Select Farm provides an affordable solution to some of the key chicken welfare issues, but by reducing flock sizes, changing the diet and using slower growing breeds, we can also rear our birds in ways that respond to other customer requirements, such as Organic, free-range, and corn fed – or a combination of these.
Like our select farm chickens all Waitrose free range and organic chickens are reared by farmers who we know and who only supply us.
The term ‘free range’ means the birds have unrestricted daytime access to open fields for half their life. From the age of 28 days the birds have grown enough to wander freely outside during the day. Before this time, they aren't developed enough to be able to withstand the elements. To attract the birds outside the farmers plant trees which provide the chickens with a sense of security and shelter.
Once outside the birds range around the fields and scratch around in the earth for worms and grubs which form a supplement to their main diet.
Being free range these chickens are slower growing than select farm chickens and will grow for at least 56 days. The slow-growing nature of the birds means that they have more time to roam around and increase their muscle-tone, which leads to a firmer texture in the end product.
But what’s the difference between free-range and organic chicken?
To start with organic chickens must be fed an organic diet, and kept on certified organic land. In addition, regulations state they must be kept outside for at least a 3rd of their lives, but the Waitrose standard goes that bit extra and specifies that the birds should spend at least half of their lives outside.
Waitrose Organic chickens grow for at least 70 days so a particularly slow growing breed is used to ensure they grow naturally in the right proportions. Flock sizes and stocking density are also even smaller than free range.
So, it’s not only organic feed, but also the type of bird and it’s slow growth period that makes Waitrose Organic chicken really special.
Organic poultry is very important to Waitrose. We were the first supermarket to sell organic poultry in 1997 and since then it has gone from strength to strength. Organic chicken farming is trying to bring chickens as close to their natural environment as can be done on a commercial basis.
Naturally all the requirements required for these product ranges, such as plenty of outdoor roaming space, special feed or certified organic feed increases the farmer’s production cost. So it’s not surprising that these products are more expensive than our Select Farm chicken. But it does mean that we have something for every customer’s requirement.