Heritage Turkeys vs Broad Breasted….What’s the Difference???
The number one question I get asked this time of year (other than how did a guy like you convince a girl like Laura to marry him) is:
“What is the difference between the broad-breasted and heritage turkeys?“
Well, here is how I see it…
White Broad Breasted Turkey
The broad-breasted turkeys are the classic American Thanksgiving turkey. Picture a Norman Rockwell painting of Thanksgiving dinner and that’s a broad-breasted Turkey.
In industrial agriculture, broad-breasted turkeys are bred for production and have lost their ability to reproduce due to the enlarged size of their breast muscle. They are raised in a confined, tightly controlled environment to maximize the characteristics the CAFO (confined animal feeding operation) organizations covet: fast-growing, good feed-to-meat conversion rate and large size.
Pitman Family Farms takes these birds and flips the script on Big Ag! They treat them with respect, giving them far more space than a commercial operation, access to the outdoors, and a non-GMO feed ration. The Pitman’s practices revolve around prizing animal welfare, the highest standard of care, and raising a healthy, happy flock.
Bourbon Red Heritage Turkey
Heritage turkeys are just like the kind the Pilgrims ate. With romantic names like Narragansett and Spanish Blacks, they have smaller breasts, a lot more dark meat, and a richer flavor. All of Mary’s Air-Chilled Heritage turkeys are bred naturally and raised outdoors where they are actually able to be turkeys! The turkeys have ample access to the outdoors, just like the broad-breasted, where they can grow at a much slower rate in a much more natural environment.
Both Mary’s heritage and broad-breasted turkeys are fed a Non-GMO Project verified feed consisting of wheat, sunflower/safflower, peas, and organic soy. This feed, in conjunction with allowing the birds to forage outside, creates a truly remarkable flavor that is not to be missed.
The reason Mary’s turkeys are so much better than what you will find in your local mega-mart is they raise them just like they did back in ‘ol Norm’s day!