Thousands of Chickens Culled…

You know that my heart is set on restoring health for people, animals and the land.  You know that my family puts in long hours each day to make sure our animals have the best life we can offer.  And you know that we LOVE what we do.

Not that long ago though, I worked in Big Ag.  So, when this headline came out a week ago, I wasn't surprised.  

Thousands of chickens to be culled after Minnesota poultry company faces financial problems | MPR News

Unfortunately, this is not new.  This happens (a lot) more than people think.  Large corporations own millions of birds.  Most of the time, it seems like things go well and financials are not an issue.  But other times, financial stress causes thousands of chickens (or hogs, or turkeys, etc) to be 'culled' needlessly. 

Culled means removing animals from the herd.

In this case, removing animals from the herd means euthanizing them.

Euthanizing them generally means killing them humanely.

In this case, those animals were completely wasted.

Chew on that for a minute.  Thousands of birds have been 'culled' and there are hungry people in this world and in our neighborhoods. 

Then there's the narrative we're all fed...  "Big Ag the only way to feed the world!"

Meanwhile, because of the way large companies own large numbers of birds and control so much of the supply chain, an instance like this becomes catastrophic for the birds and the consumers - also causing prices at the store to rise because of the lack of supply in the marketplace.

I know farmers that have personally been through this before and have had to cull perfectly healthy animals, and it is hard on them.  They work so hard to raise these animals under contract for these companies and watch their work turn into waste. 

The system is flawed and so, so unreasonable.

Many people see these headlines and can move on with their day without thinking twice about them, but I can't.  

I've been exposed to so many small farms that truly provide stability to so many families.  I'm experiencing the same with our small farm.  I'm convinced that small farms and homesteading need to become the norm again.

Now, I understand and appreciate that God meant my experience in Big Ag to be an eye-opener for me and push me to do better for our family and others.

When I say thank you for supporting our farm, I really mean it. 

Your food dollars (and mine) will change the game on this detrimental issue.