I have a conversation with Chrislyn Wood, DVM, about the threat of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and pasture raised flocks. Dr. Wood is a veterinarian with USDA APHIS and she is involved first hand with HPAI monitoring and response efforts.  We cover a lot of ground, including historical observations, risk assessment, disease identification, and prevention.  ..read more

I'm still here. Plus, I'd like to invite you to attend APPPA's Professional Pastured Poultry Conference (https://apppa.org/Conference) from January 16-18, 2022.  At this year's conference, I am teaming up with John Suscovich and Luke Groce to host a meetup for the listeners of our shows.  As a listener to Pastured Poultry Talk, you're invited to meetup, chat, and just connect. Stay tuned for day and time information.   ..read more

Greg Gunthorp joins the show to talk about his decision to step away from pasture raised chickens. Covid plays into the story, of course, but the challenges started long before this virus came to be front page news.  We also dig into some processing wisdom and reality. Greg talks consolidation and Bill Gates. We dig deep and cover a lot of interconnected ground ..read more

Cynthia Capers, Heniscity Farm in Tennessee, shares her 20+ year journey from hobby chicken keeper to poultry farmer. Twenty years ago, the sight of six Black Australorps brought tears to her eyes. Today, she's serving her community through egg sales, chick sales, pullet sales, and community education. She's incorporated poultry into their rural bed and breakfast and has become an integral resource in her community.  As a black farmer reconnecting to the land and rediscovering her ancestral roots, the journey isn't easy, but Cynthia is right where she needs to be inspiring those around he ..read more

I answer a listener question, "How can I make my small laying hen flock more profitable?" With feedback from the community, insights from The Fighting Farmer, and personal experience, we dive deep into ways to prosper from your small flock of laying hens. The answer divides into three sections: management, pricing, and markets/marketing.  Ask your questions at https://pasturedpoultrytalk.com/contact.    ..read more

Perdue acquires Pasturebird and becomes the biggest producer in the space. I unpack what it means on this episode and walk through some history.  ..read more

Listener Chris asks how to utilize an all-in/all-out pullet replacement strategy without duplicating infrastructure while maintaining egg production. To help answer the question, I share insights from Mark Harrison and Dave and Ginger Shields.  The simple answer to the Chris' question is that infrastructure is required to maintain production. Listen in as I discuss the details.  ..read more

My journey to 100 episodes of Pastured Poultry Talk started long, long ago. Celebrate the podcast milestone with me, as I recount the significant events in my life that led me to pastured poultry and and back to faith. I tried very hard to make decisions that would have denied me entry into pastured poultry. I've accumulated seemingly random skills and relationships that all come to bear witness to a destiny that was not of my own choosing. As you listen to this episode, I challenge you to reflect back on your last 10, 15, 20, or more years and record your story through the seemingly random re ..read more

I close out the pastured poultry training series with a live streamed Q&A between Terrell Spencer from The Fighting Farmer and myself. We went live on Facebook and fielded questions from our listeners, and this episode of the podcast includes an edited version of that conversation. If you want to watch a replay of the stream, find it on YouTube. Before we work into the questions, I offer some thoughts on heritage poultry's potential role in pastured community. APPPA has recently started to focus on breeding specific topics and offers monthly livestreams on breeding. Check out APPPA's work ..read more

In Pastured Poultry Talk episode 110, farmer Matt Steinman discussed how he used fermented feed as a solution to feed waste and fines. While fermentation can be a viable solution for some people, it's not the only way to deal with fines. The problem with fines accumulating in your feeders instead of the birds is that that the chickens miss key nutrients, and they waste feed. The lack of nutrients cause behavioral problems and reduced production. The feed waste costs you money. Soy-free feeds tend to contain more powder and compound the issues with fines. In this episode I detail a few approach ..read more