Organic Poultry Farm

Although I was unable to attend this field trip, hearing the lecture and observing a classmates notes gave me insight into this industry. Learning the background of this industry was very interesting, especially how it all originated from a mess up in an order bringing 10X the amount of chickens was so facilitating to hear. The most fascinating part of this was learning more about organic chicken. Personally , I always would buy organic chicken because I thought it was better for me as a consumer, as well as the welfare of that chicken. But after hearing from someone who has been in this industry for over 10 years really opened my eyes to some of the misconception. The main thing that stuck out for me was how in order to be classified as organic, they need to allow the chickens access outside. At first, this thought seemed great to me and that it really would be a benefit to the animal. But after hearing how few chickens on Ms. Georgie’s own farm actually go outside, I started thinking differently. Also, these chickens are not allowed to receive antibiotics. So when they are sick and medically require antibiotics, they are not allowed to get them. Even if this doesn’t result in a death, to me, not administering these needed drugs is inhumane. Lastly, another thing that surprised me is how the “wellness” of the chicken is determined by the chicken paw and how that is the most expensive part of the chicken. Overall I enjoyed learning more about this industry and intend to do more research to distinguish my knowledge from the previous misconceptions I may have had.

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