Looking to the future by looking at our past...

'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.' 
George Santayana 

source: USDA

It has been quite a year.  I am reminded of the fact that many of our current trends of systems for producing eggs are directly tied to production systems developed prior to the First World War.  Many of the problems that we saw in those times are being experienced now by producers.  In order to feed nine billion people by the middle of the century, we will need to develop improvements in all poultry production systems to become more efficient.  Nutrition, genetics, housing, healthcare and flock management should all be reviewed and improved upon where needed in order to make the production of food as efficient as possible.  This will need to take some investment and some support by producers and consumers alike if we are to be successful.  Time will tell.

Making Easter eggs and enjoying it...

Being Safe while enjoying the real thing

Easter is a time for most to come together and share a meal with those we care for.  I give thanks at this time for many things, but I also thank those who produce the food I eat.  Whether large or small, farmers do feed most of us.  So if you are lucky enough to have birds in your care and production enough to share, thank you!

source: pantagraph.com

I still like to boil eggs for Easter.  Dyeing eggs is one fun thing a family can do, and there are many ways to color eggs.   I prefer to use the off stove method of cooking eggs.  Cover eggs in water till at least an inch covers the eggs.  Bring these to just a boil, and then cover and take off the heat to stand for 10-12 minutes.  A little longer for larger eggs, a little less for smaller eggs.  Use older eggs, as it makes them easier to peel.  For dye I have used the box kits, food dye for cake making, along with yellow onion skins, beet juice, and other veggie pigments.  As long as the dyes are edible, they can be used.  A little vinegar helps with the staining process, and setting the color.  For those in a pinch, buy brown eggs or eggs from a farm with different colored breeds.  These naturally pigmented eggs will also be a hit on the bunny trail.

If you are going to hunt with real eggs away from home, the secret is the cooler and ice packs you carry the eggs in.  This will keep the eggs cold.  Keep eggs in their cartons and in the cooler until just before the kids are to hunt for eggs.  We did this in the morning while it was still cool, and then pop the real eggs back in the cooler just after the kids have found them.  Any eggs with broken shells should be thrown away.  

Eggs are a versatile food. I always enjoy egg salad sandwiches after Easter with my pigmented hard cooked eggs.  Folks around the lunch table would marvel at what I am eating, but are envious when they try my egg salad with spicy brown mustard and a touch of red onion for crunch.  Enjoy.

Setting the Record Straight on Poultry Production

Just because it is seen in public doesn't always mean it is correct...

Many times I will be asked "does this really happen in the poultry industry or on farms?" when folks read something online or see it on TV.  At times our industry will add to the confusion in their advertising to gain an advantage over their competitors by suggesting improper practices.  Once we discuss the real issue and explain the truth, then many folks will say that this make sense.  Some of the questions I get:

Don't you feed hormones to poultry? No, it is against the law to give poultry and swine hormones.  And the USDA has strict rules in public statements made when making claims about its use in animal production.  Hormone therapy was outlawed back in the 1950's for poultry.  To properly administer hormones to poultry you would have to pick up and inject a bird.  This would add time, cost and stress to a flock.  Because of breed selection, nutrition, health and management advances it was long ago realized that hormone therapy was not really needed.  So, if you hear a claim "we don't use hormones" you have to ask yourself why do they wish to perpetuate the myth?

All the birds are produced on "factory farms"  In my thirty years of work with poultry I have not heard a shop whistle in a poultry house.  It is ironic since most of our common consumer goods and foods are produced with some type of economy of scale.  Toothpaste, tires, lumber, gasoline, vitamins, clothing & shoes, catchup, ice cream, mayo, chocolate, milk, humus, tofu, bread, TV, telephones, and diapers are all made in - you guessed it, a factory.  So why can't a farmer gain some advantage by sizing his enterprises to pay for workers and equipment that are more efficient than those found on smaller farms?  A large six row combine can move through corn fields faster than a two row (yes some still in service) model when time is important.  So as a whole, family farms have grown in size, yet still stay a family farm.  There are discounts given to the farmer who can buy in bulk and single drop shipments, just like what is done at WalMart and Trader Joe's purchasing & distribution hubs.  The other alternative that does work as well is very small farms that have few employees or other inputs.  Many of these are supported with outside help and inputs to keep them in business.  Pricing for the smaller farms is critical to their sustainability.

Brown eggs are better than white eggs  If you are using commercial brown egg layers, there is enough white egg layer bloodline in the bird to make them almost indistinguishable with exception of feather & shell color.  Shell color is one of the last things added to the egg, and unless you are eating the shells, you are throwing out the only thing that is different.  If you think I am kidding, soak a piece of brown shell in a cup of vinegar.  Chances are You would see the brown layer dissolve leaving a white shell behind.   Feed has a bigger impact on egg flavor characteristics, so some claims regarding feeding are plausible.  So why are brown eggs more at the store?  The birds are a little larger and eat a little more feed, so costs are a little higher for these eggs.  I like the color of brown eggs so I will buy a dozen or so every year.

Chicken is just full of antibiotics!  Wow!  This misconception is tough simply because yes, antibiotics are used in animal production.  I can also say that humans use antibiotics as well.  If you were sick with a bacterial infection, wouldn't you want to use an antibiotic?  Well, farms both large and small will use antibiotics to treat birds that are sick due to bacterial infection.  Birds that are being treated can not be used for food.  There are strict laws on the withdrawal of all therapies before birds are harvested for food.  Antibiotics use on the poultry farm is normally in consultation with health authorities to ensure a positive result with the lowest use of drugs.  So are there antibiotics in the food?  No, not if they are following the rules.

Did you hear that ?

Egg Cholesterol is moving lower in Eggs...

In an age where being first is best, sometimes rediscovery of what is known makes for a better result. Recently, a press release about the cholesterol content of eggs made for a big splash. True, news about lower cholesterol content and higher vitamin D₃ in eggs is a good thing. When I asked Dr. Jacob Exler from USDA/ARS for a copy of his findings, he sent his original report from - September 2010. While publically released, this did not make top media notice until AEB made a recent press release and media push.

What this means is that it is true, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. We need to take the opportunities presented to us to tell the story of how good our poultry and egg products are for a balanced diet. It also means that we should thank scientists like Dr. Exler and his team that routinely tests foods for their correct composition. It does change over time. Because of his research, dietitians and other human nutritionists will have the most recent data in order to formulate diets for their clients who for some may be at a risk from dietary cholesterol or in need of nutrients. Dr. Exler and his team will repeat this testing over time to correct nutrient levels for the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. This is certainly a good program.

These latest values for egg nutritional components can be attributed to feed formulation and breeding lines used for our modern poultry layers. With further adjustments to the diets of layers we may expect the cholesterol content to further drop.

For More Information:

Link to the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference

Short Days Ahead

Do you See What I See...

For the most part, dealing with shorter days isn't much of a problem with windowless housing. But, for those who have open sided housing or open range short days means a break in production. Be sure that floor layers in curtain sided housing have adequate supplemental lights to keep the flock in production in lower duration days. Light meters wired into the lighting system could help provide light when the house gets too dark for stimulation. Be sure to check light bulbs and replace as soon as possible.
(photo credit: www.gelighting.com)

Egg Safety - Is a Partnership

To Be Safe Takes Effort on All

It was unfortunate to learn of an egg recall due to suspected bacteria in the egg packs. This casts a shadow on all producers as consumers question are their eggs really safe. In my travels I can say that farms are trying to do the right thing in protecting the safety of eggs and egg products for the consumer. The producers' families often are consuming the same products as the public they serve.

Due to the work of state egg quality assurance programs like the PA egg quality assurance program (PEQAP) the numbers of eggs with bacteria seen has been reduced significantly. Further, with new FDA regulation on larger farms coming soon, egg testing for bacteria will be strengthened in areas of the country that did not have state programs before. Regardless of flock size food safety should be practiced.

But the important message is that when consuming eggs, the eggs should be cooked fully to kill any harmful bacteria. It was undercooked or raw eggs that were suspected in the current cases. Eggs should be stored in their cartons at the bottom of the refrigerator where it is the coldest. Hand washing and handling foods carefully in the kitchen are important to ensure food safety.

Other links:
CDC - Tips to Reduce Your Risk of Salmonella from Eggs

The Egg Safety Center

Egg Nutrition Center

Making Molehills out of Mountains

Be reasonable – Do it my way

It is now becoming all too common now in the country. Someone telling you that you can’t grow food in the way you were most accustomed to. Noise, Odors, Zoning and animal welfare issues are now restricting some producers from producing local food that’s cheaper for all of us. Farmers do need to step forward and explain what they are doing with their neighbors so they will once again be “one with nature”. They will also need to police themselves against bad actors in the field that are not working towards the goal of using the best management to produce good economical food for all of us. Best management practices (bmp’s) are good for all of us. We need to be shining examples for all around us. They are watcing!

One group that I have discovered recently was The Good Egg Project. This included video segments with the farmers explaining different aspects of the production cycle.

Cage or No Cages - You Decide !

Going Back in Time

Much of the rhetoric surrounding the push for for enriched and cage free layer systems surrounds the idea of supporting repressed common poultry behavior. The question that should be asked is "Do we really have to support every behavior that the birds possess? Humans used to be hunter gatherers that would move in groups to hunt, kill and maintain territorial bounds by force. We obviously no longer do all that, but are we frustrating ourselves as other groups feel we are imposing on chickens in cages?

If we are placing birds on wire, not in dirt do they really need to bathe in dust? In my years of work I have seen most behaviors exhibited in both cage and cage free systems. Yes, layers will simulate dust bathing, wing & leg stretching and so forth. I have also seen gang picking in larger aviary and range situations as well.

The answer to housing poultry is to look to bird behavior that we wish to support, and more importantly pay to support. If US consumers wish to have cage free production, they will need to support all the requirements of such production. If humane caged (e.g. UEP) systems are important then consumers should financially support those activities as well. There is no free lunch and each system has both positive and negative aspects. What is needed is choice; pushing for markets without choice in the US is against the tenets of capitalism itself. The market will ultimately tell the consumers choice of what is important to them.

Aftermath of Proposition 2 in California

For those who are maintaining flocks in California, Prop 2 will certainly create some confusion as to how they will continue to produce eggs in an efficient way. The Poultry Science Association (poultryscience.org) went on record stating that there is no scientific evidence that current production practices are detrimental to poultry flocks. Other studies have determined that due to this passage major losses in farm revenues will be seen as production leaves the state.

IMHO I think that cooler heads need to prevail. Nobody I know who cares for these animals wishes to see animals abused. It is a fact that farm animals that are stressed in any way are very unproductive. So, it is in the interest of producers no matter which system of production used to do the best job possible.