Project Overview
Annual Reports
Commodities
- Agronomic: grass (misc. perennial), hay
- Animals: poultry
Practices
- Animal Production: feed/forage, housing, feed formulation, feed rations, free-range, manure management, pasture fertility
- Crop Production: nutrient cycling
- Education and Training: technical assistance, demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer
- Farm Business Management: new enterprise development, cooperatives, marketing management, feasibility study
- Sustainable Communities: new business opportunities
Abstract:
Tools were developed to assist range poultry producers in improving feasibility to expand their operations. An entrepreneur’s toolbox to guide farmers in their desire for expansion was released through NCAT (National Center for Appropriate Technology) in 2003. Several other publications (a report on southern processing plants, a report on breed selection, a poultry nutrition report, a summary of laws regarding on-farm processing and a small scale poultry processing report) have been completed and are currently available through NCAT’s ATTRA program (Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas) and/or the American Pastured Poultry Producers Association’s (APPPA) website. Poultry processing needs were seriously addressed in Kentucky, Alabama and Mississippi, resulting in the first legally approved mobile processing unit built in Kentucky, modification of processing laws in Mississippi and the upgrading of a small USDA plant to include poultry on the Mississippi-Alabama border. These processing resources will help limited-resource farmers to raise pastured poultry and improve farm income.
Project objectives:
The objectives of this project were to:
Develop a Feasibility Study Toolbox and Template
Improve infrastructure in terms of processing, nutritional and feed resources, and the quality of poultry stock for range production.