Selling meat birds ??? What, where, why, when.

[Rcl700]

Okay, I live in south Atlanta and would like some clarity on the rules for selling processed meat birds. What are the requirements regulations and restrictions put on small-scale producers?

Can I sell meat birds that I process?
I'm thinking of running a few small pasture raised chicken tractor flocks.
These would be predominantly for myself in the beginning but id like to see it there is a market for pasture-raised birds and if it's cost-effective to sell them.

Your thoughts, suggestions, and any information you may have would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[N F C]

The laws are going to vary from place to place so maybe someone on your state thread can help you out. Here's a link to get you to your state thread:Georgia

I know when we lived in FL we could sell live animals but not processed ones. For example, we could sell live meat rabbits but it was up to the customer to butcher them. GA's laws could be different.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yes, the requirements vary state by state and sometimes individual counties or cities have their own additional requirements. My suggestion is to contact your county extension office and chat with them. This is the type of question they should be able to help with. This link might be helpful.

http://extension.uga.edu/county-offices.html

Your operation may be too small to be affected by federal regulations, especially if you don't cross state lines, though it would be good to know what those limits are. Sometimes there are different regulations depending on who you sell to. You may be able to sell to individuals easier than to restaurants, for example. But there may be a potential market for you , if you can tie up with a specific restaurant and raise them and process them the way the chef wants.

I don't know how legal this is where you are but perhaps you can set up two separate businesses. One would be to sell live birds to people and, after they buy them, you process the birds for them.

Not sure how big you actually want to get with this business. It can get pretty complicated but maybe your county extension office can help you run the traps at the health department, check zoning requirements, and whoever else might be involved.

 

[aart]

Here in MI you have to have the birds processed by a USDA inspected facility,
and if you store frozen birds in freezer at your place that also has to be USDA inspected.