Gourmet poultry production
Top quality 'table fowl'
Gourmet poultry producers rear small flocks of slow-maturing birds to high welfare standards. They use either barn or free-range systems.
The majority of quality table fowl are not transported to an abattoir for killing. Instead they are slaughtered on the farm where they were reared to minimise stress.Gourmet poultry producers hang the meat in a traditional manner to impart a good flavour and the proof is in the eating! Upmarket poultry-meat is sold via independent butchers and to the catering trade. It commands a high premium.
Trading Times
Geese are reared for consumption during Michaelmas and at Christmas. Turkey is now the main festive bird but it is also consumed at Thanksgiving in late November. For some families, the Christmas bird will be a heavyweight cockerel. There is a year-round trade in speciality chickens and ducks.
Welfare
Farmers adhere to rigorous quality standards on bird welfare and farms producing birds under quality assurance schemes are independently inspected. All farms holding a slaughter licence undergo inspection by a vet from the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). There are minimum criteria for the handling and slaughtering of birds. These standards are based on practical experience, scientific knowledge and regulatory requirements. The industry is committed to raising the standards of bird welfare at all stages of rearing, through the training of stockmen and the adoption of proven husbandry practices.
Production Methods
The farmer will usually buy in birds from a breeder/hatchery when they are a day old. For a few weeks after hatching, all young birds need to be kept warm. Normally baby birds would sit under their mother to keep warm, but when reared artificially, their source of warmth will be a "brooder" with a heat lamp. When the young birds are hardy enough, they can be transferred from their heated units into a barn or enclosed field.
Barn
Rearing birds in a barn system does have its advantages as it is easier for the farmer to protect birds from predators and to provide optimum hygiene and disease control. It is a cheaper method of production compared with a free-range system. Automatic feeding systems and "environmental controls" can also be installed.
Free range
In a free-range system, the birds have greater freedom to express natural behaviour. But they face a greater risk of contracting disease carried by wild birds. Fox-proof fencing of around 1.5m in height is used to enclose the "range" or fields where the birds are roaming. Free-range flocks are more likely to be preyed upon or attacked by predators including foxes, visiting cats and occasionally even raptors (birds of prey). Farmers provide free-range birds with shade or cover such as an ark or a tree. Ducks and geese are given access to shallow water to dabble in.
Birds are fed natural diets, often including home-grown grain, so that there is full "traceability" throughout the food chain.
Slaughter and preparation
Gourmet poultry-meat producers tend to slaughter birds on the farm. After slaughter, the birds' feathers are plucked out. A bird that is dry plucked by hand will keep for longer and it should have perfect skin - a quality demanded by the restaurant trade. Birds are hung un-eviscerated (with their innards) for a few days as this helps to impart a good, gamey flavour to the meat. When the carcass has relaxed, it is "dressed" or gutted - the inedible parts are removed. Some producers apply a wax finish to the carcass which looks good and helps the meat keep well. Gourmet poultry producers often have their own refrigerated vans to deliver meat to their butcher and restaurant customers.
Niche Markets for Geese
There are a handful of free-range goose producers in the South East rearing geese for niche markets. Most are members of the British Goose Producers' Association. In this region, commercial flock sizes range from a few hundred to 2,000 birds. Geese for commercial meat production are generally based on the heavy Emden breed, popular throughout Europe. The Embden is believed to be a northern Dutch breed.
When the goslings are just over a month old, they are moved from their heated unit to a straw-filled barn.
They can then begin to enjoy a free-range lifestyle and a natural diet, grazing in meadows or stubble fields. The geese come into large barns at dusk where they will be safe from foxes.
Seasonal Tradition
Goose is in season between September and December. Traditionally, "green geese", which had grazed on pasture, were first eaten at Michaelmas (September 29) - the feast of St Michael and All Angels. This was a "quarter day" when tenants paid one of their four tranches of rent and they often presented the landlord with a goose. Country people believed that eating goose on Michaelmas Day would ensure good luck in the coming year.
Supreme Taste
Goose was once the customary Christmas bird but was steadily overtaken by the turkey (first imported from the Americas during the 17th century). Goose waned in popularity from the Edwardian era onwards when turkey-farming methods became more efficient. However, goose is now making a comeback among gourmets. Birds are generally slaughtered at 20 weeks on the farm. A gander can weigh 12kg, a goose 9kg. The majority of geese are sold via independent butchers.
Recipes using goose can be found on the following websites:
British Goose Producers' Association
Seasonal Turkey Production
There are around 150 turkey producers in the South East, most of whom produce quality turkeys for seasonal markets. Turkey is the nation's favourite festive bird, with 10 million eaten in this country every Christmas. But UK farmers report that there is also pre-Christmas demand for turkey. Many expatriate Americans celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November with a turkey as the centrepiece of their meal. The majority of Christmas turkeys are imported but one in ten will be a quality turkey reared on a British farm. Consumers who want to buy British birds should contact the NFU for details of the nearest farm that supplies fresh turkeys.
Many turkey producers work to the Traditional Farmfresh Turkey Association guidelines. Commercial flocks range from a few hundred to several thousand turkeys, but farmers adhere to strict guidance on stocking densities. Smaller flocks mean healthy birds.
The farm-fresh turkey producer rears slow maturing varieties of turkeys. A traditional farm-fresh turkey may be considerably more expensive than a frozen bird, but the flavour is far superior, owing to the method of production and slaughter. They are killed at 24 weeks, compared with a supermarket bird that may be killed at 12/14 weeks. They are dry plucked and hung in a chiller room for around ten days. Delayed evisceration gives a more gamey flavour to the meat and the result is a tastier turkey.
Bronze turkeys are usually reared in orchards or paddocks on a natural diet. Fox-proof fencing encloses the ranges and the birds are brought into barns at dusk to prevent predation. White-feathered turkeys tend to be reared in a barn system, although not exclusively. Birds have the freedom to roam, scratch and perch. The farmer will often provide them with "toys" to keep these curious birds amused. These are usually small objects hanging from long pieces of string.
Broiler Chickens
Chicken is the nation's favourite meat. The table chicken is a fast-maturing bird known as a broiler. Today's broiler is a commercial hybrid specially developed for meat production. The UK's leading breeders have undertaken much research to develop productive birds with good conformation and skeletal quality. Research has also focused on the modification of growth profiles, refinement of diets, feed control and optimum environments to minimise any impact on bird welfare and health.
Farmers buy in broilers as day-old chicks from a hatchery. These birds will at first be kept in a brooder and then in moved into a carefully controlled indoor environment where they grow quickly. Broilers are commonly reared in an indoor barn system. Indoor systems were created to protect birds from predators and to provide optimum hygiene and disease control. Today's barns are equipped with automatic feeding systems and "climate control", with back-up generators in the event of power failure.
Chickens have the freedom to perch, roam, preen and scratch in the deep litter bedding. A broiler reared on a mainstream farm can be "finished" (ready-to-eat) and on a supermarket shelf in 42 days.
Gourmet Table Chickens
However, some farmers produce table chickens more slowly, using barn or free-range systems. Gourmet chickens are slaughtered after about nine weeks when they weigh around 2.5kg. The end product will be flavoursome, owing to the practice of hanging the birds with their innards (delayed evisceration). The price for the end product can be four times more expensive than an average supermarket chicken of the same weight.
The restaurant trade demands birds with a thin wash of fat beneath perfect skin. Any birds with slightly imperfect skin are sold as "boning chickens" to butchers - for portions. Gourmet poultry producers sometimes rear heavyweight cockerels for Christmas consumption. These are often incorrectly referred to as "capons". A capon is a castrated cockerel but the practice of caponising no longer goes on.
Ducks
The average meat duck is a hybrid usually based on a Pekin. This is a large Chinese breed - it is a white-feathered duck with an upright stance and plenty of breast meat. Some farmers will also rear Khaki or White Campbells - these are a dual-purpose breed for both meat and eggs.
Mainstream ducks are slaughtered at around six and a half weeks, but gourmet ducks are finished more slowly and killed at between 10 and 12 weeks. A mature Pekin-type duck can weigh 2kg or so.
They can either be reared in a barn or free-range system. Day-old ducklings are "brooded" in specially insulated houses with heat lamps until they are 28 days old. Temperature is carefully controlled and the birds are regularly checked. They are fed an additive-free diet and bedded on either shavings or straw. Small water troughs are provided to introduce them to swimming, but they are shallow enough to avoid accidents. Ducks can then be moved to straw-filled barns that have extra bedding added daily. Bathing pools are provided where they can happily splash and preen.
Free range ducks start life in brooders, like the barn-reared ducklings. When they are about a month old, small flocks of ducklings are moved into enclosed fields. They are provided with arks (houses) or barns to use at night to keep them safe from predators. Ducks will forage greedily on pastures and they readily bathe in troughs or shallow ponds. Their varied, natural diet helps to keep them healthy. The ducks' living conditions should help produce a bird with a good flavour. The birds are slaughtered on farm and the practice of hanging the meat improves the flavour.
