Tag: chickens

Introduce Your Kids to the Eggstraordinary World of Chicken Keeping

Raising chickens is an all-around great experience for kids. Chickens are productive, pleasant to be around, and a provide a variety of learning experiences for your kids. I had a small chicken flock for years and because chickens are easy to care for and are relatively low maintenance, most kids will be able to easily…


Soaring Egg Prices and the Unprecedented Avian Flu Outbreak

Egg prices have seen a steady increase over the past few years but price spikes have never been this extraordinary until recently. One Twitter user posted that cartons of 18 eggs (not organic or pasture-raised) cost $10 and have anti-theft alarms attached to them. While inflation and supply chain issues play a role in this, the…


Federal Agency Predicts Major Egg Price Relief Soon

Egg prices will drop dramatically later this year if the United States does not see a rebound in bird flu outbreaks, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The price drop would be a welcome relief to shoppers who have paid much more for eggs in recent months than ever before….


Feds Say Railroad Must Deliver Grain to California Chickens

OMAHA, Neb.—Federal regulators have ordered Union Pacific railroad to make sure a livestock producer gets the grain it needs in California to prevent millions of chickens and hundreds of thousands of cattle from starving. The U.S. Surface Transportation Board told the railroad it must improve service to Foster Farms to keep it from running out…


Genetically Engineered Hens Made to Kill Their Own Chicks

In an effort to stop the barbaric culling of male chicks, scientists plan to create GE hens that pass on lethal genes to their male offspring, killing them before they hatch. But the biotechnology raises equally disturbing ethical and safety issues. STORY AT-A-GLANCE Each year, more than 6 billion male chicks are killed worldwide, up…


What You Need to Know Before Getting Backyard Chickens

Urban and suburban residents have a newfound interest in backyard chicken keeping. Though this interest has seen a gradual rekindling over the past decade, it was accelerated by the pandemic, supply chain issues, and a growing general desire for more food security and self-reliance, and is now moving full steam ahead. Raising backyard chickens is…


570,000 Nebraska Chickens to Be Killed in ‘Humane Manner’ After Contracting Bird Flu: Officials

Over 500,000 chickens in Nebraska are set to be killed in a “humane manner” after contracting bird flu, the state Agriculture Department announced on March 22. The Nebraska Department of Agriculture (NDA) made the announcement in a press release in conjunction with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). Officials said that…


From Wall Street to the Farm: Meet America’s Most Beloved Chicken-Keeping Guru

Lisa Steele, a country girl at heart, left the flashy world of high finance in New York City to return to a simpler, rural life reminiscent of her childhood days on the farm. Now she’s a veritable chicken influencer with her own brand, Fresh Eggs Daily, with more than 2.4 million unique visitors to her…


Bird Flu Detected in Kentucky, Virginia, Indiana as Outbreak Spreads: Officials

Authorities with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said bird influenza has now been detected in flocks of birds in Kentucky and Virginia, just days after the officials said that thousands of birds were sickened with the flu in Indiana. According to the agency, bird flu was found in Fauquier County, Virginia; and in Fulton County, Kentucky,…


US Detects Highly Lethal Bird Flu in Tyson Foods Chickens

CHICAGO—A flock of about 240,000 chickens owned by Tyson Foods Inc. in Kentucky tested positive for a highly lethal form of bird flu, government officials and the company said on Monday, widening an outbreak that threatens the U.S. poultry industry. Infections in the chickens being raised for meat triggered more restrictions on U.S. exports, with…