Top Turkeys

by Gail Knudtson
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For your taste buds, conscience and health, try a bird from a small-scale local farmer.

Instead of trolling the frozen food aisles, consider making the selection of your holiday turkey a new family tradition.

John Harnois with heritage Narragansett turkeys. By buying from a local farmer, the kids can come along to see a working farm, touch a variety of animals, and learn more about where our food comes from and how it’s raised.

There’s actually a social and agricultural movement called “community supported agriculture,” that bolsters the preservation and success of family farms, partly by linking them with food consumers. Many farmers offer produce, meat or other “subscriptions” for different farm products, including turkey.

“Everyone is getting to the point of wanting better food,” says Nathan Creswick, of Ravenna. Nathan and his wife Andrea own Creswick Farms, and are members of Great Lakes Energy Cooperative.

“We’re seeing stories about tainted foods in the media, and there’s been a push for buying local and supporting local farmers, too,” he adds. “It’s also a social cause—a public alternative to large-scale factory farms.”

The Creswicks raise “certified naturally organic” broadbreasted white turkeys and other animals.

“Our turkeys are raised without antibiotics, steroids or hormones, and in fresh air and sunshine, which means a much more flavorful bird,” explains Creswick.

Turkeys are often termed “certified organic, free-range, pastured, and heritage,” and growing demand for these types of birds is a niche market, says Darrin Karcher, a poultry Extension specialist at MSU.

“Organic” is a broad, changing term, but it basically means they’ve been raised on organic feed, and not treated with antibiotics. “Free-range” and “pastured” refer to the environment the birds are raised in, and “heritage” birds are older varieties that come from naturally-mating pairs of grandparent and parent stock, with some close to extinction.

“The reason heritage, organic, and free-range fall into the classification of niche markets is due to the number of individuals who choose to purchase alternatively-produced turkeys,” says Karcher.

Whether you buy organic or heritage, all people really want to know is they’re getting clean food, adds Mike O’Brien, owner of Providence Farm in Fennville. “They want to know the animal has lived a happy, healthy life and not raised in cages, coupled with the health and flavor of the meat,” he says. “In the case of heritage birds, it’s helping to save a species.”

O’Brien also hand-raises organic broadbreasted whites, but there are only a few Michigan farmers, such as John Harnois of Whitford, who raise heritage turkeys. Harnois says he grows his food slowly, so it tastes better. He raised 60 heritage and 240 broadbreasted whites this year, and has had people come from Ohio to pick up birds.

A city kid who started with 15 turkeys nearly 15 years ago, Harnois now sells to the Zingerman’s and Henry Ford Museum restaurants, plus eggs to a health food store in Novi. However, he isn’t sure he will be able to continue raising heritage birds because they take longer to grow and the price of corn feed has doubled in the last year because of a greater demand for ethanol.

Heritage turkeys now go for about $3.25 to $10 per pound, and organic birds about $2.90 to $3.50 per pound. Heritage birds have more dark meat, may still have a few pinfeathers, and cost more because they are harder to get and grow slower.

While some farmers deliver, most often you’ll need to pick up the processed bird. Many Michigan farms don’t ship birds because of legalities over state lines, and it’s not cost-effective. You can also expect a moister, more flavorful turkey with a yellower skin that cooks faster. Most customers order earlier, but Harnois and O’Brien still have a few left for sale this season, and you can always order for next year.

“The most import aspect is we let the turkeys be turkeys,” O’Brien laughs. “If you put turkeys outside and see the way they act with nature, they are aggressive foragers—they want to eat grass, bugs, and weeds.”

“At times I can have 100 turkeys running behind me across the pasture, and they’re the clowns of the farm,” O’Brien adds. “We let animals be animals and reap the benefit of a healthy, delicious product.”

Michigan farms selling turkeys and other hand-raised, local food:

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