[rawfeeding] Re: "Yellow" chicken vs. "white" chicken.

Liz wrote:

>So I got myself over to the local cheap meat store finally
>(Chicago-area people take note ... if you haven't discovered Peoria
>Packing Butcher shop yet, do so soon!)

OMG!!!!!!! This is the first I heard of Peoria Packing!
Photos:
>http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=23813
And a photo of Liz?
>http://www.yelp.com/biz/k9LEfdBUtb8BjqP07KP-7w

I was going to check out Grant Park Packing when my freezer ran low:
>http://www.grantparkpacking.com/
have you checked it out yet?

Gotta let the folks on BARFingChicago know about this place!

>It's all self-service, you put some gloves on and help yourself off
>the ice tables. They had both "yellow" Purdue chicken pieces and
>"white" chicken pieces. I've seen these different "colors" of chicken
>before at my local Mexican grocery store. The chicken has a yellowish
>tinge to it. I wondered if it was some seasoning or something? On the
>whole "yellow" chickens was a Purdue label and I read it but it didn't
>indicate that they'd been enhanced or anything. Any ideas on the
>difference? I bought the "white" chicken because it definitely looked
>un-messed-with. I really don't want to feed the pup anything that's
>been souped up with some kind of seasoning.

"A chicken's skin color comes from the diet it was fed and the same bird
could have a white skin or a yellow skin, depending on what it ate. The diet
that produces a yellow skin is more expensive than the usual diet, but the
people at Perdue Farms feel it's worth it because a yellow skin color is one
of the fastest ways Frank's inspectors have of finding and disqualifying an
inferior bird. If a bird is sick or off its feed, it doesn't absorb
nutrients well and won't develop the rich golden color that is characteristic
of Perdue birds. Also, if part of a bird's outer skin is "barked", that is,
rubbed off due to rough handling during processing, the Perdue inspectors can
detect it more easily than with a white-skinned bird. Detecting and removing
and chicken with a barked skin is important because damaged skin shortens the
shelf life and dries out and toughens the meat. No white colored chickens
get by the [Perdue] inspectors. "
>http://cookingtips.cookingcache.com/cooking-chicken/chicken-skin-color.html

"Chickens are marketed with either yellow or white skin depending on the
market. California is generally a yellow skin market, but it is becoming more
mixed. Yellow-skinned chickens generally command a premium over white-skinned
chickens. In California, yellow skin is associated with higher quality. In a
general sense, this is true.

Yellow skin comes from lower processing temperatures and from the chicken's
diet. Corn produces yellow skin. Some Out-of-State chicken producers feed
chickens marigold seeds to create yellow skin. [Lora's note: see below where
Perdue admits to it themselves!] Chickens that are washed in higher
temperatures are more easily defeathered by machine. In order to retain
yellow skin, lower temperatures and more labor is required. Lower
temperatures help retard bacterial growth and let the chicken's skin retain
its natural protection against germ inoculation. This helps shelf life.

There are certain advantages to white skin, however. White skin will hold
batter better, get crispier faster and has less calories than yellow skin."

Read more on this site to break your heart about what "free-range" means.
>http://www.modestofood.com/resources/marketing.htm

"All breeds of chicken grown in the United States naturally have yellow skin,
but it must be maintained through a healthy diet and careful handling. We
feed our chickens the finest natural grain products, including yellow corn,
marigolds, soybean meal, vitamins and mineral supplements to help maintain
their natural yellow skin color. Golden yellow skin is your assurance of a
healthy and well-fed Perdue chicken."
>http://www.perdue.com/util/faq.html#yellow

Lora
Evanston, IL

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