Our Special Order Chickens

After the borrowed Vitamix arrived, Ellie began chugging her bottles with liquid meat. I felt the long time burden of feeding my daughter begin to lift, and a relief that was unexplainable. The missing link at this point was providing a variety of meats to give her a variety of nutrients, and also finding a 'bird' to round out her needs. Ideally, we could go purchase a chicken and give her chicken soup, but finding a chicken that has not been fed soy or corn is literally impossible. I have been hunting for soy and corn free chickens and eggs for months. Chickens in North America have been fed commercial feed, and corn and soy for so long, that I couldn't even find a generation that knew otherwise.

You have probably heard someone say at some point that homemade chicken soup really does have healing properties to it. Well, it does! It is bone broth! You throw in a chicken, cook it up, and make soup. I find it almost humorous that we are OK with chicken bone broth, but think other animals are funky. Sometimes when I make these realizations I shake my head at myself. How goofy I have been!

Finally on craigslist I found a farm in the Apple Hill area that is raising chickens for meat, and selling them at farmer's markets. They were in their second year, and going to begin selling their organic chickens to a local restaurant as well. I emailed the business owner (Tom), and told him what I was looking for. To my amazement, he offered to look into raising chickens for slaughter for me, special order! Special order chickens. Who would have thought!

Tom is very knowledgeable, and did extensive research on my behalf to find a soy and corn free alternative to feeding the chickens, and also make it himself so that the per pound charge for these chickens is not outrageous. (Of course, 'my' soy and corn free chickens will be leaner and smaller than the 'other' chickens.)

Real Food Farms in Camino, CA will be beginning soy and corn free meat chickens this month. Please contact them (realfoodfarms@gmail.com) if you are interested in purchasing chickens that are soy free, or both corn and soy free. They are competitively priced, and very impressive. I am unsure if they ship, but you can always ask. After all, look at the accommodations they have made for Ellie!