Confronted with two similar food products differentiated by only a small label, most grocery shoppers will spend little time worrying about which item to buy. An increasing number of shoppers, however, are not only seeking out this label — they're paying double for foods bearing it. One local family has taken that trend a step further: Jon and Monica Landis of Lancaster Township are rasing their own chickens. According to statistics gathered by the Organic Trade Association, organic-certified food sales in the United States have increased 25-fold since 1990, with sales increasing even more rapidly since 2008. A clear example of this industry's success can be found in Western Pennsylvania, where specialty food stores successfully market organic poultry and eggs at noticeably higher prices. Carl Pursh, who procures meat and seafood for the McGinnis Sisters grocery chain, said organic poultry still occupies a small portion of the market, with room for growth in coming years. "We carry it because the customers ask for it," Pursh said. "(Organic food) customers are extremely knowledgeable. They come in knowing what they want." According to Pursh, organic chicken can cost twice as much as non-organic chicken raised on the same farm. Despite this difference, many Americans are turning to organic foods for the perceived health benefits caused by the farms' lack of chemical pesticides and additives. "It appeals to ... the people who are extremely conscious about what they eat," Pursh said. With cooking programs more readily available on the Food Network and Travel Channel, however, more typical consumers may seek out organic food after seeing the differences. According to Penn State Poultry Science Senior Instructor Phillip Clauer, chickens raised in an organic environment have freedom to move in spacious outdoor areas, giving them access to a more varied diet. If managed correctly, it can result in healthier meat and eggs for consumers. "There is a huge list of environmental things required (for organic certification)," Clauer said. To receive organic status from the Department of Agriculture, farmers must not use hormones or antibiotics in raising the birds. "There must be absolutely no contact with herbicides or pesticides," he said. "And (nutrition) has to come from feed grown on organically approved land." These requirements can be a tremendous expense for farmers, especially those who grow both organic and nonorganic chickens simultaneously. Farmers must create two separate spaces for the two varieties, each with its own housing and feed system. This contributes to the high prices found on grocery store shelves. The difficulty and expense has led some families to consider alternatives, including raising chickens at home to acquire hormone- and pesticide-free meat and eggs without the supermarkets' organic prices. The Landis family decided last year to raise egg-laying chickens on their seven-acre Lancaster Township property. "We've wanted to do chickens for years," Monica said. Her husband searched the Internet for chicken housing methods, and came upon descriptions of mobile wooden coops that can be moved around fields to provide new grazing areas. He constructed a coop through winter. The chicken dwelling, which is several feet long, is fitted with wheels and can be pulled by hand or with the help of a garden tractor. According to Monica, the family's eight chickens can benefit from the protection of a roofed coop while possessing the freedom to eat grass and insects in new areas every day. "They like clover and they like insects," she said. "They definitely have a range they can go on." While the Landis family does not sell the eight eggs their chickens produce each day, and thus do not desire organic certification, Monica said the chickens' living conditions are similar to those required for organic eggs and poultry. "We don't spray anything or put chemicals in (the food)," she said. "We move them just about every day." Monica said several of the family's church friends have been considering purchasing chickens, and their wheeled coop idea is getting more attention. A seemingly unstoppable rise in organic food's popularity, coupled with high prices at grocery stores, may cause the Landis family's idea to catch on.
