Cost of Production:
Poultry

What does it cost to raise poultry in Fremont, Utah at an elevation of 7,200 feet? Hopefully, this cost break down will help our Customers and Members understand the estimated costs and therefore, the pricing of our poultry shares. Each share or group of shares, is sold at a specific $ per lbs. This price is determined by Cost, Supply, and Demand. There are some factors that are out of our control that could come into play during the season; therefore, the final price is subject to change. Pricing is finalized after poultry has been processed.

Each type of poultry has a different value for each cost, especially the Poultry Purchase. The Labor (Raising Poultry) cost is significantly below the true value, but who would be willing to pay the true cost of Labor? The other costs are a mix of obvious and less obvious. Some, we have learned on our journey. The Total Base Cost is basically the break even point. Therefore, each lb over the Base Weight helps to cover the true cost of Labor (Raising Poultry).

The tables below are for the informational benefit of our Customers and Members. The first table contains numbers for our Standard Whole Poultry. We do offer certain Value Added Poultry for an additional cost. Scroll to the bottom for those numbers. We believe this cost break down will help you understand the cost of producing quality meat poultry for your benefit and enjoyment at the dinner table. Hopefully, it helps you make an informed decision.

Please keep in mind: these values and costs are specifically for poultry produced at Ben's Hens in Fremont, Utah. Other farms and producers will have different values and areas of cost that are specific to them, their locations, and how they choose to raise poultry.

We will never be able to fully match or compete with the prices of larger poultry producers, or what you find in grocery stores. However, we can easily compete and beat them with our nutritional quality and poultry living conditions.

We fully support the idea of a consumer having options to pick and choose from and how they spend their money. In the end, it is the Customer who decides what they choose to eat and whom they choose to support. We hope you choose to support Ben's Hens.

Poultry Purchase	$6
Processing Cost	$8
Packaging / Labeling	$1
Feed Cost	$8
Labor (Raising Poultry)	$6+
Utilities / Fuel	$1
Marketing / Advertising	$1
Infrastructure	$1
Total Base Cost	$32
Base Weight	4 lbs
$ / lbs	$8 / lbs

Let's breakdown each cost and look at some of the details. There are eight primary areas of cost associated with raising poultry at Ben’s Hens. They are as follows:

Poultry Purchase
Processing Cost
Packaging / Labeling
Feed Cost
Labor (Raising Poultry)
Utilities / Fuel
Marketing / Advertising
Infrastructure

In the tables below, select each tab to view more information about each area of cost. We believe it is important to inform and educate our Customers and Members. Here at Ben's Hens, we believe in transparency for fair and honest pricing.

This cost covers the following:

Purchase of Poultry – Cost to purchase newly hatched poultry from the hatchery. Each type of poultry has a different base cost (take note of the goose cost). Purchasing in bulk does reduce the cost per poultry, but you need to purchase in bulk.
Shipping – Cost of shipping from the hatchery to the Ben's Hens.
Mortality rate adjustment – The mortality rate is always an educated guesstimate. It is a bit more difficult to describe and calculate. In short, poultry deaths are the highest during the first week of life; therefore the costs of the dead poultry are transferred to the remaining live poultry. There are always weak poultry in each batch. Some poultry become stressed during the mailing process and are 'dead on arrival'. Others never recover from the stress and die a day or two after arrival. This effect is felt the deepest with ducks and geese. Losing 1 or 2 of either can be a significant impact. We do our best to combat this by: ordering extra poultry, provide fresh food and water, maintain proper brooder temperature, and create a stress free environment.
First week of life while in the brooder - Feed, Water, Electricity, Bedding, and Labor.

This cost covers the following:

Preparation Labor - The evening before each Processing Day requires gathering the poultry from the pastures and bring them home for the night. Often, this takes a few trips on the 4-wheeler in the dark with a flashlight. The next day, the Processing Area needs to be cleaned, sanitized, and made ready for processing. Equipment needs to be checked and made ready. At this point, hopefully we remembered to put water in the freezer the previous day so we have enough ice. Thankfully, we are able to make enough ice at home, but it requires preparation and time.
Propane - In order to pluck the feathers, we need to scaled them in hot first. Therefore, we need propane to heat water and keep it hot. It will also be needed the next day for Heat Shrinking Freezer Bags.
Water - We use a lot of water to keep things clean.
Processing Labor - From the Kill Cone to the Freezer Bag, the actual processing of each individual poultry needs labor. In most cases, poultry is keep Whole, but depending on requests and demand, we may need to spend extra time and labor to Value Add. This would include Spatchcock, Pieced, and Individual Cuts.
Feather Plucking - This deserves its own mention. Nearly every time, plucking Chickens is simple, quick, and stress free. Turkeys are just big and awkward, so they take some extra time. Plucking Ducks and Geese, is basically a living nightmare and requires a great amount of patience and fortitude. If you want to punish someone, give them a Duck to pluck and they will begin to say 'duck' incorrectly.
Equipment - Whether it is new, being replacing, or being maintained, equipment needs to work properly and effectively.
Post Labor - Even when the processing day is over and all the poultry are bagged and in the cooler, processing isn't over. We still have more to do on the following day. The poultry need to spend the night in the cooler. This allows the poultry to properly cool and provide sufficient time for rigor mortis to happen. Because we use Heat Shrink Freezer Bags for our poultry, we need to heat water again. Once this process is complete, we need to label and weight each bagged poultry. Finally, we can send all the poultry to Freezer Camp.
The next round of Processing - While all of the above is happening, we are weaving in the next batch of poultry. Needless to say, processing days are very long days.

This cost covers the following:

The most undervalued and under paid cost of all. How do you truly calculate and value the cost of Labor for any famer to raise their livestock? Especially when most people think that Farmers should be working for minimum wage, less, or even 'free'.
When we give a Member Discount, this is where that discount is coming from.
It is difficult to fully quantify this cost, but overtime, we will eventually figure this one out.
The more poultry we raise in each batch, the more distributed our labor is. In other words, it requires roughly the same amount of labor and time to raise 50 chickens, as it takes to raise 250 chickens.
Corn Free / Soy Free batches are smaller groups and require more time, therefore, require more labor per poultry. Hence a higher cost for CF / SF.

This cost covers the following:

Each animal under our stewardship needs to help cover the cost of Marketing and Advertising. In reality, each animal should be collecting more for this cost.
We wish it was free to place an ad in The Insider or even host this website, but this requires money to pay the bill.
It also requires time to work on graphics, social media posts, and actively Marketing. A lot of time is donated or lost working on this cost.

We do offer some Poultry Value Added options for those who want us to do the work for them. These are mentioned in the table below. Please be aware, most of these options are available only with Preorders.

Preorder these Value Added options before processing day. Plan to add $1 / lbs to the Standard price.

Spatchcock - The backbone and neck of the poultry have been removed. This allows the poultry to lay flat for a more even cook in the over or BBQ. The backbone and neck are included in the bag. Use the backbone and neck for Broth/Stock/Soup or give them to your pet as a treat.
Pieced - Let us cut the poultry into individual pieces for you. Whole Breast, Wings, Thighs, Drumsticks, Back, and Neck are all contained in one bag. Cook them all at the same time, or split them up for different meals. Use the back and neck for Broth/Stock/Soup or give them to your pet as a treat.
Half - Cut down the middle with the backbone removed. For those interested in a smaller portion of the Whole, but want a bit of each part of the poultry, we offer Half. It is ready for your BBQ or oven.

For those interested in a slower growing and more natural Chicken, we offer a few Freedom Ranger (FR) Chickens each season. This breed of Chicken requires an additional 2 - 4 weeks longer to grow compared to the Standard Cornish Cross. Even though they are older than Standards, they remain tender. They have smaller breasts, because the meat is more distributed across the body.

This extra time, allows the FR to develop a more rich flavor in the meat and fat. These are the perfect Chicken for those interested in maximizing the flavor profile and producing excellent Broth / Stock. We generally refer to these Chickens as Broth Chickens. If you like the dark meat, then this is the Chicken for you!

As you can surmise, they require more feed and more time; therefore, add $1 to $2 / lbs to the Standard price. Unless Preordered before processing day, these come packaged as Whole Chickens.

For those interested in a Corn Free / Soy Free fed Chickens, we offer a few CF/SF Chickens each season. On average, they are smaller and average 4 lbs per Whole Chicken. If you are interested in CF/SF, plan to Preorder by the first week of June.

Because the protein level of this feed is lower, this Value Added option for Chicken requires an additional 2 - 4 weeks longer to grow compared to the Standard Cornish Cross.

As you can surmise, they require more feed and more time; therefore, add $1 to $2 / lbs to the Standard price. Unless Preordered before processing day, these come packaged as Whole Chickens.

For those interested in Individual Cuts, we offer these Valued Added options. In general, we only prepare a handful of these each season. If you are interested in these options, plan to Preorder these options by the first week of August.

Individual Cuts:

Ground Poultry
Whole Breast
Thighs
Drumsticks
Leg Quarters
Wings

In general, we keep the bones in and the skin on for extra flavor and added nutritional value. These Value Added options require more labor and extra packaging; therefore, add $1 to $6 / lbs to the Standard price. Convenience comes with a cost.

Parts:

Backs
Carcass Frames
Necks
Feet
Heads

Parts are perfect for making Broth / Stock. They are nutrient-dense and absolutely increase the health value of the food you prepare. Those who know the true value of Broth, know that they are getting an excellent deal. In addition, you can treat you pets to a special treat to show you care for their health as well.

Organs:

Liver
Hearts
Gizzards

Organs are often just tossed to the side, but we love to see our Customers and Members purchase Organs from us. They are very nutrient-dense.

Cost of Production: Poultry

Cost of Production:
Poultry