Ashley Farms Quality...

Cleanest Houses, Healthiest Birds

Our Ashley Farms grower takes a pro-active approach to keeping its flocks healthy by following what may well be the industry's most stringent sanitation practices and testing programs. As a result, Ashley Farms Chickens avoid exposure to harmful bacteria and other hazards that reduces the chance that the birds will become sick and require extensive treatment with drugs or antibiotics.

The sanitation "secret" is unwavering attention to cleanliness in the houses. As part of an intense bio-security program, no one enters an Ashley Farms Chicken house without first suiting-up in sanitary clothes from head to toe and disinfecting hands and boot soles. While some chicken producers re-use the same litter for a full year or even longer, our growers remove soiled litter and replace with fresh, clean litter for each new flock.

Why is fresh litter so important? As waste products build up in used litter, ammonia levels rise. Left uncontrolled, this harmful ammonia can weaken the chickens' immune systems, making them more vulnerable to respiratory infections that must be treated using large doses of drugs or antibiotics. In some cases, high ammonia levels can cause blistering and even blindness. At Ashley Farms, ammonia levels are monitored, and low ammonia levels are strictly maintained, resulting in a healthier, less stressed, better-tasting bird.

In addition, the soil in all houses is tested for pesticides, toxins, and heavy metals to ensure the birds do not ingest unhealthy materials. This goes way beyond what is normal in the industry. In fact, testing of soil is not even a requirement for growing organic chickens, even though dioxin has been found in soil on farms that have not been active for over 25 years.

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