I would be remiss as one with laying hens if I didn’t post something about the recent Salmonella outbreak in two factory egg farms in Iowa.
When we decided to raise our own laying hens several years ago, one of our motivations was that we wanted to be more involved in producing some of the food we eat, know where it came from and how it was raised. Raising our own chickens has been some of the most enjoyable work I’ve ever done. There’s nothing quite like eating scrambled eggs that were laid only a few hours before hitting the frying pan.
One of our other motivations in raising laying hens was that I no longer wanted to support factory farming practices as they exist on farms like those involved in the Salmonella outbreak in Iowa. There is a lot of information on the internet about factory farming practices for beef, pork, chicken, eggs, etc. At its basic premise, animals raised to produce (or become) food today are done so in a very different manner than they were raised even 50 years ago.
In order to produce inexpensive food, farms moved animals from the barnyard and pasture into more concentrated pens. In these pens, more animals can be raised in less space. At the same time, the food these animals ate changed, too. Corn and grains replaced pasture grass as the animals primary (and in many cases, only) source of feed. Many of these animals are raised in buildings and never even step foot on grass.
Outbreaks of disease (such as what happened in Iowa) and other problems can happen to ANY producer, large or small, but when they happen on such a large scale, it impacts many, many people.
In one of the most extreme factory farming practices – egg-layers – when hens begin their laying cycle around 5 months of age, they are placed in battery cages which provides each bird with about as much space as an 8.5” X 11” piece of paper. Their beaks are often cut (so they can’t peck at other hens) which removes a hen’s ability to groom herself. A battery cage doesn’t provide enough room for a hen to stand up fully, spread its wings or walk around. Hens in this environment never touch grass or dirt and never scratch around for bugs or flop in the dirt for a dust bath (a healthy activity that naturally prevents mites and other parasites). These are conditions I don’t feel are acceptable for any creature. At around 18 months of age (when a laying hen’s peak egg production begins to drop), factory farm hens are culled – sent to slaughter. However, those laying hens could continue laying for their whole lives, which can be as long as seven or more years! But after 18 months of age, they don’t lay as frequently – maybe laying an egg a few times a week instead of nearly every day.
I believe God gives man stewardship over all creatures here on earth and I don’t consider factory farming “good stewardship”. Even if we choose to eat these animals, I believe they should be treated in a humane manner for the time they are in our care. Now… I don’t consider my chickens pets and I don’t give them names. I do; however, strive to provide them with an environment that allows them to do the things that chickens do – scratch in the dirt, flap their wings, run in the yard, dig for bugs, eat weeds and nap in the shade under a tree.
Given everything I’ve written here, I have no illusions that small-scale farming such as we do is the answer for the world. I do; however, believe that there is a “happy medium” somewhere that can provide fairly-priced food to the masses that are produced in a way that also provides good stewardship to these creatures. I hope that more people seek to learn about where their food comes from and how its produced… and choose to support food producers in their own community.
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