I love to watch chickens peck and scratch. For some reason it is relaxing, unless of course they are scratching in our mulch and scattering it across the driveway.

The labels on chickens and eggs at the grocery store reveals a need to write a book to decipher them for us to sort through. Chickens, like many other protein sources, should come with a dictionary to explain the terms used on each different label.

Since I’ve never seen a government regulation book at the store (not that I want to) we need to study in advance. Otherwise, we are left to the advertising departments pretty pictures of chickens roaming freely to entice us to buy “healthy”.

And while the label makes it difficult, so do the array of commonly accepted words used by the media. “Free range”, “Grass – Fed”, “Pastured Poultry”, all can be found on chicken labels in the meat department. Lets explore what each of these means.

The term grass-fed poultry is a very broad term. It is so broad that “Free Range and Pastured Poultry” can fit under this term. Grass-fed poultry means birds that are allowed to forage on as much living grasses as they desire. Using our chickens in Epsom as an example, they used to be allowed to roam free from morning to night. The only time they were confined to their coop was at night to keep them safe from predators.  All day you’d find them in the front yard, hiding in the weeds, and up near the road.  That is what most consumers envision when they hear or read the term ‘grass fed’. We did supplement our chickens diet with a grain based feed mix. Chickens unlike cows are adept to eating corn. Only a very few chickens are truly grass fed. Unless you can interview the farmer when it comes to “grass fed” and chickens, assume they have access to grain feed as well.

“Free range,” as used commercially today, simply indicates chickens that are not in cages and do not have a physical barrier between them and the outside of their building. That sounds wonderful but without knowing the farm where your chicken grew up, it could mean the outdoor space is bare dirt. “Free range” conjures up picture of chickens running around a healthy, bustling farmhouse, eating grass and other things to their hearts’ content. It is the term of choice. The term sells chickens at a high price but doesn’t necessitate that the bird was given all the grass and other goodies it naturally eats. The chickens we keep at the house would be termed free range. If you come to Epsom you will find our chickens confined to a small pen with an attached coop.

Pastured poultry is raised right on top of living grass. This is most commonly done with chicken tractors. “Chicken tractors” are movable pens. They are moved to a new spot of fresh pasture as often as necessary.  Dean and I would love to move our chickens into a “Pastured” system. They’d have access to the outside but would be protected from any animal that loves to eat chickens. (Remember our dog, Annie?)  It is an ideal system.

So what does all that mean when it comes to the chicken on my plate?

Go back to the vision of chickens roaming freely. The closer you can get to chickens raised that way the better the nutritional value. Pastured Poultry has an increased nutritional value compared to chickens raised in cages, confined to eating all processed feed. Essential fatty acids, which control a myriad of bodily functions, fall into two families: the Omega-3′s and the Omega-6′s. The Omega-3 group comes from the leaves of green plants, while the Omega-6 group comes from the seeds (for example, grain used in animal feeds). Animals that eat quantities of green plants have very high levels of Omega-3.

A healthier more naturally raised chicken is higher in Vitamin A, plus their meat has a significant decrease in total fat compared to chickens raised in crowded pens.

The very best, most healthful way to eat is to build a relationship with a local farmer, which allows you to eat as fresh off the farm as possible. There is something in farm-fresh produce of all kinds that imparts health like nothing else can.

Or better yet, don’t be a chicken, and raise your own!

To your best health,
Coach Nancy