You’ve probably eaten chicken this week. Am I right? In the United States, eight billion chickens are consumed each year. Whether it comes from the grocery store, the drive-thru or the family farm, poultry is most likely a regular part of your diet–but make no mistake. Nutritionally and taste-wise, there’s a big difference in factory farm chicken and pasture-raised chicken. I speak from personal experience, thanks to Brandon Chonko of Grassroots Farms.

It’s Pastured Poultry Week and Sunday, my boyfriend and I took a road trip about 40 miles South of Statesboro through Georgia’s farm country to a one-man pastured bird operation to get a first-hand look at white and red chickens, broad breasted turkeys and Pekin Ducks. I even learned about farmer Brandon’s Great Pyrenees, Lefty, a livestock guard dog named for his lazy left eye.

In the video below, Brandon talks with me about his passion for healthier food and provides some locations where you can taste his pasture-raised birds on the Georgia Coast and in surrounding areas. Regarding taste, Brandon says, “We’re raising an old school chicken that’s not going to be tough like a stew hen or a yard bird.”

What We Learned:
We learned a great deal about pastured birds on our visit, some fun facts too:

• A pasture-raised French red bird’s life span from birth to processing is about 70 days.
• Unlike domestic animals who usually overcome being the “runt of the litter,” chicken runts never hit a growth spurt. They remain little. How funny is that?!
• The only chicken hatchery with authentic French Label Rouge Birds in the United States is located in Pennsylvania at Freedom Ranger Hatchery, Inc. The chickens in the photos below are born in Pennsylvania and raised in South Georgia. Brandon gets them when they’re one day old.
• The natural body temperature of a French red bird is about 104 degrees (No wonder they like Georgia)!
• Broad breasted turkeys become Thanksgiving size in 5 months.

Lefty checks on his friends.

Gobble, gobble!

The Pekin Ducks and chickens are housed in the same cage.

A mix of white cornish-cross chickens and French red birds are raised at Grassroots Farms.

The cages are moved by truck every day and a half to ensure fresh forage.

North Beach Grill
After leaving the farm, we went to North Beach Grill on Tybee Island to try their Free-Range Jerk Chicken Entrée, made with the chickens we’d just seen on Grassroots Farms. Unfortunately when we got there and ordered, they were fresh out of the free-range chicken. Disappointment doesn’t describe our emotion!! Like I shared with Brandon though, we were bummed but it’s just a testament to how good his product really tastes! We’ll definitely try again soon.

Fantastic place, I’d go back again!

Great menu items.

North Beach Grill is right on the beach.

From the Farm to the Plate:
A true Southern fellow, Brandon didn’t let us leave the farm empty-handed. He sent us back to the Boro with a dozen farm eggs, a whole French red bird and two boneless skinless chicken breasts. You can bet I put them to good use! When I tell you this is the best salad I’ve ever eaten, it’s no lie. I featured the chicken in two ways. Just like Brandon recommended, I seasoned the chicken breast with kosher salt and pepper, then cooked it in the skillet in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Hearty, rich, succulent white meat with a crispy skin was the result. Using the yolk of one of the fresh chicken eggs (laid just the day before), I made a balsamic vinaigrette to dress my local greens. I didn’t even miss the cheese!

From the farm to the plate…

White meat like whoa.

SOME KINDA GOOD!

So God Made a Farmer:
Eating local, homegrown food just has a way of making you thankful–for Georgia farmers like Brandon, for Farmers’ Markets where you can gain access to healthful ingredients and for the reminder that convenience food can’t compare to the crops that come from Georgia soil or the meat raised on Georgia turf. Supporting local helps you, the farmer and our environment. Paul Harvey says it best:

Related Content:
From the Farm to the Plate: A Day in the Life of a Pasture-Raised Chicken