Earlier this month saw 1500 day-old Norfolk Black and Norfolk Bronze chicks arrive at our farm, ready for their 25-week rearing process ahead of Christmas. We believe that the best things in life take time and that includes our beloved turkeys.
Typically, supermarket turkeys are reared for 16 weeks, but we prefer to let our turkeys grow up and mature at their own pace. We rear each bird as slowly and as ethically as possible. We’ve never set out to be the next ‘super shed’ and only raise limited amounts of turkeys each year so that we can really focus on the wellbeing of each one, allowing them to have the best lives possible. This in turn, means you get the best quality, artisan produce direct from our farm.
The chicks start off their early days being kept warm under gas heaters, in the first few days we encourage them to find the heat, water and feed so that they are comfortable and flourish. It is crucial they get off to a good start to enable them to brave the elements when they are moved to the rearing shed.
When they’re old enough, we move them into the great outdoors, where they roam and get into as much mischief as they please. The turkeys are given constant access to naked oats, which creates a really lovely layer of fat that keeps the birds moist when cooking.
When our birds have been reared for a solid six months, they are dispatched quickly and humanely in small groups to ensure they do not get stressed. They are dry plucked and hung for up to two weeks, allowing the flavour to fully develop.
Our Norfolk Bronze free-range turkey is a beautiful centrepiece for your Christmas dinner, with generous quantities of sweet white and dark meat that stays moist and succulent. Our Norfolk Black turkeys are slow-maturing birds that have a slightly stronger, gamier flavour. They’re highly prized birds in very limited quantities. Our turkeys are shipped nationwide ahead of Christmas.
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