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BELL & EVANS – Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania
Bell & Evans is a leading producer of chickens raised without antibiotics. For four generations, beginning in the 1890s, Bell & Evans has been raising and processing the highest quality chickens in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, in a modern facility equipped with the latest technology. The birds are raised on an all-vegetarian diet in a low stress environment, and delivered to Whole Foods Market within 24 hours of processing to ensure a fresh product with premium flavor.
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my husband loves these. he is a carnivore and i am a vegetarian (www.cooking4carnivores.com), but i get the frozen breast for him and heat them up with my quorn “chicken”. he can’t get enough of them and it makes cooking meat for him simple and quick.
April 17th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
I love the Bell & Evans Chicken Tenders. After baking, I slice them and place them on top of my organic salad.
Easy and Delicious
April 23rd, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Seeing that beautiful, harmless, little fellow really makes me want to be a vegetarian.
April 24th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
I have to agree with Alex, I feel pretty bad about the fact that me and that lil chick will probably be meeting each other some day.
April 28th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
Id really like to hear less about their modernity and more about how these critters are raised.
Is this another huge processing plant chicken farm where they only give the chickens free range for 2 weeks before they are slaughtered or is this the kind of farm where these chickens are raised without pens? What exactly does a low stress environment mean? Sounds like a corporate euphemism but I want to believe.
I think I know the answer sadly.
there are so few good options
May 5th, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Cass – I’d like to take a few minutes to answer your questions:
All of our Free Range Organic birds are given access to the outdoors for their entire life, we never cut any corners when it comes to the welfare of our birds.
Pens are never used, whether it be for our Organic program or our Antibiotic Free program.
Low stress environment means exactly that, we take great care in the cleanliness of our barns, the wholesomeness of our feed, the purity of our water and the quality of the air in the barns. A long time ago we realized that if we wanted to raise the best chicken in the country, we need to start with the best living conditions in the country. All of our birds are placed on a fresh bed of wood shavings shortly after hatch. A young chicks feet are very tender and the clean, soft wood shavings helps start the chicks out right. This philosophy continues all the way to your table.
Tom S. – Bell & Evans
May 11th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
Thank you so much for that information. I have struggled for a long time with the treatment of food animals and try as much as possible to stick to cage free/humanely raised, although you never really know what that means. I still really don’t like to think about it too much, but I am so glad to know that there is a company that cares about and for their animals. I will definitely be looking for your products!!
May 21st, 2009 at 10:18 am
Hey,
That was nice of Tom S. to answer cass’s concerns. I wonder if he would do the same for me. I want to believe but since they mentioned feeding corn and soy without mentioning the type I think it is non organic or GMO (genetically modified organism) feed. Please Tom, say it ain’t so.
May 21st, 2009 at 11:17 pm
Tony: Yes you will be able to sleep soundly tonight
All Bell & Evans Organic chickens are fed a diet of Organic, GMO free, and to top it off USA Grown Grains. Recently a study came out by the Cornucopia Institute about soy imported from abroad. If you haven’t read it, I encourage you to do so. The link is here –> http://www.cornucopia.org/2009/05/soy-report-and-scorecard/
May 22nd, 2009 at 7:24 am
WOW! That link to the soy report and scorecard is great Tom!
I have featured it on our site.
Thanks for the great food and Keep fighting the good fight!
May 22nd, 2009 at 12:03 pm
“Access” to the outdoors means nothing. What percentage of their lives do they actually SPEND outdoors? Let’s not mince words. Chickens like to take dust baths, like to eat grass, enjoy sunshine and fresh air. If they’re raised on pasture, then say so. Otherwise, it sounds like confinement farming and while it may be better than other confinement operations, I’m not sure the chicken would agree.
It is difficult for consumers to know the truth about where their food comes from and how it’s raised because of the confusion around labeling and terms, such as free-range, organic, etc. As producers, we need to clearly tell the truth about how we raise our food so consumers can decide for themselves what they want to eat.
Tim Young
Nature’s Harmony Farm
Pasture Raised Chicken, Grassfed Beef, Woodlot Pork, Heritage Turkeys
June 13th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
Bell & Evans: are they feeding GMO to the birds?
July 27th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
I would like to thank Tom for all his answers to the many questions posted. I would however also note that while containment farming might not be “best” there are usually many reasons for doing so including being able to monitor the bird’s health, as well as to protect them from predators.Even though I believe
.
“free range”, and “pasture raised” are best for some smaller/mid-size farms and I commend the farmers who do so, but for a Whole Foods farmer who supplies many animals I am surprised Tom is able to do all of the things he does for his birds.
Yes. Good, better, best. But then there’s all the rest. I’m for one happy he’s giving competition to the commercial farms that could careless if their birds are happy let alone alive. Tom gets my vote
September 12th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
What standards and enforcement does Bell & Evans have for its growers in terms of manure? As most of us know it’s not the processing plant that causes so much water pollution, it’s the growers and their practices for using or disposing of litter. Do all growers use certified nutrient management practices? Who and how are these practices monitored and enforced? Do these practices apply just to storage, or also to use on crops and fields?
September 29th, 2009 at 1:51 pm