Market Morsels from Collegeville Farmers' Market - Freedom to Roam at Home on the Range

This Independence Day take some inspiration from the free-roaming hens on Nevin Mast's Bendy Brook Farm. They eat naturally are chemical and hormone-free, and they have a super-cool ride. 

Their "chicken coop" is an example of amazing ingenuity. It's an old van that was in an accident and then re-fitted with nesting boxes and a roost. When the grass runs out in one section of pasture, the coop and fence are moved to another field of fresh, green grass. It's quite a free and easy way of life for these ladies.

Free from Chemicals and Hormones 

At Bendy Brook farm, hens live out in the green pasture all day long, with constant access to grass and bugs - the way hens lived in farms all over America before factory farms entered our food chain. This makes their eggs nutritionally superior to exclusively grain-fed, commercial hens. There are no pesticides or hormones used anywhere. And the chickens are fed soy-free , organically grown grain in addition to the grass they eat. 

Free to Be Chickens 

Many folks are under the impression that all "free-range" eggs are created equally, but Corrie Mast, Nevin's daughter-in-law, explained that USDA only requires that free-range egg producers demonstrate that free-range poultry has been given access to the outside. Often times, "free-range" chickens live in a chicken house with a small door that opens to a small dirt patch. It is more-humane than no access to the outdoors at all, but there is no nutritional benefit.  Also, unless eggs are labeled organic in addition to "free-range" they have likely been given hormones or treated with antibiotics. At Bendy Brook, chickens roost in the shelter of a recycled van/chicken house and are given access to expansive grassy fields with plenty of insects. This greatly improves the taste and nutrition of the eggs.  

Fresh, Healthy and Delicious 

The Masts recently did a comparison of their own eggs vs. grocery store eggs and this is what they found. Bendy Brook Farm's yolks are an orange color (from the beta carotene in the grass), and it's they are more rounded and firm than the grocery store eggs. An occasional double yolk was just an added bonus!  Bendy Brook Farm's eggs are a great way get your holiday weekend off to a fresh start.  

Collegeville Farmers' Market is open every Saturday, 9am to 1pm. There is live entertainment every week and a bounty of fresh food and locally made goodies. But make sure you get there early - they have been known to sell out! Find more information about our market in this week's newsletter at http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Celebrating-Freedom--Freshness-and-Fun-at-Collegeville-Farmers--Market.html?soid=1102055438060&aid=79ghOpBzDDE