corndel closure: tim shell provides his thoughts on ... · “competition” resides. given this...

American Pastured Poultry Producers Association Issue # 79

Hens on pasture at Tennessee Tech University. Photo courtesy of Dennis Fennewald

Have you ever heard of the Corndel Cross broiler? I

know many of you have. The broiler was developed

by Tim Shell, one of the original members of APPPA.

His intent was to develop a broiler breed that was

100% pastured-based, and if you read the Raising

Poultry on Pasture book from APPPA you’ll

encounter the Corndel breeding program and lots of

enthusiasm about it. Articles are also found around

the web, including apppa.org.

That enthusiasm often leads newcomers to knock on

APPPA’s door and ask these two questions, “Where

is Timothy Shell, and where can I find the Corndel?”

The answer seekers often have a heightened sense

of disgust for the Cornish Cross, which is the current

pastured poultry rock star. They read Tim’s articles

and are enthralled with the possibility of cutting the

Cornish Cross out of the pastured poultry industry for

a replacement breed that’s pastured, vibrant, and

simply non-industry.

The enthusiasm, however, often prevents people

from seeing the obvious conclusion to Tim’s Corndel

ISSUE 79

January/February 2014

American Pastured Poultry Producers Association Newsletter

breeding program and research. If you can’t find a

Corndel Cross broiler for sale these days, there are two

plausible reasons. The breed just didn’t perform as well

as needed to gain adoption. In other words, it failed in

the market place. Or nobody exhibited the same

passion as Tim, which caused the breed to languish

with his family’s departure to China in 2003.

The second possibility still gives the enthusiastic crowd

their hope. But hope does not beget success. And while

I may condense and only slightly sensationalize the

types of inquiries I get on this subject, consider that the

Corndel Cross has not been available for nearly ten

years. Yet, Tim and his chicken have achieved cult

status.

After all, there are people considering developing entire

websites to collecting Corndel information. I don’t think

there’s anything wrong with that. On the contrary, I think

that enthusiasm is awesome; it’s that enthusiasm that

prompted this article.

(Continued on page 4)

this issue

Breeding Pastured Broilers P.1

President’s Corner P.2

Embracing Competition P.3

Pastured Poultry at TN Tech P.10

Scholarship Awards P.12

Guide to Email Cold Calls P.14

Processing Pains P.16

Community Corner P.18

Act Now: PA Poultry Workshop P.22

Corndel Closure: Tim Shell Provides His Thoughts on Breeding Pastured Broilers —Mike Badger

American Pastured Poultry Producers Association Issue # 79 2

The new year has begun with very severe weather

throughout North America. Record low temperatures

and snow now seem to be the norm. Global weather

is clearly changing. I have recently read that the

greenhouse gas situation is apparently far worse

than what anyone had ever thought. It seems very

clear that globally most are going for the quick grab

as opposed to thinking about the long haul.

This of course flies in the face of sustainable farming,

which I personally feel is the underpinning of APPPA.

The whole GM situation is a serious threat to global

agriculture and food supply. The initial concepts

seemed fairly reasonable, the goal supposedly being

to feed the masses. Sadly this original concept

seems to have been taken over by simple greed.

Once again the long term is being overlooked for

immediate gain.

I was pleasantly surprised by the comments of Jim

Gerritsen of Wood Prairie farm in Maine. He came up

with a very simple comparison on how the GM pollution

can be described and how it is currently handled. It

refers to someone painting a house purple, next to a

white house. Basically the purple spray drift covers the

neighboring white house. The owner of the purple

house then sues the guy in the white house for stealing

his purple paint! This has to be the ultimate distortion.

Pretty sad really.

All of this can become depressing on a cold dreary

winter's day! YES, the glass is indeed half full.

Looking around our farm in the scenic Lukes Pond

Valley (Eli Reiff please laugh) in supposedly sunny

Bermuda, the entire place is saturated with rain. Bad

news? It is in the high 60s. It could be snow! Clearly

challenging for field work, thus we have been able to

complete the harvest of our latest broiler flock. We

target a 3-4 lb. dressed weight. Once again we nailed it.

I am forever thankful for my great team!

We now need to harvest about 300 spent layers. We

harvest these by gutting, removing the beaks and

toenails and then make them into a fresh natural dog

food. The mix includes fresh veg, fruit, cracked eggs,

and various natural additives. I have always believed

that everything on this farm is saleable. It is critical that

we turn our trash into cash. The quality of this diet has

shown excellent results. Fortunately, this product is

showing huge benefits in dogs previously fed

commercial food. The benefits are both physical and

mental. The interesting thing is that the stools come out

white and are gone in 24 hours. A lot of work, but a

great rainy day project.

In recent months APPPA and The Fertrell company

have conducted a series of laboratory tests on various

breeds of broilers on different feeds on separate farms.

A lot of tests on a lot of things. We now get to try and

make sense of a lot of numbers. A quick look at all of

these numbers does not reveal any glaring conclusions.


PO Box 85

Hughesville,

PA 17737

[email protected] | www.apppa.org | (888) 662-7772

The APPPA Grit newsletter is published six times a year.

The American Pastured Poultry Producers Association

(APPPA) is a nonprofit educational and networking

organization dedicated to encouraging the production,

processing, and marketing of poultry raised on pasture.

Staff

Mike Badger, Director/Grit Editor

Board of Directors

Tom Wadson, President, 2009-2014

Vice President, Vacant

Greg Gunthorp, Treasurer, 2009-2014

Jennie Watkins, Secretary, 2009-2014

Will Harris, 2013-2015

Jeff Mattocks, 2013-2015

Brenda Ostrom, 2009-2014

David Schafer, 2013-2015

Val Vetter and Deb Aaron, 2010-2014

Joel Salatin, board member at-large


If you had to identify your competition, who would it

be? Is it your neighboring pastured poultry

producers? Is it Tyson, Perdue, or Bell & Evans?

Where I’m at in north central Pennsylvania, there’s a

local chicken producer raising free range chicken in a

green house. Those chickens are cheap and

everywhere, including health food stores. I consider

this producer to be the biggest competitor to the local

pastured producers because he’s locking up some

prime markets with an average chicken (better than

CAFO, inferior to pastured).

There is also a strong pastured poultry industry in the

area, and while we all compete with similar products,

we’re not really much competition for one another.

Not everyone would agree with that statement. And I

know there’s the same difference of opinion among

many of you.

Some of you view the pressure of other producers as

a serious threat to your business. You’re inclined to

protect your “product and production secrets” for fear

of losing your competitive edge. I find two inherent

problems with this thinking. One, your neighboring

producers probably already know your secrets or can

find them out easily, if desired. The other problem is

that most of the producers in my area fall somewhere

around 1,000 birds a year with an outlier or two

approaching several thousand birds (green house

guy not included).

Now let’s do some math.

Americans eat approximately 80 pounds of chicken

each year. The population of Lycoming County,

Pennsylvania (where I live) is approximately 117,000

people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That

means county residents eat 9.4 million pounds of

chicken annually. Based on a four pound carcass, we

need 2.3 million chickens to satisfy the demand. The

numbers obviously increase if I were to include

adjacent counties. All the producers in a 50 mile

radius of me could not supply the demand for my

home county, let alone the counties where my

“competition” resides.

Given this perspective, it’s easy to see that my

neighbors are not competition. In reality, the biggest

local producer in the area is not a real threat to me.

We all have an incredible opportunity to supply

chicken of a variety of types ranging from

unremarkable cheap CAFO chicken to super-niche

organic, non-soy, pastured.

I would submit to you that most of what we fear as

competition is actually a marketing void. There is a

reason that businesses employ marketers and hire

marketing agencies. Marketing creates demand for a

product regardless of whether or not the product is

considered the “best.” Best products don’t inherently


EMBRACING COOPERATIVE COMPETITION —Mike Badger


At any rate, I wanted to track Tim down and get his

perspective on the Corndel Cross. I also asked him if

he’d mind providing some advice for those who may

want to pick up his work.

Some of you may be inspired by Tim’s advice while

others may get a ruffled feather or too. However,

there is something for everyone, including breeding,

flock management, challenge feeding, and business

philosophy. A couple of things are clear. Tim is still

passionate about farming and poultry. His reputation

as an expert producer and critical thinker shine

through. If you want an honest pep talk about raising

pastured poultry and about breeding, this is a

worthwhile read.

Tim’s responses to my questions were verbose, and

as a result, I didn’t need to ask him many questions.

I’ve edited his responses to fit space and topic, and

added a few headings to help organize the topics.

(Continued from page 1)

Mike Badger: Your work resonates with people;

however, as best as I can tell, no one has really

perpetuated your breed. Do you have any notes or

information that you would feel comfortable passing

on to me for publication?

Tim Shell: Our Pastured Peepers project started as

a response to Joel Salatin asking for a source of

chicks from pastured breeding stock. My family knew

Joel quite well. We had known and collaborated with

Joel in pastured poultry production since 1990 and

greatly enjoyed implementing his models of grazing

and poultry on our Mother’s farm in Bath County, VA,

an hour’s drive from Polyface.

Initially we used an egg mobile just like Joel but

found that the perfect cleanliness required for the

eggs for high hatching rates required roll out nests so

that the egg was removed from the bird immediately

upon laying. The best hatching rates come from not

washing the eggs at all, so as to not wash the bloom

off of the egg. These nests were nearly impossible

to keep level on hills where we farmed; so we parked

the shelter and learned to rotate the birds around it.

This then allowed for permanent water and electrical

systems and commercial feed bins. We took the best

of pastured poultry and commercial poultry and

combined them. We were running about 2,000

broiler breeder hens our last year and produced

about 60,000 chicks that year.

The biggest surprise/let down for us all was that our

chicks were not that much better, if any better, than

commercial chicks. Joel’s initial thought was that as

his pastured eggs were so much better than super

market eggs, chicks from his eggs would be better

than industry chicks. So we jumped in on that

assumption and ran it for four seasons, selling most

of the chicks to Joel in the beginning. In time, I was

able to actually purchase a dozen industry broiler

eggs and crack them out and show them to Joel.

They were just as good as his. His response was,

“How do they do that?” In other words, without

pasture in the diet, how can they get a good egg from

confinement flocks? Actually, it isn’t that difficult with

a balanced ration with proper micro-nutrients even


with zero forage consumption. It turns out that to get

a profitable hatching rate, industry breeder flocks

have to have much higher nutrient levels in their

rations than commercial table egg flocks require.

The hatching rate of table eggs would be very poor

and therefore unprofitable not only because of

nutrient levels but also because of age. Hatching

eggs are always fresh and no older than 9 days. We

were comparing the wrong thing; no one in the

hatching industry sets old table eggs. In the

beginning we thought we’d have chicks that would far

out perform those of the industry and sales would be

easy, but in the end, after putting several hundred

thousand chicks through the hands of pastured

growers over four years, the consensus was they

were industry equivalent but no more. In the

enthusiasm of the early days, everyone wanted to

believe they were better, but we proved it over time in

real economics with real flocks.

Joel eventually went back to other suppliers. Then

we were left with only the novelty of having a

pastured breeder flock to differentiate our product

and we ourselves were losing interest, having never

been interested in hyping something up to get it sold.

Soon afterward, we moved to China from 2003 to

2010, and we have been in Mongolia since 2010. It

was a relief to be out of the business because we felt

the chicks would sell themselves if they were so

much better; but they weren’t and didn’t. We had a

high customer turnover rate as well, which indicated

that many growers were just as happy with bigger

suppliers after the first year.

There are decades of strong science behind what the

commercial poultry industry does and generally a lot

of ignorance and enthusiasm on the part of pastured

growers. I think it’s good to work at getting as fully

informed as possible, and the industry has a lot to

offer. They’ve been at it a long time. So, we [the

Shell family] just lay the facts out for others to benefit

from whenever questions arise.

We are still interested in the whole poultry business

and waiting for the right time to get something going

over here.

Mike Badger: The biggest questions I get are in

regards to the breeding and the feeding schedules. If

I understand my research correctly, you're crossing a

Delaware rooster and a Cornish hen, but then what

happens after that? Do you cross it back?

Tim Shell: Anyone can go to a commercial broiler

breeder website such as Cobb and download the

production manuals with all the charts and feed

recommendations related to the following free of

charge.

Restricted feed program: The first thing to

comprehend is that broiler parent stock are just as

capable of gaining weight as fast as their offspring

will. If permitted to do so, they become so overweight

that they cannot reproduce naturally. The female’s

abdomen grows compacted with fat, limiting egg

production and leading to prolapse of the rectum at



here that we used the Fertrell Company to develop

special pastured broiler breeder feed supplements

and credit those balanced rations with much of our

success in being able to match industry production

and hatching standards on a pastured program while

remaining disease free.

Lighting: Contrary to popular opinion that it is

somehow cruel to force birds to lay eggs with artificial

lighting, light is a comfort factor for the birds and

controls their laying cycle. Chickens originate from

the jungles where day length is normally longer. If

lighting were a stress factor it would decrease

production when in fact it does the opposite.

Regardless, it is mandatory with broiler breeders

which only profitably lay a maximum of 150 eggs per

cycle, and that’s only with optimum management of

feed and lighting.

The lighting program is used in close cooperation

with the feeding program to induce egg production.

Generally, lighting commences by creating 14 to 15

hour days (with 40% of the lighting in the AM and

first egg, which is usually fatal. The males cannot

mount the hens or, if they do, they seriously damage

the hens. Therefore broiler breeders are kept on a

restricted feed program which keeps them healthy

and gaining weight on a schedule that compares very

much to any normal commercial egg laying breed.

The birds on restricted feed look and act like a

normal chicken, and can even fly if their wings aren’t

clipped!

The diet does not harm them in the least. Of course

the birds have the same appetite as before, so they

consume their daily ration in about 20 minutes and

sincerely believe they are starving to death the rest of

the day. This in turn causes them to scavenge

vigorously and turn to cannibalism if they become

nutrient deprived. On pasture they will consume

more forage due to this hunger.

This restricted feed program is standard industry

practice and must be practiced by any pastured

broiler breeder stock program. It should be noted


60% PM) and increases to a maximum of a 17 hour

day in 30 minute or one hour increments. As long as

day length is not decreasing there is no signal to the

bird to decrease egg production. Day length is

increased 2 weeks prior to first egg, at which time

feed is increased to bring the birds to peak

production. If lighting is not increased, there is no

stimuli to initiate reproductive development, and the

birds continue gaining weight rather than maturing

sexually.

Alternate breeds: The Corndel Cross was an

experiment closely following the line breeding

principles taught by Mr. Jim Lents, author of The

Basis of Line Breeding, and was designed to limit the

genetic potential for pastured broiler weight gain to a

9 to 11 week finish as opposed to a 7 or 8 week

finish.

A Delaware male was crossed with industry standard

Cornish Rock females which gave a 14 to 16 week

maturity. These males were crossed again back to

the Cornish Rock females to shorten the finish even

more.

One of the key concepts of line breeding is intense

culling pressure. Only the top 5% or so are used in

subsequent matings. In the beginning, very few

candidates will match the ideal type desired. We

progressed in 4 years with two complete generations

per year for a total of seven or eight generations.

Line breeding, as per Lents, requires 14 generations

to achieve a pure blood type after which most of the

traits have been stabilized and culling percentages

drop to 15% or less.

Our final disbursement of stock was to Tom

Delehantey (of Pollo Real Farm) in New Mexico who

kept the breed going for a few years, but no longer

has them to my knowledge. At the time of that

disbursement the birds were still lacking in some

important points of uniformity of body conformation.

Tom worked hard on that trait for several years.

Mike Badger: You've confirmed much of what I

suspected about the experiment being good/

educational, but not outperforming the industry

supply. Otherwise, smart folks like Tom Delehanty

would still be breeding them today.

Tim Shell: The take home lesson from our years of

work with the broiler breeders was this: The easiest

way for us as pastured broiler producers to increase

the hardiness of our pastured flocks is to challenge

feed commercially available chicks rather than breed

for new ones. Contrary to popular practice, the birds

won’t die if the feed trough is not full 24/7, although

they of course may imagine they are dying!

After seeing broiler breeder stock grow to maturity in

24 weeks on restricted feed, we realized we can

control the growth of pastured broilers with great

accuracy to any target maturity date simply by

challenge feeding. Anyone with any common sense

can see that pastured broilers are not living in

optimum health; they are gluttonous to the extreme,

which we consider a disgrace at best and quite

dangerous at worst for health in the human

population. They are sick and weak and stressed

due to their huge appetites. Just backing the feed off

a little can change their viability greatly.

There is not that much increase in feed consumption

between growing a bird in nine weeks as opposed to

seven, except that there are two weeks extra labor,

but there are benefits that balance that. The birds

will be more active, they will get up and move around

more instead of just sitting there all day, they will

forage more, and their muscle will have more tone,

(not necessarily tough if prepared correctly). There

will be lower mortality and performance under

weather extremes. The birds will be capable of

performing in other production models that require

them to range farther. They will be happier and

healthier. All that is required is a little practice in

limiting the feed intake of the birds.

One can simply add only enough feed twice a day so

that the trough is empty six hours after feeding. This

gives a six hour period twice a day when the bird’s

digestive system can rest and work more efficiently.


There is no need in our opinion to develop whole new

breeds once this information is understood. But most

broiler growers are unaware of the dynamics of

maintaining optimum performance and proper body

condition of animals designed for rapid weight gain,

having never dealt with breeding stock. And being

human as we are, this level of attention to details is

more than most producers will care for, so in the end,

a breed that is not capable of growing out in less than

9 weeks will have a place in the chick markets for

pastured broilers. But it would be a shame if that

were simply because growers were without the

knowledge of other options.

Mike Badger: Tim answered a very important

question before I had a chance to ask it. What would

your approach be like today?

Tim Shell: If I were starting back into pastured broiler

production today, I would use standard industry

chicks from a quality supplier and limit feed them (on

rations balanced by Jeff Mattocks of Fertrell) to grow

out in nine weeks. I would also use the stationary

netting model we developed that allows them to

range more and render the extra two weeks of labor

irrelevant because there is no daily moving of cages,

just daily move of feeders and weekly moving of

netting. It also allows for automated watering and

feeding if desired.

I fed the birds in portable feeders which were out in

the paddock, and slid them along to a new spot once

a day. They were just half pvc pipe on pvc runners.

But this spread the manure around the paddock

evenly, created no hot spots, forced the birds to

range, kept 50% of the droppings in the field,

extended the life of the bedding, and caused the

grass to respond with even, lush growth.

The birds would maximize their forage intake to

satisfy their hunger twice a day and still have the

same conformation of breast the customer is

accustomed to with slightly more tone to the

muscle.

I am only suggesting slight changes to key variables

in the overall program of pastured broiler production,

which in my view would give everyone a better deal--

the birds while they live, those who grow them, and

those that eat them afterwards.

Mike Badger: Your work with the Corndel has

developed quite a following with most people ending

up at the same point: how can I get more information

on his breed?

Tim Shell: If there are those who still wish to develop

their own slow maturing breeds, it should be stated

clearly that it is very doable in a short time (14

generations in 7 years) by following proper line

breeding rules and starting with industry stock

females and an alternative male.

Cobb, has been forced to develop this very breed

type for its chick markets in India due to customer

preferences for more muscle tone in their meat and

feather colors other than plain white. The truth about

line breeding is that it is, in fact, cloning animals


genetically speaking. It just takes 14 generations

instead of one and modern farmers don’t want to wait

that long. All that the genetic engineering industry

wants to do with cloning can be done by any

common farmer with the proper knowledge,

commitment and patience. Every farmer has his

prize chicken or cow that he wishes he had a

hundred of, and by line breeding he can have as

many as he wants for as long as he wants. With

proper culling there is no limit to the duration of the

program.

It is truly amazing how ignorant the American

agricultural community has become of the true

secrets of livestock breeding. Most agriculture

schools, sadly enough, still ridicule line breeding.

Mike Badger: Basically, a core take away from your

previous research is that it still basically comes down

to management. Good management can make an

industry bird work. For those who poorly manage the

Cornish Cross (i.e., health and mortality problems),

it's doubtful they will have the management skills

required to breed their own broiler.

Tim Shell: Yes, it's all about management by staying

aware of daily details and promptly adjusting that

which is out of order. I forced myself to spend 20

min/day/bird group sitting on my upturned feed

bucket observing the flock. Anything that is out of

order will make itself evident. Then I refused to allow

myself to eat, relax or do anything until those

adjustments were completed. Those are the most

critical and necessary moments of the day without

which my entire operation could not have prospered.

That time is just sitting and observing, not feeding or

water or anything else. People who throw in the feed

and rush back to their other life can never make it

work. You have to be devoted to observation with

poultry in order to catch their stress points and

correct them before they affect their performance.

I'm also a strong believer in creating dual

environments. The outdoor and indoor, and let the

birds choose where they want to spend their time.

Mike Badger: Some final thoughts from Tim...

Tim Shell: Much credit for my work goes to Jim

Lents of Anxiety 4th Herfords for mentoring me in

these breeding secrets, to Shelly Wenger of

Westdale Hatchery for hatching and shipping my

chicks and teaching me about hatching eggs and

chick quality, to Jeff Mattocks of Fertrell for teaching

me the intricacies of ration balancing first hand, and

to Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, Inc. for providing

the initial market guarantee for our chick sales and

the encouragement to get our program launched. It

has truly been a pleasure to know and follow these

men in their work.

Most of all, I am blessed immeasurably by my

Heavenly Father, the inventor of the chicken, in all

that He is teaching me about His marvelous poultry in

this process and am glad to freely share with others

what He has freely given to me. After farming for 30

years in three countries, I can’t stop admiring and

enjoying these amazing, incredible birds that help

feed our world today. Three cheers for APPPA!


I want to thank you again for the gift from APPPA and

want to send an update on the Poultry Program at

TENNESSEE Tech University. First, I would like to

give a little background to make it easier to see why

this program is a logical step for TENNESSEE agri-

culture. TENNESSEE Tech currently operates two

farms. One farm is two miles from Tech and contains

100 cows, 15 sows, 8 wool sheep (left over from the

show days) and 35 Dorper hair sheep. The sheep

are guarded by a donkey. The farm also supports

itself by producing soybeans and corn. There are

several greenhouses operated by the horticulture

department. The second farm is located about 20

miles from campus with 450 commercial cows. This

is easily one of the largest farms under the control of

a university, especially east of the Mississippi. The

diversity and size of these enterprises offer Tech stu-

dents hands-on experience in labs and as employees

of the farm. We are always interested in hiring ener-

getic students to work on these farms.

My goal is to build the number one poultry

program in Tennessee and an ongoing

pasture poultry enterprise for students to

“learn, earn and serve.” Students will

learn proper animal husbandry, earn

money operating the enterprise, and

serve the community by communicating

via field days and workshops. This will

make them more valuable in their intern-

ships, foster an entrepreneurial spirit and

expose them to poultry.

We used the gift from APPPA to help fund

the poultry program. Other donations

include a Bright transportation coop, two

GQF incubators and a GQF hatcher,

three zip-tie domes and chicks (layers).

We have purchased lots of building material, heat

lamps, feeders, waterers, water tanks, nest boxes,

electric netting and egg cartons.

In the three semesters I have taught, approximately

100 students (freshman to seniors) have been ex-

posed to poultry. Students have been involved in

raising layers, mixing feed, moving electric netting,

and collecting eggs. In addition, they have raised

chicks using the new GQF incubators and hatchers.

Students have built four 10’ x 12’ PVC hoop houses,

four 10’ x 12’ cattle panel hoop houses, an 8’ x 16’

eggmobile, and converted a 20’ x 40’ greenhouse

into a 40’ x 60’ gutter-connect greenhouse/chicken

house.

Next spring, we will start a broiler project! There is a

small, family-owned processing plant located 30

miles south of Cookeville. This plant has been open

for a few months and has been very busy. We plan

to raise ~400 broilers to research different methods

of production.

Pastured Poultry Education at Tennessee Tech University

—Dennis Fennewald, Assistant Profession, Tennessee Tech University

Editor’s Note: The Tennessee Tech University

Poultry Program was one of the recipients of

APPPA’s 2012 scholarship program.

A hoop house at Tennessee Tech University.

Photo provided by Dennis Fennewald.


I have more recently been involved in developing a

co-op in my area to develop a mobile-processing unit

for poultry and purchasing organic feed from local

farmers so that we can mix our own for our flocks.

We hope to have our co-op and mobile unit up and

running in about 18 months, which will save all of us

transporting our birds 4hrs to the only state licensed

processor in southern Idaho. Since I sell primarily to

restaurants and a local organic grocery, I am

required to have my birds processed by a state

licensed facility.

I would like to use the scholarship to give a workshop

on mixing feed, general chicken health, best

practices, and to help all of the south/central Idaho

poultry producers raise healthy, profitable pastured

poultry. None of us have raised poultry for very

many years, and, as far as I know, I am the only one

who belongs to APPPA. All of the new poultry

producers I know here are struggling with various

aspects of raising and marketing poultry, and I think

we would all benefit very much from a one-day

workshop. As far as I am aware, no one has held

any poultry workshops in Idaho, and our University

system does not have a poultry division, so we are

basically out here inventing it as we go!


The 2013 APPPA scholarship saw a nearly 400%

increase in proposals. The topics were diverse and

competitive. Several people proposed technological

projects while many sought funds to attend

conferences. Still others pitched workshops and

other educational efforts.

The APPPA scholarship selection team decided to

award two $500 scholarships in 2013. Selections

were made at the regularly schedule board of

directors meeting on December 19, 2013. The

awarded funds will support pastured poultry

workshops in Idaho and New York. APPPA’s core

mission is education and networking, and the winning

proposals embodied that mission.

Excerpts of both proposals are included for review.

These programs will take place in 2014, and, as a

condition of receiving the award, each awardee will

provide a report to be published in the APPPA Grit.

Award #1 APPPA member Katherine Noble, Hailey,

Idaho

I have a 10-acre, soon-to-become organic farm in

south-central Idaho at 5500’ elevation. I have raised

Turken broilers and Barred Rock and Rhode Island

Red layers for 2 years, and I have belonged to

APPPA for 1 year. I have found APPPA to be

extremely helpful in reminding me of some of the

things I have forgotten about chickens

since helping my grandmother many years

ago and in extending my understanding of

the science and art of raising these

delightful birds. I have been very grateful

for the blog and have learned a

tremendous amount by listening to the

conversations. The publications on pricing,

feed and processing costs have been

extremely helpful to me in trying to

establish a market for my birds and eggs at

a fair and profitable price.

APPPA Awards $1,000 for Pastured Poultry Education in 2014


Award #2 Nancy Glazier,Cornell University

Cooperative Extension, Pen Yan, New York

I am requesting $500 through the Jondle Memorial

Scholarship to conduct a pastured poultry workshop

for beginning farms. As Cornell Cooperative

Extension’s small farms specialist for a 10-county

region, I have the opportunity to work with these

farmers who are eager for basic information to get

started in an enterprise. Many have small acreage on

which they wish to raise animals as a part-time

business. Nearby urban and suburban areas provide

an ample customer base. The missing piece for

these beginners is education. One of my chief tasks

as an educator is to provide workshops for those

learning about farming.

The best means of learning is to hear first-hand from

experienced farmers. With a combination of

marketing and production education, participants can

learn the basics of pastured poultry production in one

day. This also provides a networking opportunity for

beginners to meet and get to know those with

experience.

Speakers will include regional pastured poultry

producers: Bob Ott, Hermann Weber, Fred Forsburg,

Marla Parsons, and myself. Location will be at the

Riga Town Hall, Monroe County, a fairly central

location.

Stay tuned for details of the 2014 scholarship.


If you want to grow your business, you need to reach

new customers. I’ve never been very good at cold

calls, but I have been successful using email to get

new business.

Communicating via email presents a special

challenge in that it requires writing skills—basics

such as punctuation, reasonable spelling accuracy,

and comprehension. In addition, it’s harder to write a

short, concise message than it is to ramble on, but

brief wins the day with email prospecting.

If you understand these basic contexts, you have the

understanding to succeed with email prospecting.

It’s important to note that this guide may be

presented in the context of email, but there’s no

reason it wouldn’t apply to a postcard, a phone call,

or a chance personal encounter with an interesting

prospect at a conference.

Here’s six easy-to-implement email prospecting tips

to ensure you engage your prospect rather than put

them off.

Build a list of targeted, relevant prospects

If you want to sell chicken to chefs, CSA’s, and direct

-to-consumer, you need a message for each group.

Write a concise message with contact information

Remember, you’re sending an unsolicited email to

someone you hope to do business with. Be respectful

of their time, make your pitch, and thank the person.

Provide links to detailed information and a telephone

number. If you hit a person with a serious need to

buy what you’re offering, they’re just as likely to call

you.

Create a personalized template

Personalize the email by including something specific

about that person, if relevant. The template portion is

the offer you’re making, and is typically more boiler

plate information.

Ask for the sale.

That’s why you’re bothering the person in the first

place. Tell the recipient what you want them to do.

Never, ever, cc/bcc recipients

Ever. Personal emails do not have multiple

recipients. Obvious broadcast emails are easy to

ignore.

In an APPPA context, I’ve used this type of

prospecting to recruit workshop attendees. In my

business, I’ve used this approach to build a mobile

processing business. When Christie and I wanted to

sell chicken to restaurants, this approach found chefs

willing to buy from us and increased our seasonal

production by over 500%.

Here’s a sample email we used to recruit chefs.

Some of the information has been <removed>:

Hi, <name>!

I was browsing <a website> and came across <you>.

I think it is fabulous that you use locally grown and

raised veggies and meats as much as possible!

Although I realize that you have pastured poultry

suppliers already, I wanted to reach out and offer you

one more resource, should you find yourself in need.

Many thanks for all that you do to promote locally

grown and raised products!

It’s a short message that was sent directly from my

wife, Christie, to chefs she selected. It demonstrates

our offer and our familiarity with the chef; we ask for

the sale. The email signature includes additional

contact information, which isn’t shown.

Nobody bought chicken based on the email alone.

They responded and Christie closed the deal on the

phone. But at that point, the contact is no longer a

cold call but a well-qualified lead.

Happy prospecting.

Concise Guide to Email Cold Calls —Mike Badger


DDOTSONOTSON FFARMARM

ANDAND FFEEDEED Distributors of Fertrell

Poultry Nutri-Balancer and the complete line of

Fertrell Products.

Also Available :

Certified Organic Hay Dotson Farm and Feed

2929 N. 9th Street Rd.

Lafayette, IN 47904

Ph 765-742-5111 cell 765-404-9826

Fax 765-429-5601

Fertrell

We have a very talented Board with great insight. We

are looking forward to great conclusions.

Your Board is very excited about our upcoming

diversified poultry pre track and annual general

meeting at PASA. Pease try and attend if you can.

The APPPA general meeting is on the Thursday

evening.

I notice the increased availability of no corn, no soy

layer rations. We are using them now. Many are

hoping for a similar broiler ration. The results seem

very good so far. We are very encouraged by

consumer comments, most of which are heard at our

farm store. The fact that we are much closer to non

GM is very satisfying.

We used to feed organic feed, but I must say the

pricing simply made it impossible to continue from an

economic standpoint. The fact that they always

seemed to be loaded with mycotoxins was a huge

worry. I am now seeing a huge improvement in flock

performance, 30%! Bear in mind that we have to add

about $175 in freight per ton of feed.

Another annoying thing is that quite often it appears

that a lot of poultry products seem to be dumped on

our offshore market. Worse than that is the fact that

these products are marketed here as fresh. Every

bird that comes into Bermuda is at least partially

frozen as the container temperature settings are 32

degrees at the highest. Better not say too much as

then the purveyors will then cut me off!

As I look back on almost 40 years of farming, there

have certainly been many changes and current

economic conditions seem to add to a demand for

cheap food. I say "You get what you pay for!” I also

say that if this business was easy, everyone would

be doing it.

I happen to do a weekly radio broadcast on a local

radio station. I do this at 8:45 am eastern time on

Friday mornings. It is live streamed on the internet. It

is usually fairly amusing and sums up the week in

(Continued from page 2) local agriculture. Log on to tunein.com. Go to North

America, and Bermuda then comes up. It is on radio

station FM 89. I would like to think it will improve your

day.

As we go into this new year, I wish all our members a

happy, healthy, and prosperous 2014. Your APPPA

Board continues to work hard for YOU! All the best

to each and every one of you.

Sincerely, Tom Wadson.

Editor’s Note. The analysis Tom references is currently

being compiled and written up. I expect to publish it in

March. Jeff will have isoflavone analysis of three broiler

breeds reared on three farms using two feed formulations

(soy and non-soy rations). APPPA sponsored nutritional

analysis of six broiler carcasses from the feeding trial. We’ll

publish omega 3/6 analysis, in addition to vitamins A, B, D,

E and cholesterol for both feed groups. Think you can

predict the results? Now would be a bad time to let your

membership expire.—MB


Processing, like predation and regulations is a

universal pain point for small-scale pastured poultry

producers. We all cope with the pain as best we can

and implement systems that work for our aptitude,

attitude, and scale. Failure to sufficiently solve the

processing problem will put you out of business.

At the end of the 2013 growing season, Jesse from

Appenzell Farm started a conversation on the

Producer Plus list by saying, “I've been frustrated

with how much work and man hours go into

processing per chicken on my farm,” and “the topic of

how to increase efficiency with processing has been

on my mind.” Here’s some of the responses to

Jesse’s common question.

My own personal reaction is that people need to

practice and efficiency takes repetition and volume.

Drawing on Lean manufacturing principles, Toni

Rowe, of Pennsylvania, recommends: “Draw a

diagram of your process first (called a "Spaghetti

Diagram" because of the spaghetti lines showing the

path of the product/operator) - look for waste,

eliminate waste, setup appropriate sized buffers, and

re-evaluate.”

Greg Gunthorp, offers this advice. “I think one of the

best analogies to look at slaughter and processing is

the weak link in chains. You have to be able to

identify the spots in your process that determine final

output and then identify the requirements that lead up

to that end result. I think if we research this topic we'll

find a very steep L shaped cost curve. A person has

to be really careful that "premiums" for pastured

poultry aren't ate up in small scale processing and

distribution. It's a very scale driven business. It's a

very capital, management, and labor intensive

business.”

David Schafer of Featherman Equipment provides

his perspective. “Studying the most successful

operations I could find, I have come up with six key

points, five of which are found in all of them.”

1. Proper layout, which means a compact footprint

2. Match equipment to scale: crates = chickens per

day/8, scalder = plucker capacity, kill station = 2x

scalder capacity

3. Rotary kill station

4. Rotary scalder

5. Evisceration shackles

6. 30-second evisceration—requires practice

Terrell Spencer from Arkansas recommends

inspected processing. Spence’s reply highlights the

opportunities available with scaling up. “I pay a

processor to process for me. USDA. Cost is 3.00/

whole bird and 5.00/cut-up. This particular processor

started doing poultry this year because I had built up

to a volume that he was willing to take a risk on (300-

400/wk).”

Happy Processing.

Processing Pains and Opportunities —Mike Badger


win in the marketplace. If the best products gained

the most market share, then there wouldn’t be a

conventional chicken industry and Microsoft wouldn’t

be the dominant PC operating system (it’d be Linux).

I recently exchanged some emails with iconic

pastured broiler breeder Tim Shell who said that

learning and mastering production practices is a

relatively simple thing that anyone can do. Sales and

marketing was much harder, and basically, the

marketers often stood a better chance of succeeding

at their pastured poultry businesses.

Tim’s perspective perfectly framed the competition

concerns I hear so much about. Instead of standing

off against our neighbors, we should be collaborating

to improve. After all, we can all benefit from iterative

production efficiencies, which in turn will make our

existing sales more profitable.

(Continued from page 3) That presents an interesting question. If you could

give your neighbor a production tip that helped

improve the neighbor’s carcass size, would you do it?

That question embodies the mission of APPPA. Our

Producer Plus members discuss ways to be more

efficient producers all the time. The APPPA Grit

constantly publishes practical production, marketing,

and business insights gleaned from producers across

the world; shared for the benefit of all. If you believe

the APPPA community is valuable, then you should

turn the same favor onto your neighboring producers

and learn to collaborate more and fear less.

Making what we do more profitable through

collaboration with our peers doesn’t put us at

competitive odds. Instead, that cooperative

competition builds our businesses and our industry.

Good luck this year!


Producer Marketplace To place an ad, email [email protected] or call (888)

662-7772.

Move to Wisconsin

5 acre farm just west of Milwaukee with: 3800 SF

home built in 2003, 40x60 block outbuilding with 20

foot clear inside, 40'x90' hoop house w/ water and

electric, 2 acres of woods. $700,000.00. Established

market for new grower/farmer wannabe.

[email protected] or 262-524-8263.

Experience wanted

Newcomer to pastured poultry wants to intern some

in chicken/waterfowl operation to gain practical

experience in western Pennsylvania to eastern Ohio.

Call 412-628-8096.

Wooden Chicken Crates

Brand new wooden chicken and turkey crates. Solid

floor to protect pullet feet. Chicken crates for $42.

Call Mike at (570) 584-2309 or email

[email protected]. Pennsylvania.

Plucker and Scalder

Too large for my space! Had to replace.

Ashley SP 30 plucker auto door opener. Retail

$6,900.00 Thermostat controlled Pickwick scalder

and older model dunker included.

Asking $4,200 for all. 208.512.2268

[email protected].

Mobile Processing Unit

For more information, pictures, and price, call

208.512.2268 or email [email protected].

Electric Netting Fence Cart

Patent pending electric netting fence cart used for

retrieval, deploying and storage of electric fence

netting. Can be either used by hand or with an ATV

or utility vehicle. $479.00 each plus shipping. Made

in Pepin, Wisconsin. Details at buvalafarm.com or

contact Matt Buvala at [email protected] or

(715) 495-7927.

Pastured Poultry Pens

Patent pending design developed by Absolute

Pastured Poultry's years of experience. Contact us at

[email protected]. Details at

www.pasturepens.com or call us at (570) 788-1044.

Rebar Portable Shelter — Churt Design Manual

Now available on disc by Tom Delehanty. Mail $39 to

Pollo Real, PO Box 1429, Socorro, NM 87801. Email

[email protected].

Gibson Ridge Egg Washer

Sink-top unit scrubs eggs with hot water and brush at

a rate of 28 eggs per minute. Suitable for a 3,000

layer flock. Made in U.S.A. of as much U.S. materials

as possible. $1,875 plus shipping.

Gibsonridgefarms.com or (740) 698-3330 (Ohio).

Processing Equipment Rentals

Locate or list processing equipment rentals at the

Featherman website: featherman.net or call (660)

684-6035 for more information.

Rehoboth MINIBARN

D.I.Y. Plans for a 4-bird barn-shaped chicken tractor.

Features retracting wheels and open bottom for easy

grass pasturing and lawn fertilization, easy access

nest boxes. Detailed step-by-step manual complete

with materials list with sku #s from a national home

store. Preview and Order as immediate download

online at: www.rehobothinnovations.com or call 804-

244-1044 to order hard copy. Price: $18 for download

$25 for hardcopy

Calendar of Events February 5-8, 2014: Join APPPA at the Pennsylvania

Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA)

Farming for the Future Conference in State College,

Pennsylvania. For details visit http://pasafarming.org

or call (814) 349-9840.

February 27-March 1, 2014: Midwest Organic &

Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) Organic

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.rehobothinnovations.com


and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES).

MOSES is marking the occasion with contests,

awards, historical exhibits and an anniversary

celebration on Friday evening during the conference.

Registration is available online at mosesorganic.org/

conference, by mail, or through the mobile app. See

the MOSES website (mosesorganic.org) or call (715)

778-5775 for more information.

West Virginia Dept. of Ag Considering Changes to

On-Farm Processing Limits

According to the West Virginia Food & Farm

Coalition, small-scale pastured poultry producers in

West Virginia are able to process up to 1,000 birds

under the exemptions provided by the federal Food

Safety Inspection Services (FSIS) poultry processing

regulation. The state’s poultry inspection program

does not recognize the FSIS 20,000 bird exemption.

Farms producing more than 1,000 birds must use an


Farming Conference in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. Visit

www.mosesorganic.org or call (715) 778-5775.

May 17, 2014: Pastured Poultry Workshop in Attica,

New York. Speakers to be announced. Contact

Hermann Weber for registration and more

information at (585) 591-0795.

Industry News

Registration opens for country’s largest organic

farming conference

SPRING VALLEY, WI–Registration is open now for

the 25th MOSES Organic Farming Conference,

which takes place February 27 through March 1 at

the La Crosse Center in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

This is the 25th anniversary of the MOSES

Conference, which is put on by the Midwest Organic

(Continued from page 18)


inspected processor; however, the state has no

inspected processors.

In 2013, the West Virginia Department of

Agriculture proposed a rule change that would

make it legal for state poultry producers to process

up to 20,000 birds on-farm in accordance with the

FSIS P.L. 90-492 processing exemptions. If

approved by the legislature, West Virginia

producers could take advantage of the increased

limits as early as 2014.

Source: West Virginia Food & Farm Coalition, (304) 460-

4869, www.wvhub.org .

Consumers Reports Concludes 97% of

Purchased Chicken Breast Contaminated

Consumer Reports analyzed 316 chicken breasts

from samples purchased throughout the United

States. The study tested for salmonella,

campylobacter, staphylococcus, E. coli and

enterococcus, and klebsiella.

Of the samples, 252 were conventionally raised, 40

were labeled with no antibiotics, and 24 were

organic. The major brands tested include Perdue,

Pilgrim’s, Sanderson Farms, and Tyson. The report

shows no difference between the production

method (conventional, antibiotic free, or organic) or

the brand.

Key findings include:

97% of the sampled breasts contained

bacteria deemed harmful

More than half the samples contained fecal

matter (enterococcus and E. coli)

Contamination by bacteria: Enterococcus:

79.8%, E. coli: 65.2%, Campylobacter: 43%,

klebsiella pneumonia: 13.6%, salmonella:

10.8%, staphylococcus: 9.2%

Multidrug-resistant bacterium was found in

49.7% of the samples and 11.5% percent

tested positive for more than two multi-drug

bacterium

(Industry News continued from page 19) The report highlights the opposing views on

responsibility for bacteria by indicating that

consumers should expect their chicken to have

bacteria, and that safe handling and cooking is the

best way to protect your health from those bacteria.

Then speaking in the context of the Foster Farms

recall, a Center for Disease Control (CDC)

representative says that blaming the sickened people

for unsafe handling “doesn’t ring true.” The CDC

attributes contaminated chicken with more deaths

than any other commodity based on a study from

1998 to 2008.

Nevertheless the study concludes that personal

responsibility and diligence to ensure proper handling

on the part of the consumer is the primary prevention

method. In addition, Consumer Reports recommends

that consumers should select chicken raised without

unnecessary antibiotics because “that’s good for your

health and preserves the effectiveness of antibiotics.”

The full report can be found in the December 2013 issue of

Consumer Reports or online at consumerreports.org.

Study Finds Salmonella and Campylobacter in

Processing Waste

A study by University of Georgia (Trimble et al, 2013

Poultry Science 92:3060-3066) studied the

prevalence of Salmonella and Campylobacter in the

soil and compost as a result of on-farm chicken

processing. Samples were collected from the soil (42

samples), compost (39 samples), and waste water

(46 samples) across four pastured poultry farms. The

primary objective of the research was to collect data

as a stepping stone to further research. The further

research, according to the study’s authors, is to

improve the processing waste disposal on small farms

in order to control pathogens.

The four farms have not been identified by the study

but produce approximately 1,000 broilers a year. The

samples from each farm were composited for analysis

to form a total of three compost samples, three soil

samples, and two wastewater samples. No control

samples were taken to measure the bacteria level of

compost or soil.


The following table shows the results by breed. All

broilers were 10 weeks old at processing. Due to a

small sample size, results for each breed and feed

type were averaged across all three farms. All

broilers, however ate the same feed and were

pastured.

The data suggests that Cornish Cross fed a soy-

based ration provides the better boneless breast

efficiency.

The study acknowledges that Salmonella and

Campylobacter can survive in a compost pile

including vegetable based compost. However, the

authors do not discuss the composting methods used

by each farm.

Results from the abstract: Salmonella prevalence

and concentration (mean log10 MPN per sample

weight or volume) in soil [60%, 0.97 (95% CI: 0.66 to

1.27)], compost [64%, 0.95 (95% CI: 0.66 to 1.24)],

and wastewater [48%, 1.29 (95% CI: 0.87 to 1.71)]

were not significantly different (P > 0.05). Although

Campylobacter prevalence was not significantly

different by sample type (64.3, 64.3, and 45.7% in

soil, compost, and PWW, respectively), the

concentration (mean log10 cfu) of this pathogen was

significantly lower (P < 0.05) in wastewater [2.19

(95% CI: 0.36 to 3.03)] samples compared with soil

[3.08 (95% CI: 2.23 to 3.94)], and compost [3.83

(95% CI: 2.71 to 4.95)].

Study can be found online: http://ps.fass.org/

content/92/11/3060.

Boneless Breast Yields from Broiler Carcasses

Mike Badger, APPPA director and mobile chicken

processor, collected 23 boneless breast samples

from three breeds on three farms throughout

Pennsylvania. The sample also measures the breast

yield variances between soy and non-soy feed

rations. The breast samples were originally cut for

various nutritional and isoflavone analysis that will be

published soon.

The sample sizes, while small, provide some

suggestive insights on breeds and feed relative to

boneless breast yields. The Cornish Cross showed

the biggest difference by feed type with soy-fed

broilers having an average breast size of 1.16

pounds while the Cornish fed non-soy rations were

0.923 pounds.

Otherwise, the Barred Silver Cross and Noll 22

breeds performed similarly on soy and non-soy feed

with regard to the measured boneless breast sizes.

Otherwise, these alternate breeds produced

boneless breasts half the size of the Cornish Cross.

Boneless Breast Sample Weight (lbs.)

Cornish Cross, Non-Soy 0.923

Cornish Cross, Soy 1.163

Noll 22, Non-Soy 0.493

Noll 22, Soy 0.499

Barred Silver Cross, Non Soy 0.450

Barred Silver Cross, Soy 0.440


New DVD Series Coming

APPPA will be filming a Diversified Poultry

workshop at the PASA conference. The event will

be turned into a multi-DVD set and made available

for purchase.

At the time of publication, the price per DVD has not

yet been set. You can reserve your copy by

contacting APPPA.

When: February 6, 2014

Where: Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable

Agriculture (PASA) Farming for the Future

Conference in State College, Pennsylvania

More Information: pasafarming.org or (814) 349-

9856

Poultry production offers a viable option for farmers,

either as a sole enterprise, but more often as part of

their diversified farm. The size and scope of

production can vary greatly, as can the season in

which the poultry is raised on each farm.

Join this varied group of experienced poultry

producers for a day in which they share their

knowledge and experience in raising classes of

poultry other than broilers and laying hens. These

grass-based, pastured livestock (both feathered and

hooved) farmers have diversified their successful

farm operations through raising turkeys (both

heritage and commercial), ducks, geese and guinea

hens.

This day is geared for the experienced poultry

producer who is interested in acquiring the

knowledge needed for diversification to include

turkeys, guineas and waterfowl.

Diversified Poultry Workshop at PASA

Diversifying Poultry Pre-track Topics Presenter

Duck Production Greg Gunthorp

Special Nutritional & Health Needs & Considerations for

Waterfowl, Turkeys & Guineas

Jeff Mattocks

Broad Breasted White Turkey Production Tom Wadson

Heritage Turkey Production Val Vetter & Deb Aaron

Guinea Hens Will Harris

The Future of Diversified Poultry Mike Badger


Join or Renew APPPA Membership (Please print clearly. Return form to APPPA at the address below.)

Producer Information

Name _________________________________

Farm __________________________________

Address ________________________________

City, State, Zip __________________________

Phone _________________________________

Email Address ___________________________

Website ________________________________

List Pastured Poultry Products:

Membership Information

Membership (select one)

□ Producer—$40 / $70 (2yr)

□ Producer Plus—$60 / $105 (2yr)

Includes online benefits

□ Business—$200

Pastured Poultry Book

Raising Poultry on Pasture

$34.50 each (shipping included)

# of Copies ____

APPPA, PO Box 85, Hughesville, PA 17737-0085

Total Enclosed: __________

Check if renewal □

If the number printed above your address is #79 or earlier, renew by mailing the form

on page 23 or renew online at www.apppa.org.

APPPA PO Box 85

Hughesville, PA 17737

PRSRT STD

U S POSTAGE PAID

Eau Claire, WI

Permit #203

178 Lowry Rd, New Holland, PA 17557

717-354-5950 | Fax: 717-354-0728

www.jmhatchery.com |

[email protected]

Specializing in hatching guinea keets, bantam silkie chicks, Muscovy ducks, and Khaki Campbell ducks.

To order ducks, please contact Fifth Day Farm, Inc.

717-445-6255. To order

Guinea keets or silkies, contact JM Hatchery.

Call for our free color brochure.

tel:717%20445%206255

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