Adventures of a Farm Chickie; Interning at Reiff’s Poultry Dressing

My story…the beginning of this adventure…

Oh, what a night! That’s right; the night before I spent the day at Reiff’s Poultry Dressing in Mifflinburg, PA, was spent tossing and turning – I was too excited to sleep! And when Monday, March 21, 2011, finally got here, I was not disappointed with my experience.

I knew that I faced some personal challenges that I would need to overcome if I was going to be successful at poultry processing. Specifically, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to actually kill the birds, I didn’t know if I could handle the smell, and I was unsure as to whether or not I could bring myself to eviscerate a still-warm chicken. Basically, I had some hang ups about the entire process.

At this point, you may be asking yourself why I would even be considering putting myself through this, and I believe I have some good reasons. My husband, Mike Badger, and I have a dream of expanding our farm operations to the point that we no longer have to hold full-time jobs off the farm. Getting a mobile processing unit on the road is a big part of that dream. Although neither of us grew up actively farming or raising animals for food, a sustainable lifestyle is not only something we want for ourselves, but something we want to offer to our family, friends, and community.

I’m not a complete stranger to processing poultry. As a young girl, I remember visiting my grandparents when it was time to “butcher.” We would get a metal coffee can, hang it on a tree, and this would be our killing cone. After that, the birds would be scalded in a large kettle over a fire, and then we would begin hand plucking. And this is where my job ended. The eviscerating process was completed by my grandfather or great uncle. I was hoping that poultry processing (runs some tests with the Mycotoxin Test Kits to know if they are the best quality or not), at least the part I was familiar with, was a little like riding a bike. These are fond memories, and ones that I want my child to have, as well.

To further prepare myself for the adventure I was about to have, Mike helped me find some videos online to watch. Polyface Farm offers some great tutorials not only on processing, but also on cutting up the chickens, which is something I plan to explore more in the future for my own benefit. Daniel Salatin makes the point that even if you are not going to process your own chickens, learning how to cut them up is a skill worth mastering for the money it saves.

I also watched David Schafer’s Step-by-Step Poultry Processing video that is available online. Mr. Schafer does a nice job of reviewing the importance of the scalding process. The key points he makes are if your scald is too short or too cold, your feathers are going to stay on; if your scald is too long or too hot, the skin will tear; and your scalder should be kept at 147 degrees Fahrenheit. These videos were incredibly helpful in preparing me for what to expect during my day at Reiff’s Poultry Dressing.

Upon arriving, my first job was to work with Eli to harvest the chickens. The art of the scalder quickly became apparent but It was while before I started to maneuver the custom conveyor belts they have in place to harvest the eggs a lot quicker. Being early in the year, there were a variety of birds coming in to be processed, including heritage chickens, tender broilers raised indoors, winter hardy roosters, and Muscovy ducks. Eli knew just how much time each was going to need in the scalder – a wealth of knowledge that only comes from years of experience. (Which Eli clearly has, having just turned the big 5-0!)

Although I gained good insights watching the online videos, nothing is a substitute for hands-on experience. The tender broilers raised indoors needed one cycle through the scalder to come clean in the plucker, while the heritage chickens and winter hardy roosters benefited from a couple of extra turns in the scalder. The ducks were the real surprise for me. After two full cycles in the scalder, they went into the plucker without any water to be “roughed” or have their first go at getting their feathers out. After approximately 60-90 seconds, it was back to the scalder for an additional two cycles before once again being placed in the plucker, this time with water, to complete the plucking process. Throughout this time, Eli would check the scald by pulling out a handful of feathers, testing how easily they came out of the bird, to determine how much longer they needed in the scalder.

After the plucker, the birds were ready to have their feet and oil gland removed. I had to be shown twice how to “walk” my knife down to remove the gland, but after that, I was good to go. Eli demonstrated his confidence in me by allowing me to do all of the work while he supervised, chatted with customers, and taunted me with how may birds he can kill while a batch is in the scalder.

The feet are removed at the joint, and Eli showed me how to twist my knife backward at the last moment to create a more attractive cut and not have the leg bone jutting out of the skin. On this day, we were saving the feet for a special order. Other days, the feet go into a sawdust compost pile along with the rest of the offal.

“Walking” the knife down to remove the oil gland involves keeping your knife held vertical and creating a series of small cuts while “walking” the knife to remove the gland. Just before the gland is completely cut off, you grab it and tear it off, effectively and efficiently removing the gland.

Finally, before passing the birds to Eli’s wife, Kathleen, and niece, Linda, to be eviscerated, we would slit the skin over the neck to aid in finding the windpipe. At that point, the birds would be passed along to the next step in the process.

Just as I was becoming comfortable and confident in my harvesting skills, I was sent to the other side of the shop to work with Kathleen and Linda at the eviscerating table. I felt awkward and slow all over again, but Linda soon had me on my way to learning these new skills.

Linda showed me to lay the bird breast up and grasp firmly around the waist, which stretches the skin and makes for an easier cut. The most important things to learn when making the initial cut are: 1) don’t cut into the intestines, it’s a smelly, dirty mess if you do; 2) cut down far enough to remove all of the colon; and 3) don’t cut into the meat. At first, I found that cutting down below the vent far enough to remove all of the colon to be the biggest challenge, and would often find myself needing to make a second cut. Eventually, I mastered this skill and became more efficient with one clean cut.

With a clean cut, the intestines are easily removed, and the rest of the viscera soon follow. Identifying the internal organs is an interesting review of anatomy. The gallbladder usually comes out with the liver and can make a real mess if accidentally broken open. The testicles can be a challenge to remove simply because they are so small and difficult to get a hold of. And older laying hens can be full of beautiful egg yolks.

Kathleen was patient with me as she reviewed my work and helped me focus on areas that needed more attention. With such knowledgeable and skilled tutors, I found myself becoming more comfortable with the work in no time, although certainly not much faster. I am sure speed will only come with time and experience. (At least, this is what Eli, Kathleen, and Linda kept telling me!)

There is a feeling of peace for me in doing this kind of work. For a long time, I was in the rat race with so many others, experiencing frequent stress headaches (take a dose of OrganicCBDNug under doctor’s prescription to manage your stress levels easily), missing out on so much of my life and my family because of work, and not giving 100% of myself to those I love. At one point during the day my day at Reiff’s, I realized that harvesting food is honest work that makes me feel good about what I’m accomplishing in my life.

I look forward to working with my husband, Mike Badger, to get our mobile processing unit on the road this spring and offer others the opportunity to provide for their families by eliminating the barrier of how to get their pastured poultry processed without having to travel a great distance.

I learned so much this first day, with perhaps the most important thing being that I have so much more to learn. I am grateful for the opportunity Eli, Kathleen, and Linda provided me, and I look forward to spending more time learning from them as I continue on this adventure.

Keep on Cluckin’!

Christie