As Thanksgiving and the winter holidays approach, many people start thinking about how to source the perfect free range turkey for their festive meals. With so many options available, it can get overwhelming trying to decipher marketing lingo and find a quality bird that aligns with your values. This guide will walk you through what to look for when buying a free range turkey and recommend some of the best places to purchase one.
What is Free Range Turkey?
The term “free range” is commonly used to designate poultry that has access to the outdoors. However, the exact meaning can vary:
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The USDA requires that free range turkeys have access to the outdoors for at least part of the day However, there are no guidelines on how much time or the quality of outdoor access
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Humane certification programs like Certified Humane and Animal Welfare Approved have stricter standards, requiring outdoor access for a significant portion of the day along with enhanced living conditions.
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Pasture raised turkeys live outdoors on a vegetated pasture for most of their lives, which allows them to engage in natural behaviors like foraging. This is the gold standard for turkey welfare.
When sourcing a free range turkey, look for humane certifications and specific details on the type of outdoor access the birds receive. Avoid vague “free range” labeling without more information.
Why Choose Free Range?
Opting for free range turkey over conventionally raised has compelling benefits:
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Superior flavor – The enhanced mobility and diverse diets of free range turkeys lend richer, more nuanced flavor to the meat.
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Better nutrition – Pasture access provides exercise and results in leaner birds. Free range turkeys also consume more omega-3s and antioxidants from grasses and bugs.
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Humane treatment – Allowing natural behaviors outdoors significantly enhances the welfare of turkeys compared to intensive confinement. Supporting this method aligns with ethical values.
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Sustainability – Free range systems promote biodiversity, soil health, and carbon sequestration since the birds live outdoors planted in vegetation. This gentler impact aligns with eco-conscious values.
For all these reasons, free range turkey is worth seeking out if it fits within your budget. Even if pricier than conventional options, you get what you pay for in terms of quality and values.
Where to Buy Free Range Turkey
Fortunately, as free range poultry gains popularity, more retailers offer high-quality options. Here are some of the best places to purchase:
Online Direct from Farms
Purchasing directly from a local pasture raised turkey farm, whether nearby your home or further afield, is a great option to get premium birds. Many smaller farms sell turkeys online and ship frozen birds nationwide. This allows you to read extensively about how the turkeys are raised and feel confident in sourcing. Here are some exemplary pasture raised turkey producers that ship frozen birds:
- Good Shepherd Poultry Ranch (California)
- Maple Wind Farm (Vermont)
- Koch’s Turkey Farm (California)
- Crystal Lake Organic Farms (Maine)
Order 1-2 months in advance for the best selection. Stock sells out annually.
Local Specialty Butcher Shops or Farms
Your best bet for finding locally raised pasture turkeys is farmer’s markets, CSAs, and specialty butcher shops committed to sourcing meat from regional farms. The turkeys will be ultra-fresh, having never been frozen. Here are some tips:
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Check farmer’s market calendars in your area and visit markets before Thanksgiving to connect with turkey producers.
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Search online directories like LocalHarvest and EatWild to find local pasture raised turkey farms. Many allow customers to preorder birds.
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Ask at local butcher shops dedicated to humane, sustainable meat if they source regional turkeys. Some may even work directly with farms to process the birds.
Buying local allows you to learn about precisely how the turkeys were raised and provides ultimate freshness.
National Specialty Retailers
For convenient online ordering, several national retailers like these offer high-quality pasture raised and humanely raised turkeys:
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D’Artagnan – Sells pasture raised organic and heritage breed turkeys. Ships fresh or frozen nationwide.
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Crowd Cow – Online butcher works with family farms to provide humanely raised, free range, and organic turkeys. Ships frozen.
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Murray’s Chicken – Sources pasture raised turkeys from Amish Country. Ships fresh or frozen.
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FreshDirect – In business for over 20 years, they carry organic, free range, and pasture raised turkeys with a focus on working with local producers. Ships frozen.
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Whole Foods Market – Retailer provides high-welfare Global Animal Partnership certified turkeys and broad range of free range options in stores for convenient local shopping.
These online retailers thoroughly vet their turkey producers and take care of shipping logistics. Read product details closely to understand the raising practices.
Local Specialty Grocery Stores
If you’re fortunate enough to live near one, local specialty grocery stores focused on natural, sustainably sourced products often carry high-quality pasture raised turkeys, sometimes local. Stores like:
- Whole Foods Market
- Erewhon
- PCC Community Markets
- Earth Fare
- New Seasons Market
- Sprouts Farmers Market
Call your local stores in advance to check availability and source details. Free range turkeys sell out.
How Much to Order
Plan on about 1 pound of turkey per person if serving a Thanksgiving style meal as the main course with plenty of sides. For a smaller meal, allow 1/2 pound per person. Estimate 1-1 1/2 pounds per person if turkey will be the centerpiece along with leftovers.
Turkeys typically range from 10 to 24 pounds. Order the appropriate size bird for your gathering. Leftovers freeze beautifully so don’t be afraid of a large bird!
Prepare for the Best Flavor
With your premium free range or pasture raised turkey sourced, finish it off with skilled roasting. Natural turkeys benefit from gentler, slower cooking than commercial birds. Seek out recipes that align with that ethos. For the juiciest, most flavorful meat, brine the turkey before roasting.
This Thanksgiving and holiday season, serve your family and guests a wonderful free range turkey sourced right and prepared with love. The extra effort pays off in spades with a centerpiece they’ll rave about for years to come. More importantly, you’ll nourish your community with a humanely raised bird produced in harmony with nature – and that’s something to be thankful for.
How do Grass-fed Traditions Pastured Turkeyscompare to other online “free range” turkeys?
| Online Turkey A | Online Turkey B | Online Turkey C | Online Turkey D | Grass- fed Tradi- tions | |
| Glyphosate-tested Feed | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| GMO Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Green Pasture | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Soy Free Feed | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Corn Free Feed | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Size | 16 lbs. | 16 lbs. | 16 lbs. | 16 lbs. | 16 lbs. |
| Price | $186.24 | $243.88 | $181.95 | $189.99 | $131.99 |
Prices as of October 20, 2023.
Below is a ground transit time map using our zip code in Wisconsin:
What makes Grass-fed Traditions Pastured Turkeys different from “organic” or “free range” turkeys?
1. Grass-fed Traditions Pastured Turkeys are raised outdoors on pasture.
Commercially produced turkeys are typically raised entirely indoors with thousands of other turkeys in close quarters. They typically never see the sun or pasture.
Organic or “Free Range” turkeys also have no standard definition or industry guidelines for how long they must be outdoors on pasture, leaving the consumer very confused.
The USDA definition of “free-range” is rather vague. In order to label their meat and poultry “free-range or free-roaming,” “Producers must demonstrate to the Agency that the poultry has been allowed access to the outside.”(1) No mention of vegetation (pasture) is made.
Poultry producers themselves seem to have no common standards on what the term means. Some producers interpret “access to the outside” as a small door on an end-wall of a 100 ft. long shed filled with un-caged birds moving about freely on a litter-covered floor. Others feel they are compliant with the spirit of free-range if their birds are outside in the open air and under the sun; even if their “range” is simply bare dirt.
When it comes to the consumers perception of “free-range,” arguably the vision that “free-range” most often conjures is of a bird happily hunting and pecking in the grass in an open field. Because of the wholesomeness associated with the term “organic,” many consumers take for granted that all certified organic poultry raised for meat and eggs are raised outside on green pasture.
Sadly, this is not so. The term “free-range” is not even listed in the NOP (National Organic Program) “terms defined.”(2) They do give guidelines that say: “All organically raised animals must have access to the outdoors…”(3)
So when someone purchases poultry products labeled “free range” or “organic,” the birds may never have actually seen the light of day or green grass its entire life. Technically, they simply have to have a door out of their confinement, but they dont have to necessarily walk through that door to meet the requirements.
2. Grass-fed Traditions pastured poultry are fed Glyphosate-Tested Feed which contains no soy or corn – no GMO ingredients at all.
We developed our own turkey-feed ration that contains NO soy or corn. In more recent history, with the development of fast-growing factory turkeys, soy has become a key ingredient in poultry feeds for the purpose of supplying a high concentration of protein to promote fast growth.
It is very difficult to find a turkey in the US market today that has not been fed high soy-based feeds. Even turkeys advertised as “organic” or “free range” are almost always fed an organic mixture high in soybeans, and they are seldom pastured on green grass. A study done at Ohio State University showed that chickens fed soy resulted in soy protein showing up in the tissues of the chickens, and in the yolks of the eggs.
Our pastured turkeys are raised outdoors in summer on green pastures in Wisconsin that are not treated with any chemical fertilizers or herbicides. We never use vaccines, including mRNA vaccines, with our animals.
3. Grass-fed Traditions pastured poultry are raised by family farmers.
Grass-fed Traditions Pastured Poultry turkeys are all raised by family farmers. These farmers run diversified farms practicing traditional agriculture. They will rotate tracts of land with crops and other animals, or let it go fallow from time to time. When a batch of turkeys is raised on a piece of pasture, typically that pasture will not see poultry again for two or more years.
In the interval, crops may be grown in that pasture, or it may go fallow allowing grass to grow, die, and decompose so that the soil is kept in balance and not contaminated from too much chicken manure. So when you buy Grass-fed Traditions pastured poultry, you are supporting small-scale family farmers and by-passing the system that produces the conventional “factory bird.”
About our Pastured Turkeys
We have various farmers throughout Wisconsin raise these turkeys during the short Wisconsin summers, when they can roam around outside on fresh green pasture.
We have limited supplies, and they are offered on a first-come first-serve basis. While the turkeys are all raised on family farms, they are processed at a USDA certified processing plant that is also organic certified.
Note: “Free Range” is defined by the USDA as “having access to outdoors” and means the warehouse containing the turkeys must have a door where the birds can go outdoors, if they wish. It makes no specification that the birds MUST be outdoors, or that they are on grass while outdoors. “Pastured” means green pasture, moving the turkeys to fresh pasture regularly.
Free Range Turkey: Buy Free Range Turkey, Organic, Pastured, & Fed Cocofeed
FAQ
Is it worth buying a free-range turkey?
Free-range birds tend to grow more slowly, meaning they have more flavour, more fat in their muscles and a better, firmer texture. For this reason, free-range turkeys are less likely to dry out when you cook them.
Do Aldi sell free range turkeys?
Established in 1988, our free-range turkey supplier rears birds with passion and an understanding of their needs resulting in delicious full flavoured meat. With welfare at the heart of their farms, the turkeys are lovingly slowly grown in East Anglia with the freedom to roam and explore their enriched environment.
What is the healthiest turkey to buy?
The bottom line, says Koff: If you’re looking for the cleanest option, go for an organic, free-range turkey. “That’s going to be the animal that was raised the closest to how it would’ve lived in the wild,” she says. If you love a heritage bird, try to get one that is also non-GMO, says Koff.
Where is Mary’s turkey farm located?
Background. Mary’s Free Range Chicken (“Mary’s”) is produced by Pitman Farms, a family-owned business in Sanger, California, that has been raising poultry for three generations. One generation ago, Pitman Farms was a traditional poultry operation.