Our hens, like all our other animals, are outside all day, everyday where they receive a fresh area of pasture which they voraciously scour for insects and worms.
These chickens roost (sleep) on bars off the ground in a portable shelter called a “hoop house.” The hoop house resides in an area of pasture measuring 1,600 sq.ft. whose border is protected using portable electric net fencing. Every morning we open the hoop house allowing the hens to come-and-go as they please. As that area of pasture gets mowed down we move the hoop house and portable fencing to the next area of fresh pasture.
The hens lay their eggs in daily-cleaned nesting boxes filled with straw. A consequence of our hen’s diet and high quality of life is an increased level of antioxidants (eg. carotenoids) in their yolks which brightens them up to an intense yellow-orange color.
Besides the well known benefits of antioxidants, pasture-raised hens produce eggs higher in Omega-3 fatty acids*. This is an essential nutrient for healthy brain and mood function (Omega-3’s are the reason people take fish oil supplements). This vital nutrient is highly lacking in the modern American diet due to the poor diets of industrially-raised animals. We truly are what we eat.
And, if you’re not in love with pasture-raised eggs yet, they also have significantly higher concentrations of vitamin E and vitamin A*.
* https://naldc.nal.usda.gov/download/41808/PDF
