Choosing a turkey used to be pretty simple. All you’d have to do is get a head count of dinner guests and find the biggest bird possible to feed the crowd. Now it can be pretty daunting. Here’s some advice to help you make the right turkey choice for you.

The biggest difference for almost any turkey you choose at Whole Foods Market is that they are fresh. Our birds are harvested close to the time of being sold. You may not realize that the FDA allows birds to be harvested in February, kept at 27°F for months and then sold as fresh in November. That’s not what we sell here, but people who are buying our fresh birds for the first time aren’t used to getting turkeys that are really fresh.

Now, you may see ice on our fresh birds because we chill them below 30°F to keep them safe and fresh, but they aren’t frozen. That said, we do offer some value options of frozen turkey, and they are from this year’s harvest, not holdovers from last year like some frozen turkeys sold elsewhere.

So, your first choice is frozen turkey or fresh turkey. Well, actually, your first choice is if you buy your bird from us at all. It’s important to know that all of our turkeys are raised according to our strict quality standards requiring no antibiotics ever, an all-vegetarian diet, no added solutions or injections (other than pure sea-salt solution brining where noted), and complete traceability to the farm. We think this makes our turkeys a better choice.

Now, what about all those other options: kosher, value, pre-brined, organic, heritage, etc…? Here’s a handy chart to help you choose what kind of turkey you’d like at your table.

It just makes sense that the more care and time that goes into raising the turkeys, the more they will cost. We bring you a range of options so you can choose a turkey that matches your values and budget.

Oh yeah, one more critically important note! Now that you’ve chosen your turkey, please remember that fresh turkeys cook faster than older ones. You need to plan your feast so the turkey is ready at the same time as the mashed potatoes and dressing! Here’s a link to a bunch of turkey cooking information. Enjoy your special dinner!