08/30/2026
We'll have the pleasure of having Oak and Iris farmstead at our market september 19th!
We recently shared what it cost to raise and process five pigs. Now let’s talk about the real cost of our most recent batch of meat chickens.
We delivered 103 chickens to the processor, but six were lost during processing, leaving us with 97 processed birds.
Here’s the breakdown:
🐥 Cost of the chicks: $236.50
🌽 1,500 pounds of feed: $622.50
🍗 Processing bill: $717.75
Total invested: $1,576.75
Those 97 chickens produced 397.1 pounds of sellable chicken, putting our direct cost at approximately $16.26 per processed bird or $3.97 per pound of sellable product.
We had also requested 30 whole chickens, but they were mistakenly cut into individual parts. That changed the products we had available to sell and is why we did not have whole chickens after this batch.
Just like with the pigs, these numbers do not include our labor, fuel, water, electricity, equipment, chicken tractors, bedding, freezer space, market fees, customer card fees, or the financial risk of losing birds.
For nearly two months, these chickens had to be fed, watered, protected from predators, and moved to fresh grass every single day. That work continues whether it is hot, raining, or we would rather sleep a little longer in the morning.
We’re not sharing this to complain. We want our customers to understand why locally raised and USDA-processed chicken costs more than chicken produced on a massive commercial scale.
When you purchase chicken from Oak & Iris Farmstead, you are supporting the real cost of raising food responsibly and helping a small family farm continue doing what we do.
Thank you for choosing local and supporting Food Raised Right.
Come and get some chicken this weekend Ridgeville Farmers Market
