Frozen. Pastured. Sustainable. Non-GMO Feed.
Approximate weight of the whole bird is 3.5 to 4.0 pounds (give or take a bit)
These birds do NOT cook like a 'regular' chicken. Because of the smaller breasts, the layer of fat and the age of the bird we recommend starting the bird in a very hot oven (400F) to 'seal' the meat and then lowering the temperature (300-350F) to cook, monitoring the internal temperature of the breast until ready.
These are Kendal Hills Farrm's premium chickens that we raise to a standard we call Label Vert™, out of respect to the strict 'Label Rouge' standard in France. They are more evenly proportioned, meaning 50% white meat and 50% dark meat. The meat has more flavour, texture and colour than standard chicken, and in the words of the chefs 'is the best chicken in Canada'.
The chickens are a slow-growing breed that takes 18 weeks to reach maturity and are suited for the outdoors. They are raised in portable shelters and have constant access to the range, with the shelters being moved to a new range whenever needed. Their feed is 75% cereal with no medications, growth stimulants, animal products or other additives.
More about our chicken:
Artisanal: Normally to raise more than 300 chickens you need quota (the 'license' to farm chicken). Last year, Chicken Farmers of Ontario introduced a new program called the Artisanal Chicken Program so that farmers could raise up to 3,000 to a higher standard (ex. free-range & organic). We are proud to be one of the first farms in this program!!
Variety: White-rock chickens are known for their meat. We raised ours until they were nice and big (about 5lbs dressed)...these are the little immature chickens you see at the deli counter in the grocery store.
Feed: Raised on a diet of what they forage on pasture and non-genetically modified grains. Environment: At 3-4 weeks, when they have their adult feathers, they move out of the brooder building and on to a grassy pasture that we've fenced in and covered with netting (to protect them from hawks). In Ontario, to call something free-range you would be allowed 54,500 birds per acre (give or take a thousand...but at that point, who is counting??). In Europe it's 400 birds per acre and in Australia it's 600. We were working with some existing pastures, and so ours are 650 this year.
Slaughter: We hand-catch every bird and bring them to a provincially inspected, family-owned and operated small processor in Omemee.
Cooling: Our birds are air-chilled. Chicken you buy in the grocery store has been water-chilled, soaking up an 'acceptable amount of water' in the process. Yes, we've all been buying chicken water. The only ingredient in our chicken is chicken.
