Terra Firma Farm
A Community Farm and Educational Academy
To teach our children to grow through growing, to care by caring for, and to nurture by nurturing.
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Terra Firma Farm A Community Farm and Educational Academy To teach our children to grow through growing, to care by caring for, and to nurture by nurturing.
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After School Programs |
Organic Pastured Poultry Why Terra Firma Farm Pastured Poultry?? At Terra Firma Farm our chickens & turkeys are raised in small groups and are free to forage on pasture. It wasn’t very long ago that most chickens were raised on small farms in this fashion. With the advent of the “get big or get out” mentality, and when corporations were looking for what to do after World War II, that changed. Most chickens today are kept confined, many in cages of only 6” by 6”. They are so crowded they literally can’t fall over if they die. Under these conditions, it is necessary to feed large amounts of medications, usually antibiotics, to keep them alive. They are fed a “balanced” ration of grains that includes animal wastes and appetite stimulants. As a result the meat from these animals is high in fat, and low in such essential ingredients as omega-3 fatty acids. Such treatment is not good for the chickens and certainly not good for you. Our Terra Firma Farm chickens & turkeys get fresh air, water, sunshine, grains, grass, bugs, and no antibiotics. With such a life style, the meat our birds produce is healthy, nutritious, and tastes delicious. Rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acid Many studies have shown the disease fighting benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. Your body does not produce these essential fatty acids; they must be obtained through food. But omega-3s are not available in chickens raised only on grains. They can only be obtained from birds and other animals that consume grass and other greens as part of their diet. Chickens & turkeys raised on pasture consume 30% of their calories from grass, clover, and other greens. Less Fat, Fewer Calories An independent study funded by the USDA Sustainable Agriculture and Research Education (SARE) Program found that compared to conventionally raised chickens, pasture raised chickens had 21% less total fat, 30% less saturated fat, and 28% fewer calories. The pasture raised chickens had essentially no fat in the breast meat, but had 50% more vitamin A and had significant levels of omega-3s, where conventional chickens had none. Organic Grains Chickens & turkeys are foragers by nature. They forage for greens, seeds, and bugs. But they need healthy feed grains to grow on. We feed Green Mountain Certified Organic Feed because it is the cleanest most naturally produced we can find. Our birds get no antibiotics or medications of any kind, and there are no pesticides or herbicides used on our farm. Our birds get no animal by-products.
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info@terrafirmafarm.org with questions or comments about this web site.
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