Free Range Turkeys

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Created on Thursday, 21 November 2013 20:17

Written by Cody Gage

NEW HAMPSHIRE - Over two hundred and eighty million turkeys are slaughtered every year for human consumption in the United States. Many of those turkeys never know the feeling of freedom, and room to range.

Bruce Jones of Patridge Farms in North Haverhill gives some local birds a chance to do just that. Jones raises organic turkeys from his farm for Thanksgiving dinners for all of the North Country.

According to the American Farm Bureau Federation, the average thanksgiving meal will run you $49.04 this year. The average supermarket turkey is going for $21.76, but an organic turkey for the same weight will cost double the price.

Jones says you can definitely taste the difference. "In my opinion, they taste like cardboard [store-bought turkey,] the taste of the organic turkeys is much better." Organic turkeys are classified as being free-range, vegetarian fed, gluten free, never given antibiotics, preservatives or hormones, and normally are raised locally.

This time of year is always the busiest for turkey farmers, but Jones says this year in particular, his business has taken off. Jones says he's been sold out since the end of June.

You can visit the Patridge Farm online, or on County Road in North Haverhill, New Hampshire.