demand for organic chickens has gone through the floor

[SlugLobber]

I think this has been mooted before.............if you buy organic chickens in Tesco's I was told they WERE free range?

Yes, they are. Organic is one step further than Free Range, in that the feed is more tightly controlled, antibiotics are not administered in feed as they are with other chooks and the use of hormones to enhance growth etc are not allowed. I disagree strongly with feeding inappropriate foods to animals, so go for organic (I don't even feed cod liver oil to my horses). Not to mention the 'free-range' criteria are a little stretched, to say the least. 4 birds to a square metre, I think it was.

[Fluorescent green]

I think this has been mooted before.............if you buy organic chickens in Tesco's I was told they WERE free range?

Hi

But not the other way around. Not all free range are organic, just better standards.

The natural way for a chicken to live is outdoors � with grass under its feet, and the sun on its back. Outdoor access is fundamental to the free range system of poultry production.

The birds are still commercially produced, farmed in large numbers and destined for the oven, but they have more space and lead more natural, longer lives, a minimum of 56 days instead of 39.

Pop holes are open all day long, giving them access to natural light, to fresh air and open space.

And when they choose to go inside, they have more space, and an enriched environment: straw bales to perch and jump on, even footballs to play with.

Which is good, because chickens are sociable, curious creatures. They like to range, they love to roost in shaded areas and they have a keen sense of hierarchy � their place in the pecking order.

Free range birds do cost more to produce; so they will cost you more. In the supermarkets you�ll pay �5-plus for a whole bird. Which isn�t much for a family meal.

Is it worth the extra? It�s down to you.

FG

[Snadger]

Hi

But not the other way around. Not all free range are organic, just better standards.

The natural way for a chicken to live is outdoors � with grass under its feet, and the sun on its back. Outdoor access is fundamental to the free range system of poultry production.

The birds are still commercially produced, farmed in large numbers and destined for the oven, but they have more space and lead more natural, longer lives, a minimum of 56 days instead of 39.

Pop holes are open all day long, giving them access to natural light, to fresh air and open space.

And when they choose to go inside, they have more space, and an enriched environment: straw bales to perch and jump on, even footballs to play with.

Which is good, because chickens are sociable, curious creatures. They like to range, they love to roost in shaded areas and they have a keen sense of hierarchy � their place in the pecking order.

Free range birds do cost more to produce; so they will cost you more. In the supermarkets you�ll pay �5-plus for a whole bird. Which isn�t much for a family meal.

Is it worth the extra? It�s down to you.

FG

Agree wholeheartedly with you FG! Organic chicken will always be a lot more expensive because as I've found to my detriment, orgainic layers pellets are about TWICE the price of inorganic!
So in essence free range is great but organic is excellent!