Apparently Hollywood celebrities like Nikki Reed, Sia, Ryan
Gosling and Bill Maher know more about the well fare of chickens and the
quality of eggs for the general consumer population than farmers. With all
their knowledge they are demanding Costco to sell eggs from free range chickens
instead of caged chickens. Well, why wouldn’t we all bow down and listen to
these folks? After all with all their energy going into the make believe world
of acting (which they do very well) and singing about life, they should know
much more than the farmers who spend every day down in the trenches of egg
production. And I’m sure that the fact that the farmers depend on the egg
production for their livelihood has no input on their educating themselves for
a better product.
Apparently McDonald’s caved to the pressure of the so called
experts. And in California cage free legislation is in force and prices have
nearly doubled.
Let’s take a closer look at the cage free verses the caged.
Everyone wants to feel good – warm and fuzzy with the
thought of chickens running free and not in cages. After all, that has to be better, right? According to an
open letter to McDonalds from the president of the National Association of Egg
Farmers, that is wrong. There is a “pecking” order in the chicken world where
the lower chickens are pecked the most. Now mind you this information is coming
from an egg farmer, not the all-knowing celebrity panel of experts. The pecking
order results in diseases and cannibalism.
Also, with free range, the chickens lay their eggs on the
floor – right with their poop. Yum, a poop covered egg – also higher pathogenic
bacteria than caged chicken eggs. The manure from the caged chickens fall
through the slats of the floor of the cages and away from the eggs.
So as a chicken would you rather face thousands of chickens
waiting to peck you to death or be confined in a cage where there are fewer
birds to deal with?
As a consumer would you rather eat an egg with higher
bacteria or with a lower count?
As I see it with these two issues the caged chickens are
safer. And isn’t this what the band wagon movement is all about?
A few other thoughts.
Why would a farmer choose something that would cause problems
with his source of income? Mind you, I’m not a chicken farmer – I know some.
And, I’m a dairy farmer and know about taking care of our animals.
Right now we have a fairly reasonably priced food system for
most consumers. But if we “force” the farmers to change farming to appease the
pretties from Hollywood, prices will increase. The Hollywood gang can afford
higher priced foods. What about the single mom, the family struggling to make
ends meet? It seems the better choice is to eat food that is safe, affordable
and taken care of by people who need to take care of the animals.
As a society we are so far removed from our food sources
that we forget the source.
Would you want a celebrity to choose your medical
procedures, the safety of your home against intruders, or train the
firefighters in your neighborhood? Of course not. We want experts to take care
of us.
So, why do we so easily hand over food decisions to some who
may have never ever stepped foot on a farm?
A great source of information and a place to ask Farmers any
and all questions is on face book – Ask The Farmers and www.askthefarmers.com. There are a
group of all different types of farmers waiting to help. Organic, conventional,
large, small, grain, beef, poultry, dairy, swine and other farmers. No question
is too hard or too insignificant to address. Please check us out.
Here is another great blog concerning this from Lara Durben,
one of the farmers on Ask the Farmers : http://www.askthefarmers.com/bill-maher-is-not-an-egg-farmer/
