7/24/2023 0 Comments Cooks ventureThis system also better supports farmers. Chickens raised on a regenerative farm can actually help reverse climate change since regenerative farming reintroduces nutrients to depleted soil, which in turn captures carbon, increases biodiversity, and makes waterways cleaner. Regenerative agriculture considers the health of the whole environment. And because of their non-GMO, nutrient-rich diet, their meat is higher in antioxidants and vitamins.įrom depleting our soil of nutrients to emitting copious amounts of greenhouse gases, the way much of our food is grown takes a significant toll on the earth. Because they aren’t given antibiotics and are allowed to grow at a normal rate, their muscle cells are denser in protein, resulting in more protein and omega-3s pound for pound. Heirloom breeds taste entirely different from the broiler chickens on aisle 8. Chickens that get to be chickens – instead of being cooped up – are juicier, more tender, and nutritious. Their birds spend every day outside doing what chickens do best: roaming and foraging for food. These heirloom chickens are pasture-raised on 800 acres of forested land on a regenerative farm in Northwest Arkansas. Their chickens are a far cluck from your average grocery store bird. Beyond just fighting food waste, we’re constantly on the lookout for great producers who share this vision.Ĭooks Venture is one of those producers we’re proud to partner with. A good second step is to support agricultural products that have regenerative and sustainable initiatives behind them.Part of our mission at Imperfect is building a better food system for everyone. It starts with educating ourselves about and being aware of what's going on in farming. "The answer on how to affect change is complex. "There isn't going to be an overnight change that improves the health of our soil, water, and animal and plant life," Troy notes. Simply put, the chickens' natural behaviors were returning more nutrients to the soil, just like the aforementioned bison of yesteryear. Here the newly planted peach trees were already 2-3 feet taller than those planted on the other side. Their chickens are allowed to go outside every day to forage for insects and plants, in turn fertilizing the ground that they graze."ĭuring his visit, Troy noticed that the animals seemed to favor one side of the pasture behind their barn over another. In the broad scope of poultry production, Cooks Venture is a tiny player, but, according to Troy, "what they're doing there is really big – and truly unique. Kowalski's Meat & Seafood Director Troy Schmeling paid a visit to the Cooks facility in Decatur, Arkansas, late last year. Click here to read more from Our Meat and Seafood Director Troy Schmeling. Regenerative farmers aim to reinvigorate and rebuild these ecosystems by protecting the soil from erosion, integrating livestock, maintaining living root systems year-round, minimizing tilling and maximizing crop diversity. The land lived in perfect balance with the animals, taking what it needed from them and giving back lush, grassy, green pastures for the next grazing season. Back then, bison used to forage these plains, aerating the soil and dispersing native grass seeds with their hooves while naturally fertilizing the soil. Indigenous Americans practiced it long before early American settlers established homesteads in the Midwest. Regenerative farming is not new in fact, it's pretty old. More and more farmers are entering into a serious discussion on how to affect positive change on our agricultural lands – how to leave them better than we found them and, in some cases, even repair some of the damage we've done.
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