What are the laws about selling organic chickens?

[Sweetwater Hunting]

I have farm about 100 hundred acres for cattle purposes I currently raise chickens for fun food and eggs. I'm thinking of making portable pasture pens and selling broiler chicks year around what do I need to be aware of??

 

[jaj121159]

You need to do lots of research. Contact your state's Department of Agriculture or go on their website. The feds give you an exemption which allows you to process and sell your birds, but each state does it differently. Sometimes it depends how you sell your birds, like farmer to friend, farmer's market, through advertising, etc.

 

[GJ_Kate]

I believe the word "organic" can only be used if you've gone through some sort of certification with the USDA and from what I understand, it is long and expensive! Good luck!

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

Going organic can be a steep hill to climb, around here "organic" feed is nearly twice the price, and it is far from an overnight process to become certified.

On the other hand it is possible to sell "pasture raised", "natural feed", "antibiotic free", "Ethyical and natural" or what ever creative naming you can come up with. Check into it though, in order to say some things certain conditions must be met, but in general they are easy to meet. Example: "free range" in the real comercial farming does not meen chickens running freely about a hundred acres of pasture, it meens they can move around on a commericial barn floor and there is a small outdoor pen (likely devoid of anything green) that they might ot might not ever visit as all the birds could not even come close to fit in it.

I think I am seeing that people in general are backing away a bit from the "certified organic" and are happy to get quality meat that has been raised responsibly with care in a small scale environment. In real terms a chicken raised on a small scale uncertified farm might be as heathy and eythical a choice or better in the big picture than a more commericially raised "organic chicken" shipped hundreds of miles fed feed shipped hundreds of miles and that only meets the bare minimum of certification requirments . The big issue too is the words "certified organic" can add more to the price than the actual quality of product or sustainability.

 

[tracychicks1]

I need help I live in ny I want to sell organic eggs but I'm not sure what I have to do to make it legal for me to sell them. I've check the web and I got now where help I've got new chicks on the way