Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
foul weather—particularly likely during turkey processing—we can enclose the shed
in tarps and even install a heater and lights. The setup allows for easy clean-up, min-
imal expense, and no place for pests to take up residence.
Equipment
Dependable, smooth-running processing equipment is essential. Our initial equip-
ment was purchased secondhand out of old barns, but we quickly tired of its low ca-
pacity and tendency to break down. We keep the original scalder and plucker around
as back-up, but have moved on to custom-built models.
On the kill side of the shed (divided by sheet metal walls and a curtain) my husband
Michael has the most “complicated” equipment. There is a line of four metal “kill
cones” on a sheet metal wall with blood buckets placed below. On the other side is a
propane scalder with a rope and pulley for dunking and a barrel plucker. The scalder
is simply a 50-gallon steel drum (food grade) with the top third cut off. It sits on a
propane burner (turkey fryer) with a 5-gallon propane tank. Michael monitors the
scald temperature (145ºF) with a digital thermometer and adjusts the heat manually.
The plucker was also handmade using a plastic drum and a rotating plate with fingers
built within a wooden frame and powered by a small electric motor. This setup easily
handles four birds at a time, approximately thirty an hour, a comfortable rate for Mi-
chael and the folks on the other side of the curtain.
On the clean side of the shed there are typically two of us eviscerating, cleaning,
and bagging on an 8 ft. stainless steel table. I have done nearly all the eviscerating
over the years since my small hands work well in the bird, and once someone is fast
at eviscerating you don't want to replace him or her. I have simple equipment in-
volving only 3 feet of tabletop with a hole for offal that drops into a bucket. On my
counter is a tub of ice water for giblets, a carbon steel knife, a lung remover, and an
overhead hose with a spray nozzle. The cleaning crew at the other end of the table
has only pinning knives (for removing pinfeathers) and spray nozzles. When they are
done cleaning, inspecting, and rinsing a bird it is transferred to the 100-gallon gal-
vanized chill tank filled with ice water and covered by a clean tarp. For bagging we
use a draining system of a series of rigid plastic pipes inserted vertically into a
wooden stand. Birds are placed on the pipes to be drained of water and covered by a
bag. We use freezer poultry bags, twist ties, and preprinted freezer labels that are
filled out using a digital scale. On the clean side we also use plastic aprons, hats, and
much hand washing. After handling, the birds are transferred in coolers to the freez-
ers in our store at the barn.
