As we expand our pastured egg enterprise, we are seeing the need to build in some efficiency into our production methods – especially in how we feed while the birds are on pasture.
The efficiency solution for industrial farms has involved stationary housing and immobilized hens. Let’s take a quick look at some ways the egg industry has increased their efficiency over the years as their operations scaled. Then we’ll look at how we are dealing with some of the same issues while still preserving the pastured environment that our hens and our customers favor.
On most poultry farms, efficiency increases the more you can restrict the birds’ movement. For laying hens this meant confining them to a large house where they could be better controlled and less labor was needed. Feed and water were mechanized which saved a tremendous amount of time while their operations scaled. Another step the industry took toward efficiency was caging birds which forced the eggs to roll onto a belt instead of hens laying eggs in obscure locations in the confinement house. While this greatly reduced the amount of floor eggs (which are laborsome to pick up), it severely diminished the ability of the bird to so much as stretch it’s legs.
To be clear, we are not against mechanization and modernization as technology can often provide us better ways to serve more customers. What we are against is using various types of technology at the expense of the natural environment and tendencies of the animal.
For example, mechanized feed systems are relatively easy to install in a stationary house and can feed a large number of birds very efficiently. We re-purposed a feed system to do just that in the old turkey barn that our layers live in during the colder weather. But what we haven’t done is find a way to mechanize feed handling in the warm-weather houses that are completely portable – until now.
We have been working hard over the last 6 weeks or so on yet another project – installing a feed augering system in all three of our pastured layer houses. This system requires a custom-made feed bin that is designed specifically for the portable hoop structures that our hens live in for most of the year. The bins are small enough to be mounted to the end of these structures and provide a tank that the flexible auger will draw from to refill the feeders inside. We plan to run the system every other day with a tractor-driven generator at the same time that we move the house to a new spot.
This system will almost eliminate the feed that we have had to carry by hand in the past, but it doesn’t restrict the chickens to a confinement house. We believe that whatever machines or technologies that we use for efficiency should not negatively impact the natural tendencies of the animal, and whenever possible they should enhance their behavior to better mimic nature.
So whether you purchase our eggs or someone else’s, be sure to make a good effort to understand the production practices that your supplier uses.
Take a look at the photos below as we get closer to completing this project.
Farm Day is Coming!
To see in-person how we manage our animals, make plans to join us for Farm Day!
We will be holding it on Saturday, April 30 from 10am – 2pm. This will be much like the last one we held in October. It was a great success and we hope this one will be the same.
We will be offering hay rides where we will show each group as many of the animals as possible. We love the discussions that break out on these hay rides and it re-assures us that our customers are the most-informed and enlightened people on the planet.
Vendors will be set up as well so that you can stock up on some locally produced arts, crafts, and other unique products. A food truck and coffee truck will also be on site!
We will start highlighting some of the vendors each week. This week we have:
Carmichael Corner Creation – unusual, creative and natural bath and spa products made with supplies from local business (they use our pork and beef fat!!)
Fox Creations – Unique hand-turned wood products made from local wood.
Keep looking for more of our vendors next week!!
Produce Boxes to be Available Soon
Our partnership with Wild Hope Farm continues this year as they prepare and cultivate their fields to provide our customers with superior organic produce that can be delivered to your door right along with anything else that we deliver on our van. (Not available for UPS Shipping at this time.)
Keep an eye on the product page below for availability which we anticipate to be around mid-April.
Help us spread the word!
It’s now easier than ever to Give $15 and Get $15 through our Referral Program. We don’t spend a lot of money of advertising, but rather we focus on producing products that people love and are willing to tell others about. So we depend on word of mouth to find new customers and ultimately to heal more land.
So in an effort to streamline this process we have made it easier to tell others (via email, Facebook, or Twitter) about Watson Farms. And it’s all automated on the backend, so you don’t have to rely on us to issue the store credits manually. Just head over to our Referrals Page and start sharing!
Product Spotlight
Did you know we carry a number of products from local producers such as milk, goat cheese, honey, seasoning, grits, cornmeal and pecans? Check some of them out below or head over to the category pages to view the entire selection:
Pantry
Watson Farms has collaborated with other like-minded farmers to bring you a robust cornucopia to fill your plate. We hope you enjoy these offerings. We’ve chosen the best possible products for your fullest enjoyment and health!
Dairy
Local dairy products curated by us and made available to you.
For some of our recommended products, check out our Featured Product Page. You might find something that you didn’t even know we had!
We re-use packaging!
We’ve seen a good response to our efforts in re-using packaging! Thanks and keep it up.
You can help us reduce our carbon footprint by returning your CLEAN egg cartons and meat boxes.
The main reason that we switched to plastic egg cartons a while back was because they are so much more durable than paper which could only be used once. They also protect the eggs much better!
So if you have some egg cartons or boxes to return, you can just place them on your porch on your home delivery day. Farm pickup customers can, of course, drop them off when you come to pick up your new order.
***We can only re-use OUR cartons or boxes. Please re-use or recycle other boxes or egg cartons elsewhere.***
We redact your personal information found on your meat boxes when we re-use them, but feel free to redact to redact it yourself without damaging the box if you would like.
Thanks for helping us re-use our packaging!
Order Deadlines and Store Hours
Charleston and Columbia Areas: 12 noon Mondays
UPS Orders: 12 noon Mondays
GSP: 12 noon on Wednesdays
Charlotte/Fort Mill/Rock Hill Areas: 12 noon Fridays
Farm Pickup: Please wait until you receive an email stating that your order is ready to be picked up (usually 1 business day from when you place your order). Farm pickup is done during store hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 10am to 6pm
Saturday: 10am to 2pm
Closed Sunday and Wednesday
Did you know that we have a webpage that displays all the reviews we have received?
Check it out!
Check out this ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review:
“Watson Farms provides a great service offering high quality, naturally raised livestock directly to consumers. All their beef, chicken and pork are delicious. Eggs are great too.”
We would greatly appreciate it if you would be kind enough to leave us a review. It helps first-time customers purchase with confidence.
Thanks again for being partners in this endeavor of local, pasture-raised proteins that has truly transformed our farm. We look forward to continuing this transition while serving you long into the future.
Sincerely,
The Watsons
Pasture Posts is written by Matt Watson.