READY FOR YOUR ORDER!
American Bronze Heritage Turkey
JenEhr Family Farm pastured American Bronze Heritage Turkeys are now available for order. We raised 100 of these beautiful birds this year on our Sun Prairie pasture. With weights ranging from 15 to 25 pounds, the turkeys were processed and frozen for your holiday eating pleasure.
Making A Comeback: Heritage Breeds
Before supermarkets and distributors made the Broad Breasted White turkey the dominant bird on the market and the turkey most Americans are familiar with, diverse breeds such as the American Bronze offered families a turkey with greater flavor and texture. Now such turkeys, known as Heritage Breeds or "standard" turkeys, are making a move to be on your table this Thanksgiving.
Prized for their rich flavor and beautiful plumage, Heritage Turkeys are the ancestors of the common Broad-breasted White industrial breed of turkey that comprises 99.99% of the supermarket turkeys sold today. But the Heritage Breeds still exist and are making a comeback. Most breeds of heritage turkey were developed in the United States and Europe over hundreds of years, and were identified in the American Poultry Association's turkey Standard of Perfection of 1874. These breeds include the Standard (American) Bronze, Bourbon Red, Jersey Buff, Slate, Black Spanish, Narragansett and White Holland."
With rich tasting meats more moist and flavorful than the mass produced large-breasted turkeys of today, Heritage Breeds owe their taste to diverse diets and extended life-spans. Dining on fresh grass and insects, these birds exercise and even help control farmer's pest problems. And while large corporations have dominated turkey production and breeding since the 1960's, choosing the Broad Breasted Whites because of high breast meat production in a short period, Heritage Breeds have been quietly gaining a renewed market and respect due to their flavor and superior biological diversity.
Raising Heritage Breeds is more costly and time consuming than raising White Breasted Toms. While supermarket turkeys grow to an average of 32 pounds over 18 weeks, Heritage birds take anywhere from 24-30 to reach their market weight. But those who have tasted Heritage Breeds say the cost-and the wait-are well worth it.
JenEhr Pastured Heritage Turkeys
At JenEhr Family Farm, we think that the heritage bird is just the beginning. The next key step is to raise those birds in environments that allow them to express their true turkey genetics. We believe the best way to do that is to raise them on our pastures, allowing them to forage, saunter and roam. And while we do provide boundries in the form of fences, the turkeys get an opportunity to live their lives outside in the elements.
Besides a happy turkey (and trust me, you know when a turkey is unhappy by the lack of chatter), the pasturing builds a stronger, tastier and more nutritious with real turkey flavor, without the gamey toughness of wild turkeys. On the holiday table the results are a succulent juicey turkey that satisfies all the varied taste buds at the table. The left overs for sandwiches and rich turkey stock/soup will provide meals for the next day and lunches for the week.
Pasture Raised is Healthier
The health benefits of Pastured Poultry begin with the birds. They have reduced fat and cholesterol because they are adhering to a regimen that physicians usually recommend to their patients, i.e., to eat more greens and fiber, exercise daily and reduce stress levels. Meats, eggs and poultry from grass fed animals have a better balance of health-promoting essential fatty acids, such as omega-3 and omega-6, and have more vitamin E and beta carotene. Recent studies indicate that “grass-grown” meats are the richest source of good fats called CLA (conjugated linoleic acids), which may be linked to reducing the growth of tumors.
Research also demonstrates that pasture-raised poultry yield more nutritious meat and eggs. One independent study revealed that compared to conventional chicken meat, pastured chicken meat contained 21% less total fat, 30% less saturated fat, 28% fewer calories, 50% more vitamin A, and 100% more omega-3s.( Robinson, Jo. Why Grass-fed is Best: The Surprising Benefits of Grass-fed Meat, Eggs, and Dairy Products. Vashion, WA: Vashion Island Press. 2000)
Eggs from pasture-raised chicken were also found to be nutritionally superior to their factory farmed counterparts; compared to eggs from caged birds, pastured eggs had 10% less fat, 40% more vitamin A, 400% more omega-3s, and 34% less cholesterol. (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE). “ Pastured Poultry Products: Summary.” SARE. 1999.)
