By Emma Salcedo
Thanksgiving has a reputation for being a relaxing transition between two of the year’s most anticipated holidays.
But for people in the poultry business, this easy-going perception isn’t on the table. Local poultry farms have been prepping for their busiest season of the year since spring.
“This is the week where we lose feeling in our arms handling a lot of these turkeys,” said Dave Shields, one of the owners of Pastured Life Farm in O’Brien, Florida.
Pastured Life Farm processes several hundred turkeys during its Thanksgiving harvest and a total of about 15,000 birds each year. The farm is located on about 40 acres and leases an additional 60 acres.
Shields and his wife, Ginger, are first-generation farmers who operate year-round with their six children ready to lend helping hands. Dave Shields used to work in IT, but the 2008 housing crisis and the drive to produce healthy food played a role in the family moving from Jacksonville.
The Shields family journey began as consumers, then homesteaders and eventually pasture-based producers.
The family has opearted the farm for about 15 years, building a loyal customer base.
The turkeys have large areas to range freely to mimic natural grazing. Turkeys are natural foragers that graze on a diverse diet of plants, seeds, and insects.
“The whole concept of that is that our chickens are always going to be on the move,” said Dave Shields. This system allows manure to spread with little effort.
“They're going to be on fresh ground every day in the sun, and we're trying to keep them comfortable, happy, no stress and, of course, in a natural environment, something that they'd be more akin to, you know, natively.”
Keeping the turkeys in motion rather than moving their waste shortens the process, eliminates effort and minimizes diesel consumption, he added.
Ginger Shields said that the farm does not believe in any animal existing in the same square footage of land for the remainder of its lifespan.
“Pasture poultry is all about mobility,” said Dave
Pastured Life Farm falls under the PL 90-492 poultry exemption, an amendment to the 1968 Poultry Products Inspection Act that allows small farms to process and sell poultry without continuous USDA inspection, so long as they stay under the 20,000-bird limit and follow the sanitation and record-keeping requirements. This permits operations without the need for costly federal inspection.
Dave Shields said that small-scale farming enables them to handle the birds individually and ensure they are well cared for, prioritizing a humane harvest.
Thanksgiving season starts off with a drive to West Virginia, where the year’s flock is picked up when they are 1 day old.
The chicks spend about four weeks in brooders before being placed in mobile field shelters for eight weeks. When fully grown, they graze in a movable, netted paddock, typically around one acre in size.
This special breed of turkey keeps its white plumage, as colored feathers can stain the poultry’s skin.
Once the birds reach maturity, the two-day harvest process begins, said Dave Shields. They are then packaged and kept at a cool temperature before preordered birds are delivered to local neighborhood drop points and farmers markets.
“They'll be one of the very few actual fresh birds you'll be able to get on Thanksgiving,” he said.
Dave Shields said he loves the turkeys. When they are raised humanely, they can be a lot of fun to be around, he added.
Pastured Life Farm is a proud member of the American Pastured Poultry Producers Association (APPPA), a non-profit trade organization that encourages pasture-raised poultry. The group provides resources such as technical insights, regional networking and informed discussions.
Dave Shields credits the organization for the farm's growth. After the association’s executive director resigned last year after serving 12 years, Ginger Shields picked up the torch, assuming a major role in maintaining the association’s mission.
She too credits the association with helping them move from a “homestead side hustle” to a viable, well-equipped business.
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