If you buy a Perdue chicken in the grocery store, you might think it had lived a comfortable avian middle-class existence.
“Doing the right thing is things like treating your chickens humanely,” Jim Perdue, the company’s chairman, says in a promotional video. The company’s labels carry a seal of approval from the Department of Agriculture asserting that the bird was “raised cage free,” and sometimes “humanely raised,” although it says it is phasing that one out.
If you continue to read the article referenced above, you will find the disturbing truth about so many of the “USDA” sanctioned labels being thrown around your grocery store and farmers market. That truth is that the words of those labels are a complete misrepresentation of the reality for the animals being sold from these agribusiness. Thankfully, one of the Perdue Chicken farmers was willing to take a stand and allow the following video to be taken, showing the real conditions under which Perdue chickens are raised.
This story is a perfect example of why we decided to gain our Independence from the agribusiness food establishment and raise our own food. Despite anyone’s best efforts to buy what appears to be healthy and humanely raised meats and foods from the store, you really cannot trust the labels and what the agribusinesses are telling you. In order to be sure, you have to know the source. Stories like these reinforce our Principles and bolster our resolve to continue on the path we are on to raise food of the highest quality in a sustainable manner. The work is hard and the costs are high, but the reward is immense and satisfying.
If you are like us and the many other people who are waking up to the realities of the current food industry and want to get started eating right and/or heading towards your own food independence then don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. We are always happy to share our experiences and open our farm to those that want to learn how food can be raised in a way that honors God’s creation.
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