FREE RANGE CHICKEN

What does free range

chicken really mean?
Found on labels and menus,
the term “free range” does
not paint an accurate and
consistent picture. The
United States Department
of Agriculture (USDA) has
defined “free range Consumers are not told
chicken” loosely as having whether the chicken is
outdoor access for an fed a natural diet or one
undetermined period each that includes animal
day.“ products, waste products
and/or antibiotics.
Free range chicken also does not indicate
anything about the quality of the outdoor space
or the number of chickens that share that space.
Another misnomer is the use of the term
hormone free on chicken labels.
Free range chicken also does not indicate
anything about the quality of the outdoor space
or the number of chickens that share that space.
Another misnomer is the use of the term
hormone free on chicken labels.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned
the use of any growth-promoting hormones on
chickens decades ago making this label accurate
but misleading when used to sell chicken on this
claim alone.
 What should we look for when
buying natural chicken?
As you shift to a healthier, whole foods diet, you
have to take a closer look at the quality of the
animal products in your diet. Are you eating
healthy eggs? Have you discovered the
benefit of omega 3 eggs?
If you consume milk, is it the best quality on the
market like Organic Valley organic milk? With
chicken, a closer look reveals that the days of
free-running chickens pecking at worms and
scratching in the compost pile on the farm are a
distant reality.
Today’s chickens are bred and raised to reach the
supermarket as quickly as possible. Instead of
farms, the chicken industry uses warehouse-like
structures to provide the living environment for as
many as 100,000 chickens at a time.
These chickens are fed rendered meat scraps,
including hog and cattle byproducts, and waste
products including their own manure. The end
result of these large-scale, “efficient” operations is
chicken meat that is relatively inexpensive to the
consumer – that is, if the consumer is only
considering the monetary measure. The cost is
enormous when we factor in our health.
What is the Problem with Broiler Chickens?

1.Eighty percent of supermarket broiler

chickens are infected with the bacteria
campylobacter.
2.Twenty percent of supermarket broiler
chickens are infected with the bacteria with
salmonella.
3.Overcrowding and unsanitary conditions
create a more stressful environment and
greater disease rates among poultry,
necessitating the use of antibiotics.
4.The Union of Concerned Scientists estimates
that seventy percent of all antibiotics produced
in the U.S. are fed to animals, and the majority
of these drugs are used to promote growth
and prevent disease.
5. A survey of 1,000 Americans found that 48%
are unaware that conventional chickens are
fed a diet that contains antibiotics to help
prevent flock-destroying diseases.
6. Approximately half of the antibiotics used to
keep chickens healthy are identical to those
used to treat humans. The over-use of these
antibiotics creates bacteria that are more drug
resistant.
A free range chicken is a chicken that has been
fed a healthier diet and has regular access to
sunlight and space to roam around and it does not
need antibiotics.
Our chickens have the added benefits of fresh air
and green pasture. Their feed is enriched with flax
and alfalfa. No antibiotics or growth promotants
are added to the feed or water. Air chilling also
enhances the flavor.
Whole Chicken $ 2.75 / LB
Bone in Breast $ 5.35 / LB
Boneless Breast $ 8.25 / LB
Legs, Drums or Thighs $ 2.75 / LB
Hotdogs $ 6.50 / LB
Patties $ 7.15 / LB
 Management Guide
Brooding and Starting
In a span of 21 days, the SASSO chicks should be
placed in a brooder with sufficient heat and
lighting. There should also be enough water,
vitamins and chick starter mash to last for the
whole day to ensure maximum growth.
Growing
The SASSO chicken can already be free-ranged
when it reaches three weeks old and be fed grower
mash. After reaching two months and more than
one kilo, it can already be harvested. All these
elements combine into producing the good tasting
chicken.
It comes when the SASSO chicken reaches six
months. SASSO males are sexually aggressive with a
breeding capacity of one is to ten hens. SASSO hens
lay brown eggs that have less cholesterol, Layer mash
is given to full grown hens.
SASSO (selection avicole de la sarthe et du sudqest)
is a poultry breeding company based in France, which
specializes in colored poultry strains selected from
over 30 years of breeding experience. The emphasis
of SASSO breeds is to provide quality chicken
different from the industrial or factory-white chicken
not only in appearance, but in the texture of its meat
and best of all, in taste.
 PROBLEM OF THE POULTRY INDUSTRY

1. Profitability. We have seen the fortunes of big

time name-integrators come and go. They
have incurred serious financial losses due to
high cost of inputs, low selling prices and a
glut in the market.

2. The factory-white chickens have been

plagued with diseases that the present
scientific-technical advances have not
cope-up with.
In the World Poultry Science convention held last
June 1998, the scientists were unanimous to
declare that the commercial breeds of birds that
has been produced by the major breeding
farms are :
1.Genetically flawed.
2.The birds grow so fast (1.50 kg at 33 days of
age) yet it cannot be sustained by its bone
system (such that lameness, bone deficiencies
are a big problem) and that its heart and lungs
cannot support its body mass (such that sudden-
death occurs, strokes, ascetics are common).
3. Plus the birds have weak immune system,
that they have been affected with immuno-
suppressive diseases such as Inclusion body
hepatitis, infectious Bursal disease, infectious
anemia, Marked disease, Malabsorption
syndrome, etc.
4. With these problems, the industry had to
resort to using more and more drugs
(antibiotics, growth-promotants, and the likes)
to be on the competitive edge in the poultry
business.
5. What was good for the business was not
necessarily good for the chickens and the
people who are supposed to eat them.
6. The SASSO Company has been in the
forefront of poultry breeding in FRANCE for
colored broilers for the past 30 years ad is
producing about 100 million colored birds per
year (since 1991).
7. The company has provided the breeder base
to produce quality birds quite different from
the industrial factory white-chickens, not only
in appearances, but definitely in taste and
texture of meat.
 Some Tricks of the Trade:

1.The most common trick is the use of growth

promotant in the feed that aggravates the
stomach lining of birds, making these birds
think they are still hungry. The birds would eat
more, they grow faster and are ready for the
market in record time but the USD and EU have
found these chemicals to cause tumors in the
stomach of the animals and is a known
carcinogen. It is still widely used in the local
industry today.
2. How? With these small doses, antibiotics
causes some water retention I the animals,
raising the weight of the birds as much as
5% to 15% during its growing period of 6 to
7 weeks. The grower saves on growing time
and feeds, by as much as one week, but of
course, the consumer pays for the total
price of chicken and one week worth of
water.
3.There’s another problem with the
unregulated use of antibiotics. These
antibiotics are given in doses insufficient to
cure any disease; just enough to let the
body’s natural immune system know they’re
there. The practice therefore weakens the
bird is natural ability to fight-off the real
pathogenic bacteria, and inmost cases
breeds within its system, some antibiotic-
resistant strains of these disease-causing
bacteria's. The sad part is that, some of
these bacteria's, can be harmful to humans.
4. There are a lot more practices in the
present poultry industry that we find
questionable; such as the practice of
debeaking, toe clipping and the cramped
cages to which these animals have been
raised.
5. With these overriding concerns, and at the
rate and direction that the poultry industry
is going, we personally cannot ascribe to.
The X44 is a heavy
sized SASSO chicken
that has red plumage
with yellow skin and
shanks. It is also
called the Rhode
Island Red. The chick
is pure red in color or
may have shades of
black in its back.
The X44N is a heavy
sized SASSO chicken that
has no feathers in the neck
and has red plumage with
white skin and black
shanks. This breed strain
is considered to be the
fastest growing and
having the best tasting
meat. During birth, the
naked neck is already
noticeable because it is
born without feathers in
the neck.
The T88 is a medium
sized SASSO chicken
that has gray plumage
with yellow skin and
shanks. It is locally
called bulilit in the
Philippines. It is also
called the Plymouth
Rock Gray and is
known for its dazzling
color. The day old
Plymouth chick has a
white spot in its head.
The pure black T77 is a
light sized SASSO
chicken that has black
plumage with white skin
and black shanks. It is
also called the Black
Australorp and is popular
among Chinese. The
black australorp is also
the best selling one
because it resembles the
common color and size
of the ordinary black
Filipino native chicken.
 Why use SASSO breed?

SASSO-(selection avicole de la sarthe et du

sudqest) is a poultry breeding company
based in France, which specializes in
colored poultry strains selected from over 30
years of breeding experience. The emphasis
of SASSO breeds is to provide quality
chicken different from the "industrial" or
"factory-white" chicken not only in
appearance, but in the texture of its meat
and best of all, in taste.
The major advantage of using SASSO breed

• The breed is hardy

• It is very economical to grow
• It can subsist on feed raw materials that are
available in various localities
• The infrastructure needed for the enterprise
is cheap and readily available
The major advantage of using SASSO

• The growing method for the animals is

similar to the age-old technology being
practiced by the farmer-families,
Traditional Free-Range
• The SASSO female PS (SA51) is
breedable with selected native male lines
that has good potential for production.
• The breed possesses the texture and
flavor of the real native chicken.
Management guide for colored chickens:

1. Take all necessary bio-security measures in

preparation of the house and grazing site.
2. Better to rear birds on an all-in/all-out system
to avoid any major disease outbreak or high
mortalities.
3. It is also best to limit the access of visitors and
personnel in the poultry areas so as not to be
a vector for contamination.
Brooding
Arrival of Chicks
Upon arrival at the farm, the birds are given
adequate water with electrolytes to avoid
dehydration. This should be done within 2 hours
from discharge into their brooding pens.
House Preparation
Bio-Security is a must. Since the day old-chicks
are very to surrounding bacterial contamination,
it is best decrease the challenge by thorough
cleaning and disinfection of house and all
equipments.
 Brooding
1.During the first few days of the brooding the
environmental conditions should be controlled
to promote the well being of the young birds.
2.The DOCs, are fragile creatures because their
downy feathers are still unable to regulate
their body temperature, or protect themselves
from extremes of temperature.
3.The success in the brooding period will
determine the success of the flock. During the
first 8 to 10 days, the chicks are not able to
control their body temperature. It is best to
maintain the desired brooding temperature for
the birds at this stage.
C. Drinking and Feeding
1. It is a must for chicks to drink as soon as they
arrive in the house. For DOCs subjected to long
travel, or during hot weather, it is best to
administer electrolytes/rehydration solutions.
2. Take note of the water consumption of the birds
on a day-to-day basis, mainly to avoid wastage
(especially if under medication) and to avoid
excessive humidity inside the house.
3. Proper feeding is essential for the growth of the
birds from day-old to harvest. It is best that
quality feeds in the right amount be given to the
birds for their daily requirements.
4. For the birds to easily find their feeds on the
first day, it is advisable to use newspapers,
or flat feeding trays. By the second day it is
easy to introduce the chick-feeders for the
birds.
5. It is advisable to put feeds into the feeders 3
to 4 times daily to encourage the birds to eat
and minimize wastage.
6. Never throw stale or rancid feeds into the
litter, for this will cause more problems to
the birds.
7. Ensure that only quality feeds should be
given to the birds to avoid nutritional
problems.
 COMMON DISEASES AND
INNOVATIVE CURES
• The use of herbal and natural products to
prevent or cure diseases is a typical Asian
solution mostly practiced in the countryside.
• Not only have they proven quite effective in
treating certain diseases in animals they are
also practical solutions in the countryside
where farmers still use these age-old ethno-
veterinary practices.
• They are cost-effective and available in the
backyards.
Herbal Medicines

• CHILI (Capsicum frutescens)

- used to treat respiratory problem
- appetite stimulant especially during heat
stress
- dewormers
• OREGANO (Plectranthus amboinicus)
-used to treat respiratory rales
-used to prevent and cure white diarrhea
-used for coccidiosis
• PAMINTA [black pepper] (Piper nigrum)
-used to treat fowl pox
Herbal Medicines

• DAMONG MARIA (Artemesia vulgaris linn.)

-used to treat malaria
• LUYA [ginger] (Zingber officinale)
-used as antibacterial
• SIBUYAS (Allium fistulosum)
-used as antibacterial
• IPIL-IPIL (Lucaena leucocefala)
-used as a dewormer
Interesting Facts About SASSO

• The Sasso chickens is native of France.

• Sasso chickens are organically grown
• This breed of the chicken is more superior
and growing period is much shorter. The fowl
is similar to the native chickens in many
respect.
• About 1,700 farmers in 34 agrarian reform
communities in the country are engaged in
growing Sasso chickens for their livelihood
project. The farmers are cooperators in what
is termed as the "Village Level Sasso
Program."
• The said program is carried out by the
Department of Agrarian Reform, Asian
Development Bank and Agrarian Reform
communities.
• In Nueva Ecija, 180 farmers in six towns are
participating in the program. Each cooperator
is given 100 Sasso chicks. In 60-70 days,
these are expected to weigh an average of 1.7
kilos each.
• Under the DAR-ADB-ARC, each cooperator is
provided assistance of from P5,000 to P6,000
for the chicks and the inputs needed in the
their early stages of growth.
• The amount will be paid back by the
cooperators to their cooperative. The
cooperative, in turn, makes the necessary
steps so that other farmers can engage in the
same type of livelihood project.

• The response equity of the farmer, he said, is

to make available a 400-square meter grazing
area, a shed, plus the interest to engage in
the project.
• The expected income is P2,500 per cycle.
• Compared to the native chickens, they grow
to a weight of six kilos.
• They would eat and eat resulting in the fast
growth and become ready for the market in
35 to 45 day. Thus, the growing time to
produce marketable size chickens has been
reduced from 65 days to 35.
• They are given feeds which include as
ingredients fish and bone meals which
somewhat make the taste of the chicken not
really palatable.
• And like the native chickens, the grower can
stop giving feed to them and can survive in the
range after 21 days of brooder-rearing.

• Compared to the industrial white chickens, the

meat of Sasso chickens, is definitely much
tastier.

• The white chickens are product of drugs and

many tricks of producers are done to grow
them quickly. Producers use growth
promotants in the feed which affects the
stomach lining of the chickens and make them
"feel" they are still hungry.
• "Manok Pinoy" are introduced to the
cooperators and other interested parties. The
"Manok Pinoy", is a cross between the Sasso
chicken breed and the best lines of the native
chicken.
• Among the best strains of the native chicken
are "Bolinao" from Pangasinan, "Paraokan"
from Palawan, "Banaba" from Batangas,
"Camarines" from Bicol, "Darag" from Panay,
"Basilan" or "Joloanon" and the "Labuyo."
• Jaime Pascua, agri-business officer of the
DAR-South-Nueva Ecija, says cooperators of
the project in Nueva Ecija come from the
towns of General Tinio, Jaen, San Isidro,
Cabiao, General Natividad and San Antonio.
• One of these cooperators, Pascua said, even
converted his pig pens as shed for Sasso
chicken rearing. He added that the farmer
believes that Sasso chicken raising is easier
to do and if done in a bigger scale can be
more profitable than pig raising.
 Here are just a sample of the type of
services we can provide:
• integrated marketing plans
• advertising campaigns
• media relations
• direct mail programs
• telemarketing scripts
• sales presentations (flip charts to
PowerPoint)
 Here are just a sample of the type of
services we can provide:

• sales/marketing training programs

• tradeshow planning and execution
• transit advertising/billboards
• radio scripting/production