to mention gives you a tremendous sense of satisfaction.