The Story of Our Organic Turkeys
One of our favourite parts of the festive season at Daylesford is our organic turkeys. Often the centrepiece of festive feasts, turkeys embody the spirit of Christmas and our philosophy that eating well is sharing organic, local, seasonal food.
ETHICALLY GROWN
The raising of our organic Bronze turkeys begins in June with the arrival of our turkey poults. As with all of our animals, we choose turkeys that are best suited to an organic farming environment. With an inquisitive nature and inclination to range outdoors, our poults are reared in a spacious barn that supplies them with ample natural daylight and fresh air before they are free to roam outside from ten weeks of age.
Lined with trees to help the poults feel safe, our ranging areas allow our turkeys to forage for bugs, insects and worms and we often see a queue of impatient birds waiting for the doors to be opened at daybreak. In addition to this foraged diet, we feed them homegrown organic oats which adds to their rich flavour and texture.
ORGANIC AND NATURAL
At Daylesford, we believe in the importance of working with nature rather than against it and our Christmas turkeys are a brilliant example of this. We select those that are slow growing and whilst this doesn't suit conventional farming, it is perfect for us as it allows ample time for our birds to fully develop. We would never compromise on our organic farming practices to produce more turkeys, meaning each year they sell out in the run up to Christmas.
Animal welfare is a top priority for us, so besides raising our turkeys organically and giving them plenty of outdoor space in which to range and forage, we offer the highest level of care until the end of their lives. When they reach the abbattoir, the process is as humane as possible and always takes place at night.
“We are committed to rearing our animals organically, slowly and to the highest welfare standards. From their natural diet to the freedom to roam – we do the very best for our animals at every step.”
CHOOSING MEAT THIS CHRISTMAS
Out of all times of the year, the festive period offers an opportunity for us to turn our direction towards the journey of our meat, especially when it comes to feeding our loved ones. We know that our customers care where their meat comes from and trust us to deliver the best quality meat. Our organic turkeys are no different, and we endeavour to deliver the most ethical, sustainable meat with the best possible taste.
Compared to turkeys raised quickly - often with high protein feeds and the use of routine hormones and antibiotics - ours have a distinct taste that is the result of a healthy animal. Whilst non-organic turkeys can be less expensive, going organic doesn’t need to mean a drastic increase in your shopping budget; in fact, eating less meat but better quality can help achieve a balance in budget.
