"...when the last individual of a race of living things breathes no more, another Heaven and another Earth must pass before such a one can be again."
-William Beebe

Heritage Turkey Workshops in Wheatland, Missouri  

At this time of year, most of us are not thinking about a succulent turkey dinner, but there may be a couple of good reasons to think about turkeys these days especially if you enjoy raising poultry or are interested in diversifying your farm activities. These are not just any turkeys; they are the old- fashioned heritage breeds that our ancestors raised. There are a large number of consumers and chefs willing to pay a premium for what they consider a juicier and more flavorful meat. Kristen Corselius from the Rodale Institute in Pennsylvania has described raising heritage turkeys as a fast-growing and profitable niche for adventuresome farmers.  Old-fashioned turkeys are making a culinary comeback.

 “Heritage” is a new term for what the industry calls “standard” turkeys. Heritage birds, eight varieties total, were bred according to the color and conformation defined by the American Poultry Association in the Standard of Perfection. Heritage turkeys such as the Narragansett, Bronze and Slate provided meat, eggs, and on-farm pest control until the 1950s. As the turkey industry became more concentrated, broad breasted white turkeys displaced the standard turkeys. In 1997, the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy (ALBC), an organization that conserves rare breeds and genetic diversity in livestock, surveyed North American turkey populations to assess the genetic status of the breed. They made an alarming discovery — a number of the heritage turkey varieties including the Bronze, Narragansett and Slate were on the verge of extinction.  In the intervening years, the breeding population of heritage turkeys has increased from 1,300 to nearly 10,500.

Heritage turkeys are defined by the historic, range-based production system in which they are raised. Turkeys must meet all of the following criteria to qualify as a heritage turkey:
Natural mating: This means that turkeys marketed as “heritage” must be the result of natural mating pairs of both grandparent and parent stock.
Long productive outdoor lifespan: the heritage turkey must have a long productive lifespan. Breeding hens are commonly productive for 5-7 years and breeding toms for 3-5 years.
Slow growth rate: the heritage turkey must have a slow to moderate rate of growth. Today’s heritage turkeys reach a marketable weight in about 28 weeks, giving the birds time to develop a strong skeletal structure and healthy organs prior to building muscle mass.

As one of the only domesticated animals to originate in North America, preservation of rare breeds is like preserving an historical building or rare document. It’s a piece of American history. For turkey growers, heritage birds hold important genetic traits, such disease resistance and temperament critical to the turkey’s long-term health and survival. However, knowledgeable turkey breeders are almost as rare as the turkeys themselves according to Frank Reese, an experienced heritage turkey farmer in Lindsborg, Kansas.  He explains, “raising heritage birds doesn’t come easy and that is the main reason more people are not doing it.” A common question is where do you turn for good information on heritage turkey production? Currently, most information on turkey husbandry has been written primarily for the industrial Broad Breasted turkey, and the books written for the heritage turkeys are out of print. Though some information in the modern publications apply, the differences are critical to the health and management of heritage turkeys. For instance, heritage turkeys fly – so how do you keep them home? They have different nutritional needs as well.

In response to the need for applicable information on how to raise heritage turkeys, ALBC with funding from the USDA Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program will be conducting an intensive three-day educational program in Wheatland, MO, to revive interest in and use of Standard Bred poultry to produce high quality market birds. On Thursday, March 19th and Friday, March 20th, 2009, a workshop will be held on “How to Raise Heritage Turkeys on Pasture.” Topics will include brooding, health and biosecurity, and processing and marketing.  Farm tours will also be conducted weather permitting. An all-day workshop on “Selecting the Best for Breeding” will be conducted on Saturday, March 21st, 2009. During this workshop attendees will learn how to evaluate birds, improve flocks, how to handle and compare live birds for quality and why to select for the APA Standard of Perfection. 

For more information on this program, visit http://albc-usa.org/2009turkeyworkshops.html or call the ALBC office at (919) 542-5704. Space is limited for each workshop. Hickory County is one of only three sites nationwide where ALBC will be offering this intensive training during 2009. Do not miss the opportunity to attend this program!