Small farm air chill system

Project Overview

FNE07-605
Project Type: Farmer
Funds awarded in 2007: $6,912.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2009
Region: Northeast
State: Connecticut
Project Leader:
Craig Floyd
Footsteps Farm, LLC

Commodities

  • Animals: poultry

Practices

  • Animal Production: general animal production
  • Farm Business Management: whole farm planning

    Proposal summary:

    Water chill tanks are currently used to cool processed chickens, resulting in cross-contamination by bacteria, extra weight to the consumer, and the possibility of fecal soup absorption into the meat of the chicken. This project will build and test an inexpensive air chill system that can be built by other small farms and determine the effect of air chill processing on the speed of internal cooling, taste, tenderness, and bacterial contamination. A complete set of plans will be produced that other farmers can use. Outreach will be through newsletter articles and a web site.

    Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.