1. Penny Kothe Caroola Farm
Feathers and Fowl
Penny Kothe Caroola Farm
Caroola Farm is a 100acre permaculture, organic and holistically managed farm in the NSW Southern Tablelands. Since 2012 we have farmed a selection of poultry including egg and meat chickens, egg and meat ducks and turkeys seasonally. In addition we have pigs, sheep and cattle for meat along with vegetable and fruit production systems which are all run in an integrated farm enterprise system.

2. Meat birds on Caroola Farm
Caroola Farm raises up to 300 meat birds monthly, plus around 15 layer birds, 15 pekin duck layers and up to 50 meat ducks along with up to 50 turkeys annually. These are all pasture raised, as opposed to conventional free-range, meaning they are actually raised on pasture with supplementary organic feed and minerals. Meat chickens are raised to weeks, ducks from weeks and turkeys around 12 weeks.
All in separate areas:
Turkeys – one paddock system
Ducks – 4 paddock system - Pekin
Chickens – moveable houses 1 hectare plus paddocks – we farm Sommerlad meat birds, which are different to conventional meat birds

3. Products and Behaviours
Inputs:
Shelter
Feed
Water
Shade
Predator protection
Companionship
Outputs:
Meat
Eggs
Feathers
Manure
Characteristics
Scratching
Foraging
Whilst the primary output of our poultry is for meat, the reason we started farming poultry was actually for their manure in our integrated organic system. Rather than pay for fertiliser, effectively we pay for feed and animal husbandry with the outputs being paddock fertilisation, meat and eggs.
Each animal has their own intrinstic characteristics that differ, even though they are all poultry. All poultry require feed, water, shelter, shade, protection and companionship, and they all provide meat, feathers, manure and sometimes eggs, but each has their own set of behaviour – chickens are scratchers, ducks love the wet and are great fertilisers, eating more grass in the meantime, turkeys are more sociable animals and different again. Suffice to say we do not just raise the animals for meat, but for the other benefits they bring to our farm.
Feed – high protein 22%, certified organic

4. Free Range/Organic Production
There are a variety of different terms used in poultry and egg production including: Free-Range, Pastured etc – see handout for more details
Humane choice - Chickens will have free access to the outdoors and will not have their beaks trimmed. Stocking densities for layer hens and meat chickens will be 1500 per hectare and not 20,000 for layer hens or 140,000 for meat chickens currently proposed by the intensive industry.
PROOF -
Organic – Organic Federation of Australia - SCPA – Organics
What does organic mean?
No antibiotics
Organic feed
Organic pasture
Organic processing
Pest and Disease control is the issue
Worms
Coccidiosis
Lice etc
Introduced pests – from other animals, humans - biosecurity
How do we solve
Probiotics
Moving – all houses on skids - house construction
ACV
Supplements – mineral and herb
Supplementary Minerals – Pat Coleby
Supplementary Herbs
Apple cider vinegar and garlic plus oregano for Turkeys
Fresh cool water is important and a challenge

5. Production Processes Purchasing Feed Housing Catching Transportation
Processing
Storing
Selling
There are many costs involved in the production process for poultry – see handout for an example. These include:
Purchasing day-old birds approx $3-$7 depending on type of bird and breed
Feed – between $20 to $35 for 20kg depending on source 125 – 200g per chook per day depending on size – feed storage
Housing – brooding from day old to 2-4 weeks, paddock housing – perchs are uneccessary for meat birds, but they must be able to be off the ground and overnight housing is a great way to keep them protected.
Catching – blue light
Transportation – to and from the abattoir
Processing – the abattoir – where will you take them and when?
Storing – Food safety, temperature monitoring, refridgeration
Selling – Live, On-Farm, Farmers Market, Wholesale, Retail
Our biggest issues
Mechanical failure
Nutrition
Bird Predation
Foxes
What do we do
Lock up
Dogs
Scarecrows
Fox light
Electronetting

6. What are the legal requirements?
Registration
Animal codes of conduct
Biosecurity
Food handling and storage
Market licences
Registration of a poultry meat farm – more than 100 birds
Poultry live transport – more than 100 birds
Meat and poultry processing plants -
Poultry Product Transport -
Meat storage and sale – pre-packagaged -
Food Safety Supervisor Certificate –
NSW and ACT licences -

7. More information or contacts
Penny Kothe Caroola Farm
Caroola Farm is a 100acre permaculture, organic and holistically managed farm in the NSW Southern Tablelands. Since 2012 we have farmed a selection of poultry including egg and meat chickens, egg and meat ducks and turkeys seasonally. In addition we have pigs, sheep and cattle for meat along with vegetable and fruit production systems which are all run in an integrated farm enterprise system.