Did you happen to catch the story on NPR's "All Things Considered" the other day about the rise in urban chicken-keeping? If not, I highly recommend it. Research for my own book can attest to the steady march forward of backyard poultry enthusiasm. "Chicken tenders," as I like to lovingly refer to them, cover a wide range of ages, socioeconomic backgrounds, and geographic areas.
As the ATC story shows, chickens aren't just for overall-sporting-multi-acre-owning- farmers anymore. They're simply another component of increasing interest in re-directing food pathways, creating sustainable food networks, and exercising a bit more control over where our food comes from.
Are you keeping chickens, or do you have plans to do so? Do you have any friends with a hankering for two-legged, winged, and feathered friends?
*Image from here. The "Chicken Whisperer" mentioned in the ATC story, keeps a regular column on Grit. Atlanta peeps, the whisperer is the man to seek out if you're looking for some chicken love. Ur, you know what I mean...
3 comments:
Isn't she beautiful!!
I keep a few chickens, and they are just the easiest things to take care of. Easier than my cat. I am always urging friends to think about keeping a few. Plus, I never feel bad about "wasting" leftovers anymore-- I just feed them to the girls, thus "converting" them into eggs! Ta Da!
i don't have my own chickens, but i only buy my eggs from local farms. now that i know how beneficial small farm eggs are to my diet, there's no going back.
i think the rise we're seeing in backyard coops is a really beautiful trend that says a lot about how people are now wising up to producing healthful, sustainable food for themselves and for their communities.
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