Organic fruits, organic vegetables and now organic chicken…

A recent popular alternative to farmed chicken is organic chicken. Due to the unhealthy raising of farmed chicken, more and more people are now switching over to organic chicken.

Organic chickens are the ones which are grown naturally. These chickens are fed with a diet consisting of grains, which have been grown organically. Cereals, vegetables, protein, fish and vitamins and mineral supplement are given to the organic chicken. The diet of an organic chicken costs a lot and thus these chickens are also very costly.

The farms where these chickens are reared are called organic farms. One needs to get a license for running these farms. Besides, they are legally monitored and inspected on a time to time basis.

Use of fertilizers to kill weeds is strictly prohibited on these farms. The chickens are kept in neat and clean surroundings and these farms cannot be over crowded with many chickens. As per the Soil Association registered farms, only 1000 chickens can be stored in a single shed. But in contrast to this, the non organic chicken farm rears about 40,000 chickens in a single shed farm. The chickens here do not get any exposure to sunlight and grow in miserable conditions. The chickens eventually get diseases due to unhygienic conditions and thus they get Salmonella infected. Consumption of such chickens causes fever, nausea and a weak immune system.

Although, the organic chickens are reared with so much care, it does not add  any extra nutrition when compared to the non-organic chickens. But the organic chickens are not unhealthy and thus the chances of getting food borne diseases are almost negligible.

Now, the biggest question is how a customer can identify an organic chicken.

The organic chickens are tagged with the USDA Organic seal. But if the label says all range, free range, hormone free, it does not mean that the chicken is organic.

Though, the organic chickens are expensive, they always guarantee better health and better taste.

Image credit- goodguide.com