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Who we are

HomeGrown Poultry is the first state-approved poultry processor in the state of Idaho. Poultry processed in our 1920-square foot facility can be resold anywhere with the state of Idaho. HomeGrown Poultry has been in business since 2003, owned and operated by experienced poultry growers.

In 2010, HomeGrown Poultry decided against applying for a grant of inspection from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to become a federally-inspected poultry processing facility. This will means that poultry from our facility may be sold only within the state of Idaho. Becoming a USDA facility would have meant increasing our butcher fees to reflect the additional paperwork and microbial testing that federal inspection will require. This was a difficult decision for us, since we have many wonderful customers in neighboring states who need access to quality poultry processing.  Quite simply, the playing field for small processors is uneven and slanted toward the big guys.  They can afford the overhead and the hassle of USDA.  We cannot.

Starting in 2010, the USDA will require that we purchase your birds from you when you drop them off and then sell them back to you when they are picked up.  Please write your Congressman about this silly requirement that we must do to meet the conditions of our exemption. 

We believe growing food for yourself and your family is true food security.

We believe locally-grown food is more nutritious, saves fossil fuel, and supports local farmers. It is true homeland security.

We support local food systems - all the processes that go into producing and distributing food - whether they've developed haphazardly or with careful planning - from breeding crop seeds, to fishing, to raising cattle, to processing food, shipping, storing and selling it.

We support sustainable agriculture - growing food and fibers in a ways that don't compromise the ability of future generations to do the same.

The food supply chains we depend on have been growing longer and more complicated - and this has created new vulnerabilities. Food does not just pass from farm to market to table anymore. The links of these chains pass through more hands, more labs, more companies, more processing facilities, more countries, etc. Too much of this stretching food supply chain is out of sight, and out of public control. We either need to shorten the food supply chains by buying more locally produced food, or do a much better job of overseeing and managing them through all their twists and turns. We believe HomeGrown Poultry has an important role in this system.

What we do

We slaughter and dress all types of poultry, including chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, chukars, pheasants, quail, and guineas. Our skilled and experienced staff can assure your birds are treated with respect and are humanely handled. At this time we only offer whole poultry. We expect to add cut-up services in the near future.

Animal welfare is very important to us. We have consulted with experts from the Animal Welfare Institute to ensure we are handling the birds in accordance with their standards (www.AnimalWelfareApproved.org). We follow an approved HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) program to provide safe, unadulterated products. Our strict sanitation program ensures a clean and sanitary environment.

In the near future, HomeGrown Poultry will purchase poultry from growers who do not wish to market those products themselves. We will pay a per-pound-dressed price and market them under the HomeGrown label. This service is still under development, but we expect to offer prices based on the manner in which the poultry is raised (for example pastured poultry grown without antibiotics on farms that don't use pesticides or herbicides will command a higher price than poultry raised using other methods). Take a look at our Farmer page for a pdf file of our standards. If you are interested, please contact us for more information.

Our Facility

Our new building is one of the newest small-scale poultry processing facilities in the United States. This 1920- square foot building meets the standards of the Idaho Food Code and the USDA for the processing and selling of poultry.

Our facility also incorporates several 'green' design elements. In our effort to save energy we have a light-reflecting roof, clerstory windows to provide light into the interior of the building, operable windows to provide natural ventilation, R-25 insulation in the walls and ceiling, energy efficient windows, natural linoleum in the office area, programmable thermostats, and plans for solar-heated hot water.

Visitors and customers can choose to enjoy our shaded porch or peruse reading materials on poultry found in our lobby. You may also watch the processing if you desire.

Services

(Prices subject to change at anytime.)

Young Chicken  $3.75 per bird   Unbagged $.25 per bird deducted from your total. Your tote or container MUST meet USDA standards  

Mature Chicken  $3.75 per bird    Unbagged $.25 per bird deducted from your total. Your tote or container MUST meet USDA standards

Turkey    under 20 pounds            $9.00 
20-24.99 pounds                            11.00
25-29.99 pounds                            13.00

How it works

1. Call for an appointment 208-278-0127. The summer months and November are our busiest times and we are frequently full two weeks ahead. Please call early.

2. The night before your appointment, take all the feed away from your poultry to help clear the gut. This helps reduce potential contamination and makes processing easier. Please read our 'Day Before' hints page.

3. Bring your poultry to us by the time you were instructed to bring them. Unless you have used one of our crates to transport them, we'll ask you to transfer your birds from your containers to ours. We will try our very best to process your birds while you wait but it may be several hours, even if you just brought a few chickens. Enjoy breakfast in New Plymouth, spend the morning in New Plymouth's unique horse-shoe city park, or shop sales tax-free in Ontario, Oregon - just 12 miles away.

4. Pick up your poultry. Your birds will be returned to you whole and in plastic bags. Turkeys will have the giblets inside. Depending upon when you return to retrieve your birds, they will be thoroughly chilled inside our walk-in cooler, or will be ready for you to put on ice. PLEASE bring BOXES or COOLERS or other transport means for your meat. We have no boxes. Before you pickup your meat, we must be assured that you can maintain the meat at 40 degrees or below. We cannot freeze the meat at this time. Occasionally we have extra ice for sale, but you should bring some in case we have used all of our ice for processing.

Limitations

We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason. We cannot process diseased, dead, or dying animals, even if they have 'just' died in transit. If we find any suspect areas of meat, we will trim away any suspicious areas as directed by the USDA inspector.. Any abuse of animals will not be tolerated. Abuse includes kicking, carrying the animals in unnatural positions, overcrowding, starvation, or indifference to suffering.