Fresh Chicken and Poultry

Freshly processed poultry must be arranged in advance
Due to our off farm jobs and owner health problems, we only process poultry every 2-3 weeks
Click here to reserve in advance for poultry processed on farm
Availability is seasonal (June-December)
For same-day service, please check our online store to see if frozen chicken is in stock

2024 Poultry Processing Schedule

We are part time farmers, due to our jobs/age/health we do not have the time and energy to butcher poultry every weekend. We will be butchering on the dates listed below, unless we have to adjust the date for work events, medical reasons, or holidays. (If you need fresh processed chicken on another date, please visit one of the many halal chicken processors in Detroit.)

Schedule (as of June 8 2024)

Friday June 7th: small hybrid broiler chickens, silver appleyard ducks
*TENTATIVE SUBJECT TO CHANGE* Saturday June 29th: heritage broiler chickens (note I am having surgery in mid-June, if I am not recovered sufficiently by June 29th this date will be cancelled or rescheduled)
Saturday July 13th: small hybrid broiler chickens, pekin ducks, heritage fryer chickens, maybe some heritage broilers if they grow fast
Saturday August 3rd: large hybrid broiler chickens, heritage broiler chickens, heritage fryer chickens
Saturday September 7th: heritage fryer chickens, probably heritage broiler chickens
Saturday September 28th: heritage fryer chickens, maybe some heritage broiler chickens
Saturday October 19th: heritage fryer chickens
Saturday November 2nd: heritage fryer chickens, early bird turkeys
Friday November 22nd: heritage turkeys only
Saturday December 21st: heritage fryer chickens, heritage turkeys

Exceptions to the above schedule: If you are purchasing five or more chickens AND our work schedule allows AND you ask nicely AND you ask several days in advance we will try to arrange a processing day. We may also be able to arrange alternate processing dates on a shorter schedule or for fewer chickens if you are able to take the bird killed and plucked but not gutted.

2024 Poultry Types

Over the past few years we have raised exclusively heritage breed poultry -- traditional breeds of chickens that breed true, grow slowly, and are able to actively forage on pasture. However, in response to requests for chicken that is more suitable for grilling and frying (and because we are both working off farm and thus don't have as much time to breed our own chickens), we are also trying a couple different types of hybrid broiler chickens. The chart below summarizes the kinds of poultry we will have available this year. Click here to read about the differences between the Cornish Cross chicken, the slower growing hybrid chickens we are trying, and the heritage chickens we have historically raised.

We plan to always offer American Bresse Chicken. and other heritage breeds; however, adding some hybrid chicken to the mix will allow us to have chicken in spring (Bresse don't lay much in winter, and the chicks that hatch in March aren't ready to butcher until August).

About Our Processing

On Farm Processing: We are technically (and in the eyes of the federal government) selling you a live chicken, and then assessing an additional fee for processing. Poultry processed on farm under federal exemption must be picked ip on farm in a face-to-face transaction (i.e., no online ordering.)

YOU MUST PREARRANGE FRESH PROCESSED CHICKEN -- there is no same day or drive up service for chicken that we butcher fresh on farm
We do not process poultry in freezing temperatures or extreme weather -- our processing area is outdoors and if our hoses are frozen or blowing away in 50 MPH winds, we can't butcher chicken.
Butchered price includes cost of live bird, killing, plucking, evisceration, and packaging in a shrink wrap bag suitable for storage in freezer.
Our "default" for processed chicken is just the main body, without head, neck, giblets, or feet. If you would like any or al of these returned, please let us know. These extra parts count toward the price per pound.
Looking to save a little money? You can purchase a chicken live, and we can kill and pluck it for you for an additional fee of $2/chicken (three chicken minimum). If you are purchasing a lot of chickens from us, you may use our processing tent and equipment yourself for a fee of $1/chicken (just killing and plucking) or $2/chicken (if you are also gutting, extra fee is to cover disposal and clean up), there is a $10 minimum for renting our processing tent.

Processing by a Licensed Butcher: All poultry that we sell via our online store or at farmers' markets has been butchered at a state or federally-licensed processor. You can get fresh (not frozen) chicken processed by a licensed butcher if you contact us ahead of time so that you can arrange to pick up your chicken within 48 hours of butchery; we only take chicken to a licensed butcher two or three times a year, when we have enough chickens to process to justify the cost, so please contact us in advance if this is what you want.

We Do Not Offer Poultry Processing Services

We do not provide processing services for chickens raised off our farm, nor do we rent out our processing equipment. If you are looking to have poultry processed, we recommend Munsell's (Fowlerville, MI), Wilcox Poultry (Brown City, MI), or Stutzman's (Homer, MI). If you wish to learn how to process your own poultry, we are occasionally able to accommodate onlookers/helpers where you can observe our process.