Soy-free feed in Portland/Vancouver area

[spookychick]

Anyone know where to purchase soy-free layer rations or scratch grains in the Portland, OR / Vancouver, WA area? Driving as far north as Seattle or south as Salem would be fine, too. I've been shipping it in, as well as mixing my own, but would much rather have professionally mixed feed from a local source if possible. Any ideas???

 

[UrbanFarmChix]

I asked about this and organic 5 grain scratch the last time I was in Concentrates
http://www.concentratesnw.com/
They are working on this with a mill. I'm on their list to call when they get it in. The other store that will soon have non soy, non corn, and organic is Urban Farm Store
http://www.urbanfarmstore.com/chicken-feeds/
They had their first batch before that big snow storm. But one of the main mills got severely flooded. He's hooking up with a new supplier. One of his goals is for the bulk ingredients to be local or as close to local as possible.
Let me know if you find some.

 

[aberfitch]

do you guys not have purina there. That the mostly all we have here in texas

 

[spookychick]

I contacted these people and will post when I hear back from them:

http://unionpoint.com/products.html

 

[spookychick]

Quote:
Purina is soy-based. We're specifically looking for soy-free feed for our flocks.

 

[DiVon80]

I am in the south and also feed purina. Why not soy? Believe me I want to learn as much as possible. I have new babies and want to do the best for them and for the eggs they will produce. If you have any brand names let us know.

 

[spookychick]

First off, please don't think I'm criticizing Purina products. But there are some of us, for numerous reason, who can't eat or don't want to eat a diet that contains soy, including eggs from soy-fed chickens.

Some people are allergic to soy, or like myself have a digestive disorder that is seriously aggravated by consuming soy. Others have growing concerns over recent data suggesting soy may not be all that good for us. I've read other reports from chicken farmers who swear the soy-based feed was responsible for health problems within their flocks. I am not saying, however, that people who feed their chickens soy-based feed are doing a disservice to their flocks. I don't want to upset anyone regarding their personal feed choices. There are many articles online that weigh the pros and cons of soy. Just do a Google search on the subject to research for yourself.

That said, if you do decide you want to feed your chickens a soy-free diet for whatever reason, it is very difficult to find local sources for such feed. Currently, I buy mine online from Countryside Naturals. I get their scratch, their layer crumble, and their chick starter, all soy-free organic, but extremely expensive to have shipped. I also supplement my birds' diet with daily mash made with quinoa, sprouted field peas, organic beef, and organic pork fat, among other things, to increase protein as I raise large breed birds. But that's just me. I have about 50 birds, and this is an expensive choice for feeding, but one I feel is important to my health, and the health of my flock. Others would say I'm throwing away good money. Personally, I would rather not throw away good money, or any money at all! That's the purpose of this thread. I'm hoping to find a way to bring costs down.

I know others in my local area who are also committed to soy-free organic feeding of their flocks, so I'm hoping to discover a way for all of us to fill our feed needs locally.

 

[CovenantCreek]

Quote:
Why some folks don't want soy:
http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/index.html
http://www.mothering.com/articles/growing_child/food/soy_story.html
http://www.wholesoystory.com/

Personally, I'm not ready to completely eliminate store bought food from my kitchen so I'm stuck with soy in most of what we eat, but I do want to control the things I can -- like what goes into my chickens' main feed. Yes, they get table scraps that will undoubtedly contain soy, but their feed and all the things they eat while foraging are at least soy free. The shocker for me, and something that really made me want to be more aware of what's in my food was reading the ingredient list on a box of corn flakes and seeing the warning that, "the corn used in this product may contain soy." Near as I can recall, soy is not a naturally occurring element in corn.

 

[DiVon80]

Any Idears for purchasing organic/soy free feed in the south. Any way I could even get recipes???? I am really glad I am learning this...Any help !!! greatly appreciated

 

[CovenantCreek]

Quote:
Countryside Natural is based in VA. For recipes, check lionsgrip.com for ideas.