Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
not raising white egg-laying type breeds in cages and forcing them to lay, then use your
chicken type and raising practices as part of your promotion. If your birds are free range
or semi-free range and receive only organic feed, for example, make sure your potential
customers are aware of these facts, as these aspects of the life of your birds make your
eggs something special. Eye-catching, informative labels could be key to sales. Look for
egg carton sources in Resources at the back of the topic. The cartons come unmarked so
you're free to design the labels as you see fit.
A special display can also attract new buyers. Perhaps you will choose to market dark
brown or green or blue eggs. A color assortment of eggs boxed by the dozen or half-
dozen or eggs of a particular breed can be turned into an appealing marketing promo-
tion. You might try using a particularly ornate package created by a local artist or that
you design yourself. Something that's eye-catching usually does the trick.
TASTE TESTING
WHAT YOU GET WITH YOUR
SUPERMARKET BIRD
Read the label when you purchase modern turkeys or chickens in the supermarket.
You'll notice they contain an artificial flavor-filled broth solution that makes up
between 10 and 20 percent of the weight. This broth solution also contains additional
salt. When you purchase a 20-pound (9 kg) turkey, you're often purchasing 1 to 4
pounds (0.5-2 kg) of liquid flavoring and sodium, added to achieve the turkey taste
familiar to most consumers.
Although the heritage turkey may be 2 to 3 pounds (1-1.5 kg) lighter than a com-
mercial bird, artificial flavor needn't be injected. With a slower growth rate and more
varied diet, birds produce their own delectable flavor, especially if they are free-
ranged heritage birds. You can still add salt when cooking a heritage turkey, but
you're in control of how much is added.
Sample Schedule for a Poultry Taste-Testing
Education is the key to changing peoples' attitudes about heritage birds. Visuals and
taste buds convince people far quicker than an article in newspaper or a magazine. To
host a taste comparison between a commercial turkey (or chicken) and a heritage bird,
you need to plan ahead.
Two weeks before taste test:
