A Funny Thing Happened at the Fair
A couple of years ago, I was invited to speak at the Mother Earth News Fair in Topeka, Kansas. I gave my talk about “How to Grow Half of Your Own Food in an Hour a Day.” The talk was really great and several people in the audience came up to me afterward to tell me how excited they were about starting to grow some of their own food and medicine.
I just love that energy when someone gets excited about working toward real food independence!
After my talk was over, I was walking around the aisles at the fair and chatting with all of the people there. There were some pretty cool products on display—heritage crafts and folk art, these awesome modular livestock fodder systems, local organic seed companies . . . you name it.
If it’s about sustainable living or traditional organic foods, it was there.
So I was walking around, taking in the sites and soaking up as much info as I could retain, when I had a chance encounter that I want to tell you about . . .
Read more: Grow Your Own Chicken Feed the Easy Way
Strangers in the Crowd
This encounter didn’t exactly start out on a positive note.
To tell you the truth, we were in each others’ way. I was trying to round the corner on a crowded aisle, and I had identified a tiny little narrow pathway where I could just squeeze through.
But about halfway through, I realized that there was someone else coming from the other direction who was also trying to squeeze through the same narrow opening in the crowd.
We met in the middle and started trying to shimmy around each other, but the space was too tight. We were stuck there together, caught in the crowd face to face, and neither of us could get to where we were trying to go.
We were both a little embarrassed, and we both gave each other a slightly sheepish smile when our eyes finally met.
“It’s pretty crowded today,” I said, in an attempt to break the ice and relieve the awkward vibe that was going on.
“Yeah,” she said, “I can’t believe how many people came out.”
The crowd started to thin around us, but we had already struck up a conversation, so I decided to stick with it. “I’m Marjory Wildcraft. I just did a presentation over there at the stage in the back corner. Did you see it?”
“No, I’ve been in the booth all morning long,” she said. As she spoke, she pointed to a big booth across the aisle.
I had to do a double take, because the booth she pointed to had a huge logo on the banner that I recognized instantly. It was the infamous red-and-white checkerboard of Purina.
Read more: Ferment Your Feed for Happier and Healthier Chickens
A Fox in the Hen House?
I was a little bit shocked . . . .
There I was, surrounded by all of the latest and greatest products in the organic, sustainable, traditional living marketplace.
Purina was one name I definitely had not expected to see in this crowd.
I looked around a little bit to see if maybe she had pointed at the wrong booth.
And that’s when I noticed her name tag.
There it was, right in front of me the whole time—that same red-and-white checkerboard right above her name, “Jodi.” I tried not to be rude, but I simply had to ask…
“What are you doing here?”
“Excuse me?”
“I’m sorry,” I said, trying to take a step backward in the conversation. “I, uh, I’m surprised to see that Purina is here at the Mother Earth News Fair.”
“Oh. Ha, ha, yeah, a lot of people have said that to me today.” She smiled, and I knew that she wasn’t too offended by my surprise.
Read more: Are You Prepared for Peak Chicken?
Making a New Friendship
When Jodi laughed, we both relaxed. I could tell that she was used to getting responses like mine, and she could tell that I was happy I hadn’t offended her.
But I still had to know. I gave Jodi a gentle smile and took a second try at asking the same question . . . .
“So, really, what are you doing here?”
Jodi explained that Purina sees a lot of value in small-scale family farms. They recognize that homesteading is a growing movement; they think it’s important; and they want to make sure that they’re listening to those customers about what they need and want from the products they buy to feed their animals.
“Huh,” I said, still a little surprised. I was trying to tread lightly so I wouldn’t offend her again. “Have you gotten a pretty good response from the people here?”
Jodi lit up, “We have! We’re just here to listen to people, and I think that people really appreciate that.”
“I see,” I said.
My first instinct had been that the people at this fair would be somewhat hostile toward a company like Purina. But for a company like Purina to show up at a Mother Earth News Fair, just to listen to the people . . . well . . . you can’t really get too upset about that.
I looked over at her booth again, and sure enough, it didn’t look like they were trying to sell any products that day. I noticed that there was a small group of homesteader-type families standing around and talking to the Purina representatives, who were listening intently to what the people had to say.
All of a sudden it started to make sense to me.
“What are people saying to you?” I asked.
Jodi thought it over for a second and then replied, “Organic.”
Is Organic Enough?
We talked for a while longer. Jodi explained that she had talked to lots of people with lots of opinions. Some of the people at the fair already purchased Purina feed regularly from their local farm supply stores. Others, like me, were just surprised to see Purina there at all.
But, one common thread that she heard a lot that day was that people want to give their chickens organic feed. It was a big deal.
And Jodi explained that Purina was already working hard to get a line of organic chicken feeds out on the market. It wasn’t a small task for them—they had to source all new suppliers, create a new production process, and find new distributors who were willing to stock the product.
I could see that Jodi knew all of the ins and outs of the project, and it sounded to me like Purina was serious about creating this new line of organic chicken feeds.
But still, even as Jodi was speaking, my mind kept wondering off. I was thinking about the Purina company that I already knew. The Purina company that supplies food to all of those big industrial chicken farms . . . . The Purina that formulated chemical changes in animal food to make eggs come out bigger and make hogs grow faster . . . . The Purina that has been passed around over the years—owned and operated by huge global conglomerates like BP, Koch Industries, and Nestle . . . . The Purina that has been blamed for poisoning thousands of cats and dogs with low-quality pet foods…
I was pretty confused.
Read more: Would You Eat Chicken-less Eggs?
The Benefit of the Doubt
After we had talked for a few minutes, I decided to give Jodi the benefit of the doubt.
“Well, I’m impressed that you’re here listening to people. And I’ll tell you what . . . If you ever get that organic chicken feed on the market, I’m going to buy a bag of it.”
Jodi laughed, “Oh, I hope you will!”
We parted ways, and I kept walking to take in the rest of the fair.
To tell you the truth, I didn’t even think about it again for the next few years. That is, until I bumped into Jodi again at the Mother Earth News Fair in Texas this past spring. This time, I was lucky enough to have Anthony—the Grow Network’s videographer—there with me:
I’m A Woman of My Word
Well, I’ve never been one to break a promise. After we shot this video, I asked Jodi where I could find Purina’s new organic chicken feed, so that I could buy a bag and let my chickens try it.
She said that my local farm supply should have it—if it wasn’t there, I should just wait a month or two and try again. Sure enough, I found it in stock at my local store.
I have been raising a big flock of meat birds for a project we’re working on for The Grow Network this summer. I gave this food to those chickens for a couple of weeks, as a test. Come to think of it, it wasn’t much of a test. I think these chickens would have eaten anything. But they did seem to like the organic Purina feed. They ate the whole bag and I didn’t notice any changes in their health or behavior while they were eating it.
But I’m dying to know. . . .
Would you buy organic chicken feed from Purina?
Some of the people I’ve talked to swear that they’d never touch anything made by Purina. Other people don’t have a problem with it, and they say their decision would just be made based on the price.
So, what do you think? Is Purina’s organic chicken feed good or evil? Drop a comment down below to let me know what you think…
(This post is an updated version of an article originally published on August 9, 2016.)
COMMENTS(185)
Yes, I go out of my way to find organic feed. Why feed GMO and eat HIM eggs. No point in having. Chickens then
I’m actually surprised that so many people said that they would consider buying from Purina. If their parent company is Nestle, then everyone’s answer should be a resounding NO. Nestle is a Nazi Corporation with a long track record of abominable actions. Buying food from them would be no different than buying seeds from Monsanto, or medicine from Bayer. For those of you who mentioned price as being the deciding factor as to whether or not you would buy from Purina, you need to open your eyes, because you are being deceived. That type of mentality will lead you straight to Wal-Mart and fast food companies for food. Need I remind people that Several Corporations with Nazi ties are all in the bottling water business? Coke, Pepsi, Nestle, etc… and even the knock off brands of bottled water are owned by these Corporations. Did you that Nestle owned Ozarka brand?
Open your eyes people and quit being so naive. These companies are all run by Globalists who fully support Depopulation agendas, so WHY would you ever buy food from them?
Word…
Ray, when you stereotype people like that, you negate any point you are trying to make. Conspiracy theories aside (Nazi corporations lol?), price is an important consideration for my family. We live on a farm and must watch what we spend. That does not lead us to WalMart or McDonald’s, etc. I cook from scratch, we garden and buy local and not deceived or naive. We are careful stewards of what we have, not mindless idiots. Points of view generally come across better w/o personal attacks.
I buy organic feed from Nature’s Best or Blue Seal for my 60 free-range broilers and 4 freezer pigs. I trust the USDA organic seal. If quality is equivalent, I go with the lowest price. However, my supplier is already short on space so I question whether he has room to add another line of organic livestock feed.
Always and never are dangerous words. That said, Purina is not my first choice in ways to feed my chickens. Like any feed company, I would find out where they are sourcing their ingredients and what are their choice of ingredients are, either by reading the label or calling the company. If I could find something similarly priced that was more locally produced and not much more expensive, the 2nd company would be my first choice.
I would probably tend to support smaller producers, but sometimes organic feed is hard to find where I live, so I buy what I can. If Purina is producing a certified organic product, sure I’d buy it if it competes with the organic brand(s) I already purchase. As larger companies begin to offer organic products, it accelerates the value of organics in general. More farmers are needed to grow organic products, more land goes back to sustainable practices.
No I would not, they have had issues with their regular feed in the past and the fact its owned by nestle the corporation that has stolen water from Californians and the CEO has stated publicly that water is not a human right. Who in their right mind would back a company that could careless. The only reason they are going organic is because people are waking up and they can’t bare the thought of losing huge profits.
I agree
I would NOT support Purina in ANY WAY. Nestle is pure evil, full in on depopulation and other evil endeavors as well as gmo and making money at ANY cost to humanity. They are simple going to offering an organic product just to keep in the money stream.
I did not know Purina was owned by Nestle but now that I do, I will never buy another product from them again, no matter the price. Nestle is evil. Profits at any cost. Let their food rot in the plastic bags it’s shipped in. We have a somewhat local feed that is non-gmo that I use. I’d love to grow my own. That being said, I’d feed my chickens steak before I’d feed them a Nestle product. Nestle is the most destructive company on our planet right in there with Monsanto.
You hit the nail straight on the head. Nestle is bad news any way you look at it.
Thank you Patty. These are facts Patty has stated about the Purina company, and I can’t see supporting them whatsoever.
Hello. Yes, I would like to buy Organic Feed from Purina. If the product line proves to be honest and lives up to its labeling and marketing promises, then it deserves a fair shake. I would like it to come in 2 formats: pellets & crumbles, and in multiple formulas: chicks, laying hens, scratch, extra high protein content (to help grow new feathers during molting or to overcome other stressors), etc. My backyard flock would benefit nicely from eating a healthy organic feed and I would like to raise the quality bar on my current egg production to a higher level by growing true organic eggs to give to my family, friends, and neighbors. I appreciate that Purina has entered the organic market and that they are talking with people and listening to what they want. I will be looking for Purina Organic Chicken Feed and Supplementation products next time I go to the feed store. Thank you! 🙂
Sounds like someone who works for Purina. The comment is too precise.
Hi Timothy! You made me chuckle when I read your comment that it sounds like I work for Purina! No, I’m just a suburban back yard chicken gal who runs a small software development company — Code that’s Made in the USA with Pride like my eggs! My little ladies are my friends, they help me to feel more grounded in this world; having lovely eggs, which I give away, offers me a reason to reach out to people and make new friends. If Purina has made some mistakes in the past, it sure seems likely that they’d want to fix things and maybe by offering an organic line of Chicken feed, it would be a good thing towards that goal; maybe they’d even get into organic feed for other animals, such as horses… for now, producing Organic Eggs is the next step for me. I do not like GMO products and seek to get away from that. Thanks so much to Marjory Wildcraft and her colleagues with their excellent and educational work regarding sustainable living, growing our own food, natural healing methods, living off-grid, etc. I would like to someday live somewhat sustainably on a nice little farm somewhere with a never-failing spring – not too far out, but far enough to escape the cacophony of man, see the stars at night, enjoy the company of my animal friends, and grow at least some of my own food. OK, so I’ve drifted a bit off-topic here, but coming back to Purina’s Organic chicken feed, if their labels and ingredients are satisfactory and some independent tests prove the absence of bad stuff like GMO, pesticides, etc., why not give them a try? Much thanks to this community here and the passionate posts that lead to so much sharing, discovery, and learning! Here’s to a great new year coming up in 2017 and blessings to all! 🙂
That’s what I was thinking! Sounds “canned”.
I cannot think of a reason to leave the company that I have trusted and has been committed to things I believe for years to buy a product from one that has belittled my beliefs. Purina has a LONG way to go to earn my trust and money.
I would not buy anything from Purina until it could be independently verified that there were no pesticides, herbicides or GMO, or any other contaminants in their feed. It’s sort of like trusting the NAZI’s to provide safe showers in Auschwitz. How could you ever trust them to do what’s right after they’ve knowingly done so much wrong – and for decades!
I resent paying more for something i don’t get. (Chemical sprays and fertilizer other than that i have no objection. I don’t believe higher prices for the name “Organic” are justified and just another rip off by corporations. Just my opinion.
In my opinion commercially processed food, whether it be for human, critter, or soil consumption is not something I want. It may be convenient and economic, but it isn’t for me. If you already purchase a mass produced type poultry feed and you decide to go organic, I do think you are making a smart choice.
NO! I would never buy anything from Purina. Even if it was organic! Can they really be trusted? Kinda like “Monsanto-owned” companies buying up all the organic companies. It is the fox in the hen house! I don’t believe any one should support Purina or the likes of them. How can we win the battle against GMO’s if we are fueling the enemy by buying their “organic” products! They aren’t stupid, they know exactly what they are doing! Hence the reason for those basing their decision to buy solely on price. They will be lower to undercut the competitor! The real Organic company, trying to do a good thing by providing true organic feed.
Source as local as you can and know your farmer that grows your grains if possible!!
Would not buy any Purina organic chicken feed. They are owned by Koch Industries which has helped defeat GMO labeling and changed what can be put in organic food for USDA certification (for example carrageenan which is not good for people or pets and I would assume chickens).
Marjorie,
Purina is the “Monsanto” of feed suppliers. I don’t trust any of their products. I just had ANOTHER friend almost lose a young dog to kidney failure. Of course, he uses Purina. They use ingredients that they KNOW are harmful. They aren’t illegal, but they are harmful. Even IF they come out with an “organic” chicken feed, my girls won’t be seeing any of it. To support them in ANY way allows them to continue with their other divisions.
We have to draw a line somewhere and Purina is a big, wide line around here.
“Would I Buy From Purina?” If it’s actually chem & synth. fert. free then yes probably if the price is right. I am currently buying organic feed for triple the price of GM feed but it still has soy (spit spit spit) in it. So grow it truly organic and sub in some peas or lentils for the soy please.
If it’s organic…
And the price is right, then yes.
I have a hard time finding organic feed and it’s very expensive when I do, so I’d be pleased to have it more accessible!
wouldn’t even consider it unless and until it’s cleared through Mike Adam’s Natural News lab…then we’ll talk
It would depend when they purchase their ingredients. I would want the feed to be American grown if possible. I don’t trust feed that comes from China since it was responsible for killing our dog. I am leery about Purina. If my memory serves me right they were partially responsible for the PBB poisoning of Michigan in the 1970’s. I could be wrong, but I thought at the time there was a 60 minute special about it and when they knew about the poisoning and why it took them over a year to tell farmers. If anyone knows for sure please correct me.
I would not buy any product from Purina. They are late to the party have very predatory business and pricing practices. Those who came early, did the work, and invested in the organic market deserve your business. Buying their product might save you some change and make you a good little capitalist, but you are participating in the eventual demise of the that really listened to you, not the ones pretending to listen now to protect their profits. No thank you.
I have always bought certified organic feed for my chickens and feed soy free which has not been available locally until recently . I had to drive out of state to buy it. I now buy local, soy free transitional feed from a young farmer buying out his dads farm 40 acres at a time and grinding the feed himself. I also buy his transitional grain. It is more affordable and very fresh as well as supports local farmers switching to organic .:)Sharon
since i am not in the market to buy any chicken feed (yet!) it is easy to say NO. However, i much prefer to get local any thing, including chicken feed. I just do not trust those big companies. I am with Sharon’s comment: support local small farmers!
All animals, including humans, are healthier if their diet is varied. The more varied the better.
If the Purina feed was the only thing given to your chickens over a long period of time I believe you’d be asking for trouble. If you feed your chickens the same feed all of their lives, perhaps even over multiple generations, then you are definitely going to have problems.
The Purina feed may be ok to use as part of their diet but I doubt if you’d want to use it as 100% of their dietary intake.
Chickens love worms, maggots, insects etc. but they prefer FRESH!
I buy my organic chicken feed locally by the ton and know exactly what is put into it. Local farm that grows all their own grain and grinds it on site. I would not trust purina until they had it tested and certified organic. At that point I would compare prices. The organic I buy is less expensive than commercial feed that is GMOed. So why switch. I’m sure that purina’s will be much more expensive. The organic grains at the commercial store is almost double the cost of GMO grain.
I’m very fortunate to be in easy driving distance to Modesto Milling, a 100% organic feed mill which supplies organic feeds for local livestock growers. Bigger isn’t better, but it is not necessarily worse, either. If I didn’t have a great supplier close by I would likely give Purina a try.
Purina? I don’t know. Hard to get excited about it. The question….good or evil? How would I know for sure either way? What can I say? Would that price wasn’t important,but it is for us. We used organic feed for 10 chickens a few years ago. The cost was around $100/month. When the chickens wouldn’t stop eating their eggs,they went to camp.
Are you still okay with Purina,Marjory? Are you switching to something else? I want to get more chickens in the spring…or at least I did until you got me considering ducks. Do ducks need a totally different feed? Obviously we need to know more than we do right now.
No, I wouldn’t trust Purina. I buy Scratch and Peck Organic, No soy, No Corn, and it’s mostly grain. That photo of Purina looks like a lot of sawdust. The big corporations such as Purina are going where the profits are, but the quality is not as good because they still cut-corners for profit. Nestle bought NutriBiotic, too, but the NutriBiotic Grapefruit Seed Extract has changed and no longer says “Organic”. I say watch out, and buy from the smaller companies with ingredients fact-checked, especially if they are local.
I’m all about supporting local farmers, as a matter of fact my wife and I just bought 18 acres to turn into a small scale organic farm. That being said there aren’t any local farmers that sell feed and most of the corn around here (Notheast Ohio) is GMO.
We got our 25 chickens back in May and our local Tractor Supply Company didn’t offer any organ starter crumbles…fortunately a new store called Family Farm & Home had just opened across the street. When I went there they offered one brand of organic feed and to my surprise it just so happened to be Purina.
I bought it and have been feeding it to them every since. They seem to love it and me and my wife are pleased to know that our chickens are being fed a healthy diet and in turn we will be enjoying healthy eggs.
Evil. No way I will ever support anything Purina has its money grubbing mitts involved with. They are a profit only based Corp and the only reason they’re trying to horn in on the organic market is to keep their profits going, not because they give a crap about animals or the people who care for them!
Not to put too fine a point on it, lol
I do support the movement away from chemically grown anything, but I also need to know that the feed is free of soy. Believe it or not, the feed affects the composition of the eggs — I get terrible allergic reactions to commercial organic eggs, but not to eggs from the free range chickens my friend grows.
No offense to the woman trying to do her job, but I purposely avoid Purina and other mainstream companies. They have a lot to prove to me and it would take a significant event to change my mind. Thanks.
I would not purchase it b/c it is not soy free. Purina organic feed is @ my local feed store. I contemplated seriously buying it b/c I now purchase my feed online which in turn has to be shipped to me. Buying feed from my local store would be so much easier. I spent a good 10 minutes reading every ingredient in Purina’s line of poultry feed products including organic…they don’t make any feed organic or non-organic without soy. I refuse to feed my chickens or my family soy!
Pay / know the local farmer or pay the Doctor for meds. Hopefully your local feed is as natural as possible. Certified organic can be a crock- we know certified organic farmers that buy straw from a farmer that sprays. How’s that??????
Then down the road is a guy growing organic, but cannot the certification. He doesn’t buy that straw.
I believe nutrient density is key, but how do we test that easily? If nutrients are high enough, they can overpower any negative input. Is that true?
It’s law to fumigate all those grains that are stored no matter how they were grown. gROAN.! Pun intended.
Sigh.
If I am NOT buying your dog and cat food for obvious reasons…why would I buy your chicken food .Either the company is legit all the way across the board or it is not…I would not ever purchase nor trust a company that supports both sides …. Hippocrates
I may have to consider it. In Central NY my options are narrowing. I ended up with 2 unplanned roos with the 14 hens and would like to keep them. I can’t find an organic all flock mix. Its either starter or layer. And stores are not stocking much starter this time of year. So to answer the question, I might…..but not tickled about it.
I also had three dear Pomeranians die prematurely from eating Jerky Treats from China through Wal Mart in Michigan. I worked on a farm that used waste water to irrigate their corn and soybeans, it just so happened that very high levels of lead and cadmium were found in this produce, after that became public knowledge sales fell significantly except for Purina, their grain trucks made regular pickups, I loaded many of them myself. The county health department director was Dr. Anita Harold, she tried to perform damage control by stating in the newspaper that the lead in the corn stayed in the stalks and never made it into the corn itself….I never trusted her and I would never trust Purina, beware!
The only time I fed Purina was to my parrot…he died. I sent his body for a necropsy and they said he died of starvation–even though his bowl was empty every day!
This was 30 years ago and I still shy away from this brand!
I drive two hours out of state to buy our feed…soy free, organic, GMO free. Nope, if it has soy, I’m not buying it. If they got rid of the soy, I’d think about, but I still prefer to buy from small companies or farms than corporate conglomerates.
I’m glad to see Purina is starting to offer organic feed, however what about all that other pet food that is not so healthy for our pets? The bottom line is they want to make money and are probably not so concerned about pet health and our environment. Anyway, I guess I’d give them a gold star for starting to go in that direction.
Absolutely. We don’t all have “local small” suppliers, so when a huge company like Purina offers organic, it’s reason to celebrate!
I understand where the majority or previous posters are coming from, but I wanted to post why I have bought this feed for my girls and will continue to until I can find an alternative. We just got the chics this April, and after planning and saving to finally own our home for a decade so we can have a mini urban Perma farm, we are just happy something exists in our budget range that is organic. Getting started with chickens and small scale farming is costly and time consuming, both of which are in short supply at my home ( I have a 2 month old and a 5 year old). A lot can be said about trusting corporations and if they’re using organic ingredients, but at this point I just need to get started…and when I have more time in the near future I’m going to implement some of Justin Rhodes Permaculture chickens methodology here and I would love to find a local source of feed. I planted 5 fruits trees, set up raised beds, and moved into a new house while incredibly pregnant and now it’s up to clearing land and setting up hugelculture beds for seasons to come. It’s a lot of work, and we wouldn’t have been able to start with the chickens without the Purina easy fix of being able to go to the feed store and pick up their food. We love our chickens and they fit into our goal of having a self-sustaining food system. All my best to chicken owners out there.
Unlikely to purchase from Purina or any other corporate vendor. Profit is the bottom line. It would either be too expensive or they would be cheating on the ingredients in one form or another. I’d rather raise my own or get it from a local trusted source.
No, I would not trust a corporation to be toxin free.
I buy Texas grown non-corn, non-soy, non-GMO chicken crumbles. I prefer to buy from a Texas company.
I’m in Texas also, but it’s a big place. Where do you buy your feed? I can’t find it.
Trusting Purine is like an American Indian trusting the government in the 1800’s.
Would you buy heirloom seeds from Monsanto?
I use it seems fine. Im very happy to find organic feed locally. I buy local organic corn from a neighbor also. Cows, goats, chickens, turkeys, guineas n ducks …even my GP dog loves but not the corn lol. I saw several comments about soy, dont mean to be so ignorant but what is so wrong with organic soy? Just curious, Im just a small time hobby farmer.
I tried organic starter crumbles and laying pellets.
We can only buy them by the 50 lb bag at twice the price plus of regular feed.
$17 vs $32 for non soy, no corn.
Look at the percentage of GMO corn grown in the USA.
My chickens will only eat it as a very last resort.
Even chicks on starter crumbles would only eat them wet.
I gave the majority of the bag to my nephew to feed to his girls.
They have not been able to develop an opinion on food.
Mine like deluxe bird seed mix. They pick through it depending on their needs.
That changes according to the time and if they are laying an egg that day.
Broody hens ate certain things and picked out what to feed their chicks.
They also have garden bug time, always have veggies, fruit, grit, oyster shell.
At some point when they have picked through what they want of the grain/seeds.
That is when I add water and let it sour and sprout.
Cooked rice, quinoa, oatmeal, cornmeal, popcorn are all favourites.
I have learned that things like amaranth, kale and broccoli leaves,
They eat them fresh, then like to let them dry to crispy before eating.
So all the plants I save seeds from, I toss down for them to enjoy for a week.
Sunflower seeds are a favorite treat, and we have a hen that jumps up for berries.
Goji, blueberries, honey berries, blackberries, jostas, grapes, carrots, currents… Are all fair game.
They like meat, bacon, scrambled eggs, tomatoes, ice cream but nothing all that spicy.
The thing with chickens and with all birds is they taste a tiny amount when faced with something new.
Then if that goes through their system without making them sick, they try a little more.
The third or fourth try, they clean the bowl.
But those organic laying pellets? Yuck…
Only as a last thing when there is nothing else to crop fill at night…
The idiot that said that chickens have no taste buds…
Is either clueless or didn’t want to share his sandwich.
Great question, Marjorie! Big question also.
We live at around Lat. 47 and have been puzzling out how to sustainably feed a flock of poultry on land that is hilly, rocky and generously supplied with predators. We are nibbling away at permaculture strategies while setting up our homestead. The feed mills will truck in grain and produce their own blends, even make a custom blend for a higher price, but organic grain does not make it onto the menu. Purina is insightful for seeing a significant market in the urban chicken and jomesteader movements. Can anyone tell me why soy is still being proudly advertised in so many formulas? Is soy feed a tenet of old ag science that has yet to be busted on the level of major livestock farmers?
Beware these companies are not going true organic they are merely trying to get into the market I work for one & have for years ! There is no way any of their plants could run organic it is a joke if they say otherwise ! I have seen way to much over the years to even consider LandoLakes / Purina as a source for Organic anything !
Nope, not on you life.
Because of their past history I will not buy Purina. I will not buy Nutrina either. I really try to buy my own grains and mix them. That way I know what is in them. If something says: so much protein, I want to know where that protein came from. If I buy corn and oats and barley I know exactly what it is. I also don’t trust them to actually use what they say is on the label. They are big business. Organic just means they can get more money out of us.
Let’s just say they would have to EARN my trust before I bought feed from them. Right now, I buy from a local feed mill owned by an Amish family. They source organic grains and I can chat with them about their feed when I go to their farm to buy chicken and beef. They use their own feed and eat the animals fed on that grain and I notice their health seems to be excellent.
My choice is to purchase grain from a local source I trust but also to continue to feed my chickens as much from my garden/yard/kitchen as possible.
Purina – not a name I trust but I won’t say they could never be trusted. It’s just that it would be very difficult to “trust but verify” when dealing with a large corporation.
Hi Marjorie,
I have bought Purina organic chicken feed when I did not have another choice and I probably would again if things change as far as being able to buy what I really want for my birds…. I prefer non-gmo and that is a reason for me not to buy Purina….
I’ve had dogs all my life. Always fed them Purina and the like. All my dogs died of cancer in one form or another. My eight year old german shepherd was going down hill and I changed to Blue Buffalo. He’s ten now and in better shape now than he was two years ago when I started the change. The transformation was dramatic. He stopped scratching his ears, his fur improved, his joints improved, his energy level improved, and he is now the oldest dog I’ve ever had. Animal feed is no different than the pesticide, herbicide, GMO laden toxic food supplied to humans. You must search for organic non GMO foods or die earlier than you could have if you embrace the search. But as George Orwell said, “During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.” Or as reported in the gospel, “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.”
RIchard, thank you so much for your story. I have a huge useless house cat that we got half grown. She was addicted to Purina and I have never been able to break her from it. She is not healthy by any means and I expect her life will be much shorter than the cats I grew up with. My new barn kitty is only getting wild meats (I sometimes hunt gopher or mice for her since she is still a kitten) and other good things like butchering scraps from my own birds.
No, I buy my chicken feed from our local Amish community who grow non GMO locally grown feeds, that they mix themselves. Our chickens are very healthy, lay year round, (we live near the 45th parallel).
We recently had someone dump a mother cat near our farm with 3 kittens, I did buy a large bag of Purina kitten food to feed them, thinking we would feed them cheap food, as we would not keep any of the cats…oh my gosh, our garage smelled like an animal died in there!!! I immediately changed their food and fed them all the same food that I feed our 2 house cats (Nutri-Source Country Select Entree) which has no by-products at all! They are all living in the house, spayed/neutered recently, vaccinated and awaiting new homes. No, I will not buy, nor recommend feeding Purina feeds, organic or not!
Thank you Deanna.
Absolutely not to be trusted!!
Thank you SUsan. Your voice does matter to me!
I have seen the Purina at my store along with a local organic feed company. I choose to buy from a local mill whose entire line of feed for all animals is organic. I would not purchase Purina. I don’t support older companies who enter a market they earlier may have tried to destroy. I follow that same thought into my grocery store. I don’t trust the corporations to really respect organic or the organic movement.
Yes, Lou Ann, we have seen the big companies moving into organics, lowering the quality, and basically pushing out the sincere local folks.
I would not purchase anything from Purina until they made all their products safe! They are still selling the poison to uneducated pet owners.
Yes, I hear you Mary. Thanks for writing in.
I would look at Purina’s intent for selling organic feed. Is it for the benefit of the chickens – because they truly care about the quality of their feed, or some other reason? If you look at their other feed and their history, I’d bet on it being for some other reason. To quote Jonah, “Intent is the building block to the outcome.”
I have no doubt that Jodi’s intent is pure. But large companies often keep their employees in the dark.
Hi Sharon, yes I got the sense the Jodi truly cared. When I first met her and complained about Purina being full on stuff I would never feed my birds she asked me if I would say that on video. I did, and she took that to her management. Then a few years later I see they have an organic line. It’s a start. It’s a huge corporation that is mostly selling feeds that are toxic, but change has to start somewhere…. This is a small step. Is it purely for marketing because they know everyone likes organics, or do they really care about the birds? Probably the marketing. But I definitely got the sense that Jodi cared.
The same people own the organic side of Purina that have fed our animals toxic ingredients. The answer is the same as ‘Should I buy Roundup to kill weeds in my yard?’
NO.
Hi Frank, that’s a good point.
The only reason companies like Purina are getting into organic is because they are loosing market share of sales. However, I would never ever trust them.
Many organic brands have been purchased by big corporations and then polluted and or changed from the original contents.
I don’t even trust the label USDA organic anymore because the department of agricultre is so corrupt, that label means virtually nothing.
Whew, yup.
No. I don’t feed any commercial, processed feed and don’t plan to.
I still purchase ingredients by the 50 lb bag from the local feed mill (organic) and make my own mix along with Fertrell Nutribalancer for organic (not synthetic). My birds get to range and eat “animal protein” from bugs and any other item they can catch such as mice, etc. They are not vegetarians and need to have animal/bug sources of protein. It’s my goal that any animal I own be fed a “species appropriate” diet.
The “by-products” used – no mater if organic or not – are not a good food choice for any animal. Additionally, given a choice, chickens will not eat soy or legume seeds in general. My goal has been to provide a completely legume-seed free feed at the most reasonable price.
Since I’m going to eat their eggs or meat, giving them something that is as “species appropriate” ad I can is a top priority.
Hi SS, thank you. BTW< I am hoping to line up a speaker for our next Summit on grwoing insects on small farms as feed for chickens. That is the natural diet.
Purina is a corporation which means that corporate law regulates them more than morality. Corporations do anything within law to make money because they have to for the stock holders but that puts an ethical strain on our economy. All businesses start to provide a service or product service and as they grow into a corporation the service is forced into the back seat over the income. I buy local, Amish, all natural, is I can not grow it I try to find a farmer to buy direct from because that way I pay one person, not the overhead that is associated with corporations. Corporations also lobby to change law that hurts the littel guys (competition). So, Purina can keep its wares because I will not support corporations because they ruin what is good, what is pure, and what is lovely. The solution to pollution (environmentally and ethically) is dilution. Many small parts are better and safer for all within a free economy rather than 5 big corporations in a socialistic system.
Yes… thank you PWDB
I would never trust Purina to put out a pure organic food for any animal.
Thank you Alysa.
No, please do not trust Purina or for that matter Nutrena either. I have never until tonight felt the need to add my two cents worth on a comment board. But, I have been involved in the feed industry for over 35 years and have at one time or another carried both Purina and Nutrena feeds. I have watched as Purina has been bought and sold by at least five different corporations. It seems to me that with each purchase that Purina’s quality spiraled down. Now Tractor Supply buys over 30% of the feeds that Purina mills. The only way a big box store can sell a product is on price. TSC is forcing Purina to lower the quality of their feed in order to lower the price. By the way that beautiful full color bag that is the back drop to your picture cost close to three dollars to print. Add the cost of the bag, advertising, layer after layer of management, salesmen, trucking and it does not take long to realize that very little money is put into the feed itself.
As for Nutrena their feed representative told me several months ago that no mill can get enough non-GMO corn to make large quantities of non-GMO feed. The term organic means next to nothing to my knowledge no government agency is actually testing whether the claims on the bag are true. Here in Louisiana the only tests the state performs is to verify that the protein, fat, and fiber claims listed on the feed tag are accurate. Information that by the way is virtually useless unless the consumer is also informed of the actual ingredients.
THank you so much for your comment Bob. I hear you!
I might. I will buy organic where I can find it. My only concern would be, how much of it is really organic? You can label organic with the fewest of ingredients that are organic. Just like “The Honest Company” for baby products has nothing honest and is full of all the chemicals Jessica Alba, Actress and Founder, claims she saw in other products that caused her to create her company. So what, if you slap the term “organic” because you have one organic product or if you say “All Natural” when you are talking about the Sodium Laurel Sulfate your company uses it’s ok?
Read everything – whether it is Purina or your local farmer. The rules are too loose.
wow its amazing to see all the people are so clued up about these toxic companies who cannot be trusted. If i had my way i would hit them where it hurts in the pocket and nobody would be buying their filth. We have the power to make these companies do the right thing
You are so right, Janice–our pocketbook is the only “vote” that really counts. But people have to learn what matters and how to tell quality.
Money-motivation is important to recognize. But be aware that profits MATTER and a company that is “ethical” at the cost of profits WILL BE DRIVEN OUT OF BUSINESS by finances. It is utterly essential that quality and profits coincide. This happens when consumers have enuf info to make an informed choice.
Purina has lost all credability with me over the years. I strongly doubt I would buy from them except in an extreme pinch…and maybe not even then.
A line of organic chicken feed (I don’t remember which) came to the attention of our local feed store and when he checked it out with them he found they were sourcing ingredients from different vendors. When he asked if they certify those ingredients as organic the reply was no, we take their word for it… So there is organic and there is organic.
For the record, Purina Feeds is not owned by Nestle. The pet food Purina lines are owned by Nestle. The animal feed lines are owned by Land O’ Lakes.
Potato, Potatoe. Both are GMO pushing Corporations that only care about the bottom line. They have been poisoning humans and animals for eons.
Your story reveals the strugle that corporations have. They have to listen to the consumer and suply what they want but at the same time try to maximise the profit for their owners who only care about profit and are beholden to other owners that are even more greedy. So if you are just starting out go with the effort to do the right thing for the consumer.
But this is the grow network so let us try to grow our own chicken feed. I am experementing with diferent seeds I eat myself in smal patches and diferent policultures to see what I can produce. Some of it I have pulled the chicken tractor over it to see what they like green. Quinoa is tough they ate it down to the ground in one day but it came bsck up and is starting to produce seed. What I have discovered in the last few days is they realy crave kale. I think it is the sulfer compounds that they need for the yolks.
When Paul wheaton asked whether chickens would recognise a head of wheat as food I had to tell the story of how this big bard rock rooster would bend the stalks down and hold them so the small hens could beck the kernels off.
Ya, I’d be willing to give it a try. We love Scratch and peck. But with 13 chickens we go thru a $40 bag 2x/month and with molting season happening now, less eggs and more expensive feed it is hard. I’ve resorted to buying cheaper GMO scratch. Ewww! So Ya if the price was right I would, but our local feed stores don’t carry it. :/
Theresea’s and Red Bard don’t have it. :/
I am new to small scale farming and gardening. Any large company that is jumping on the organic bandwagon is probably only in it for the money. Purina may have good intentions but they have been bought and sold a few times and the product then changes for the bottom line which is the all mighty dollar. There were many items only available in organic grocery stores–ie, Whole Foods. You now see many of those items in regular grocery stores because they have been bought out by bigger companies. One example is Kashi brand cereal. When it was exclusive to organic groceries it was tested and found to be free of pesticides and other contaminants. Now that they are in regular groceries they test positive for these things.
Jodi may be sincere but she does not run the company. I would suggest that that someone run an independent laboratory test to see if this feed is truly organic. I am not one to trust corporations that have such a dismal reputation.
I would not buy anything Purina. At all. It is a Nestle conpany (Swiss) that is trying to buy up all of the water rights in this country- to sell it back to us in bottles. So is Fiskies. And about 10 other pet foods. They also recently bought out Amy’s.they already own about 20 bottled water companies. So, no.
Maybe. Ther is a lot of _lot_ of stupid (Ignorance is curable, stupidity is not) beliefs about “GMO” foods. 1) Every hybrid is GMO. It’s only adding extra genes *indiscriminately* that is bad Adding “fish” genes to a plant, is a bad idea. Adding a gene to increase Vitamin A (already present) in rice, is not.
If you are really anti-GMO don’t buy *anything* that is hybridized (that means you will probably starve to death, because almost _all_ grains, meat, vegetables are “hybrid/GMO.”) The numbers of *unthinking* Anti-vax, anti-GMO (in any form), “if it’s organic/’natural’ it must be better,” “believers” discredits the whole attempt. “Organic” is a joke, because if it has a hydrocarbon base, it is _”organic_.” Pastured poultry can _legally_ be in pens that *look onto a pasture.* All the unthinking need, is the _word_ “organic,” to pay more. Buying “Certified Organic, or pastured products,” is too much work. People like you that do the real thing, unless you *educate* the ignorant, just feed the unthinking stupidity.
Find out what “genes were modified, and with what,” before you criticize. Just like the unthinking “DDT is bad, ban it” that kills *thousands* of Africans every year. Overuse is “bad,” just as overuse of Roundup (and it’s equivalent) where it doesn’t belong, forces other to buy “Round up ready seeds.” Want to change the bad problems, educate yourself, and break the “magic bullet” idiocy.
“No-Till” in any form is better, and often actually cheaper. There is too much “we always did it that way,” “Advertiser/sales person said it’s better, so I’ll do it” thoughtlessness out there. Don’t feed it by repeating unthinking criticisms. _Investigate_ and spread the knowledge. instead of the nonsense.
*If Purina/any other Co. produces a real “Organic feed (no pesticides used, no antibiotics added, etc.) feed, *and it’s the same price/cheaper/slightly higher than other brands,* _buy it_. It’s the *only* way to change the bad feed production. They care what _sells_, not what it is made of.
You sound like a shill for the gmo companies. First, man has been hy-breeding plants for eons. This is definitely not the same as gmo that has only started in this decade. Bombarding plants with foreign and synthetic substances, all without extensive testing to see what effect it would have on humans. See the rat tumors that resulted from testing in Russia. You are calling everyone stupid for not blindly following corporations, who have for decades lied, cheated and deceived the public, damaging human and pet health. Now we should not question them because they put an organic label on their product. At this point you sound like the stupid one. Recent testing has shown that GLYPHOSATE, BINDS MINERALS AND CUTS OFF THE PRODUCTION OF NEUROTRANSMITTERS AND HORMONES….A VISUAL CONNECTION OF THE ROUTES OF DISEASES AND CANCER (round-up) is present in close to 100 percent of all foods on the market, including vaccinations. Bt Corn produces its own poison within the kernel of corn, making it impossible to clean off.
That sir….is why more and more people are growing their own food, to get away from these corporations. Now to your last comment “No-Till” in any form is better” again a fallacy. Farmers in India after being duped into planting poisonous crops and committing suicide have gone back to the “old ways”, tilling in animal fertilizer and producing bumper crops that are once again feeding the nation. Please do some research and stop spouting the corporate line to those that are better informed than your are.
Right on Dave! The corporations are the REAL PROBLEM and now the stupid and ignorant Repugnitards HIJACKED THE ELECTION with Russia’s DISGUSTING PUTIN and INSTALLED A CORPORATION in the form of President-elect Rump. That IT, that THING, is nominating horrifyingly evil cabinet members. Talk about fox in the henhouse! These ignorant, stupid jacka$$es are heading up the very corporations they’re trying to make policy for? As billionaires from the industry they’re to be sworn in to protect?!? Highly doubtful it will turn out well in any way!!! If this frightens the H out of you too then go to Change.Org and Sign the petition asking electoral college to make Hillary president as the popular vote did.
@walter daniels: GMO plants are absolutely not like hybrids, as Farmer Dave says. There is no unnatural gene modification in hybrids – chromosomes are mixed but maintain their integrity, resulting in varieties with characteristics of the parent plants. GMOs have foreign DNA inserted into the DNA of the plants – something that could NEVER happen naturally. Get your science right before you speak please.
No, I would never buy Purina feed again. I had a horse almost die from being overfed their alfalfa pellets. Only a really unusual vet managed to save him at the last minute. After that I avoided them until their rep finally agreed to tell me what was actually in their feed beyond “grain products and grain by-products”.
That turned out to be a bad decision. I personally had 2 horses that were fed Purina Strategy for an extended period of time suddenly start dropping weight. Nothing we tried helped. They were both old and retired, but it still haunts me to this day that my feeding them that feed caused this problem.
The reason I know that is the cause is that the same year my Veterinarian had to send a young AQHA mare to Texas A&M when she suddenly started dropping weight and nothing they did helped. They never did find a way to help that mare and she was humanely euthanized.
So would I trust Purina organic chicken feed that could affect the eggs I eat? Not on your life. How do you even know if it is really organic or whether it has gmo in it. One thing we all know for a fact is that publicly traded corporations place profits above safety. They put that in writing so it is not just my opinion.
corn ,canola ‘& soy are all GMO @ Purina !
our local feed mill does carry all types of purina feed including organic.
I would only buy a bag in case of necessity.
We buy as local as possible; sometimes that’s 500 miles away instead of 5,000. We also believe that we ‘vote’ every time we spend money, so we try to vote for the most important things to us; clean and accessible water (nothing owned by Nestle, Wonderful, etc.), fair labor practices, humane animal treatment, etc. If Purina were able to meet those requirements, I’d be happy to buy their products. But, I won’t be holding my breath until then.
ORGANIC does not always determine non-GMO. Unless their plant-based ingredients are heirloom sourced, I’d say NO to Purina.
I would worry about a bait and switch like with Whole Foods who now support the dark act.
Does anyone have a ‘recipe’ they can share for making their own organic chicken feed from various items purchased from small local milling companies (if you can find them)?
Chicken feed, cars, toothpaste, it’s all the same. You develop a sense of trust and so you buy the product. You like the celebrity who is pitching the product and since you like her/his movies, you trust. Is that wise? No. However, you begin from your first purchase to see if the pitch was trustworthy. Years ago, my oldest daughter taunted me when I gave her the big “no” with “you don’t trust me!” I responded that she was 100% correct. I loved her, but trust is not love. Trust has to be earned. She had, at the tender age of 13 not earned my trust. When she earned my trust, she would be trustworthy.
So if a large company that ridicules organic methods suddenly becomes organic, should you trust the company? Well, has the company earned your trust? If not, don’t buy the product.
I would buy from Purina as long as they are not competing at our local level. The questions begs asking; If Walmart were to develop an organic chicken food would you buy from Walmart? Walmart has competed against the small stores in rural America not just the big cities. Once the small shops are gone only the big corps remain giving us less choice. I understand the lower price thing and am a supporter of the capitalist market but weigh it with the cost of less choice.
I purchase organic feed from New Country Organics, and Blue Seal. I really don’t want to support a company that is trying to make an extra dollar off of those who truly care about their animals.
The way I see it, is they see part of a market that they aren’t profiting from and just want a piece of it
I think that Purina is taking a step in the right direction, but they are not doing it for any moral reason simply what they see as a current trend. I think a large company will help individuals realize that we aren’t going anywhere and that organic is important but no I wouldn’t buy specifically from Purina unless there wasn’t any other option.
in a perfect world, I would buy organic to increase the market for organic. corporations want profit. if there is profit in organic, they’ll offer it. but, it’s not a perfect world. and too many companies adulterate their products, either intentionally or thru trusting an unscrupulous supplier. even blue buffalo got caught in the melamine scandal. apparently melamine tests as a protein, but does damage to kidneys etc when the animal eats it.
if I have a choice, I use local, organic products first, including the small percentage I can raise. if I can’t get that, and must use conventional products from far away, I use ingredients and mix my own. if that is not possible, I use at least three brands mixed in the hopes that if one is contaminated, perhaps the others aren’t.
I would not! They are only trying to capitalize on the market they are losing to companies that have organic and/or non-GM0 at heart and They are trying to gain lost revenue- they couldn’t care less.
I think the issue for me that has not been said, that i can see, is about the general awareness and responsibility of the company towards the community, the environment and social values such as women on the board, LGBT, giving back to the community in some way, good to their employees, etc. Purina is down towards the bottom on the list. Purina is contradictory in their attitude and thus have a conflict of interest when thinking green. So, organic, though cheaper, isn’t ultimately good for the whole. We vote with our dollars. Think about what you vote for.
I spoke to a Purina representative at the TX Mother Earth News Fair, as well. I spoke with her the first day, about 15 minutes after the doors opened. She said I was the 6th person to tell her to get rid of the soy and I’d consider it. I currently feed a non GMO, no soy feed that I’m not thrilled with. I’ve been working on my feed store for 2-3 years to get in what I want. I dearly wish I could grow my own.
Purina is a subsidiary of Nestle.
https://www.nestlepurinacareers.com/meet-purina/where-we-are/
Nestle is a very amoral corporation. It’s going around the US draining public aquifers and putting the water in plastic bottles and making criminal levels of profits. They sold infant formula to poor mothers in developing countries who would use polluted water – the only water available – to reconstitute the formula, thereby making many babies sick, leading to many deaths. Greed didn’t allow them to pause and think about what their product might do before they went out and campaigned heavily to sell the formula to many women who could just as well have breastfed their babies.
So, no, I wouldn’t touch the stuff they sell.
BP, Koch Industries, and Nestle and Purina . . .I really work hard to find who is making and selling what. I won’t give a dime to any or the above companies nor anything they produce, EVER.
I also buy organic food, but not brands that have been bought out by polluters and deceivers.
Frankly, I don’t think any of these large companies give one wit about clean food or organic anything.
Money is their game and it doesn’t matter if it hurts people, the land, and the environment. Look at the other products their company is producing. That will tell you if you think you can even trust the company to put organic in a bag. Has their entire product line been changed to real and clean?
Maybe most people have to consider cost first and idealism can’t be practiced in all areas of our lives, but I do try to pay attention. Bate & Switch is a constant tool to deceive us. Take a walk through google and find out what companies own what. I am currently searching out info on what “natural”
is suppose to mean on labels. Turns out to be just another tool to try to fool us.
We fed Purina Starter/Grower to our baby chicks last spring, and they did fine on it. However, we identified two problems:
1) the distributor, who was 30 miles away, didn’t always have it in stock–even tho’ I called ahead and gave him a three day notice and he said he would have it… and
2) if I remember correctly, the 30# bag of Purina feed cost more than the $50 bag of organic feed I finally located. There was quite a price difference.
I hesitated to feed Purina, even though a family member had worked there for years and said it was a good quality feed. I tend to think of Purina as “conventional,”; they have some work to do to convince me they truly ARE supportive of small farms.
…that was 50 POUND bag — not a bag costing $50.
dumb question……is letting chickens out to hunt for their own food not an option for anyone? We’re all (or maybe not all) looking for real food options, natural, etc. So….why feed your flock store bought feed instead of letting them scrounge around for their own grub?
I don’t buy Purina & haven’t in forever, especially not for chickens. Mine all eat grass, bugs, whatever they find, including cleaning up after the pigs grain & such.
i would like to find a non-gmo source of grain for my pigs, but around here…..that’s pretty impossible. Pig feed, if i bought the specific feed, is already 25-30$/bag & when you have (currently) 4 pigs…..that’s a huge chunk of change & that’s with Purina or Nutrena.
But for chickens…..ours has always been free range, until last year when we finally got them an RV chicken coop to be in for the night & kicked them off our carport. But they still search for their own feed. Their eggs are deep orange…..and so delicious 😉
So…..nope, wouldn’t buy Purina. As was mentioned, they are only trying to make a buck while charging outrageous prices. They don’t actually care about our pets or livestock
I’ve been feeding my hens Purina crumble. I’ve tried the 2 organic feeds that I can find locally (Round Rock, Tx), but they were so dusty a lot of it was wasted. Considering the much higher price, & the waste, I went back to Purina. I just have a small backyard flock & since I’m in a neighborhood I try to be super aware of drawing in critters. With the crumble most of it stays within a double bowl set up & I pick it up at night & put it in a lidded container. With the organic feeds I tried, it went every where & was very messy. If there was an organic crumble that held together well, I’d love to try it.
I’m not a farmer, but a (small) city dweller who’s been 95-98% organic in my own “feed” for several decades (and conscious of these issues since the 60s). Also a regular at the local Farmers Market (one of the best in the country, I gather), where I buy all the meat I eat – free-range lamb from the high Rocky Mountain plains to the north, and what I believe is the best free-range chicken in the country (it sure looks and tastes better than the “organic” in the stores) and most of the vegetables. It always amazes me how people complain about the “high” price of organic foods – what’s the most important thing in/for your life, your food or your entertainment (nobody seems to mind paying for that)?
So I have no chickens, but if I did, I certainly wouldn’t buy “feed” from Purina, no matter what assurances they offered. For the same reason, I quit buying New Chapter supplements (which at the time I considered the very best available – all natural, organic sources for vitamins, etc.) when they foolishly sold out to Procter & Gamble, supposedly due to the need for more funding to expand their operations. Of course, P&G gave them solemn assurances that they wouldn’t meddle in New Chapter’s business & practices – but I consider a corporation’s “promises” as reliable as a politician’s. A corporation is a soulless entity, a creation of human hubris (imagining that we can do the Creator’s work and thus equal Him) that exists only to (1) maximize profit and (2) avoid responsibility. Any other stated assurance or policy will disappear like morning fog the moment it conflicts with those two primary (only real) purposes for which the entity was created.
In fact, I believe we (humanity) will not make any real progress in dealing with the massive problems we’ve created for ourselves until the very concept of the corporation is abolished – as well as everything in human thinking related to it (e.g. socialism in all its pernicious forms, which are nothing more than fancy intellectualized mechanisms for avoiding responsibility). We must begin holding ourselves and others truly and completely responsible for our actions; otherwise we will only continue careening toward the cliff. Which is pretty close at this point, and probably – almost certainly – unavoidable. A planet of finite size and resources cannot possibly support seven billion (or is it eight now – and soon to be twelve?) humans in the style they all desire.
Amen. Well said, thank you.
Yeah people need to just quit having kids, all they do is add to our already grossly overpopulated world supply of stupid “people”!
The short answer is, “No, I would rather not buy anything from Purina, or any other company over maybe 100 employees in size.”
Discussing the merits or drawbacks of the various minutiae tends to distract us from seeing the overall problem, which is related to an overemphasis on the economic aspects of life as a whole. I know it’s a complex lie that causes us to pay more for organic products. (Walter Daniels’ comments regarding the difference between hybrid and GMO, and the definition of the word “organic”, is an excellent example of this kind of distraction. We are not discussing the chemical definition of “organic”; we are discussing the USDA definition as it pertains to agriculture.) However, as Birke Baehr said in his TED Talk, (https://www.ted.com/talks/birke_baehr_what_s_wrong_with_our_food_system/transcript?language=en), you can pay the farmer or pay the doctor.
Personally, I’d rather not go to the doctor, either.
When people focus on the economics of life without giving equal time to the quality, the quality suffers. If profit is your penultimate priority, your product, and your life, will suffer in value. If all you concern yourself with in life is the cost, in financial terms, of the products you buy, you will get what you pay for and nothing else. If, for instance, we were discussing sex, we could spend days discussing the reasons and ramifications of its illegality – spread of disease, broken homes, related crime statistics, etc. – but my point is, if you want a prostitute, be my guest. You get what you pay for; and nothing else. If their marketing department is really talented, you’ll get even less.
Organic chicken food is great. It’s HARD to feed 100 chickens if you have to make your own organic food, and feeding the millions of birds it takes to satisfy the needs of the grocery chains of America and the world is not a small feat. If we fed our chickens organically, they, and by extension, we, would be all the healthier for it. However, it takes an entire animal feed industry to make that food, and companies of that size are, by definition, profit oriented – Priority #1 is profit. Everything else is just window dressing. I wait patiently for a path out of this mess, but my hopes are not high. Apparently, we’re too greedy to find our way to a better, albeit less profitable, way.
If you can, grow your own, feed your own, eat your own. If you can’t, do the next right thing, what ever that is for you. One thing for sure, though. Purina’s not going to change overnight. Neither is Monsanto, or Cargill, or Archer Daniels Midland, IBM, Bayer, or Coca Cola. The only thing I can do about that is a personal boycott. You’re welcome to join me.
yes I would buy it…but I really would rather hear your story about how to grow your own food on one hour a day…!
First need to define “organic”. Does organic feed contain GMO ? No way to know unless you raise the seed and the crop making the feed. Is feed crop grown outside ? If it is then no way is it organic with all the chemicals in air and water. A air drift test was done in USA on 3 farms for 3 years. Farms were spraying RoundUp, test found RoundUp drifted an average of 15 miles down wind of all 3 farms and RoundUp Ready weeds were found in the 15 miles of drift. How many “organic” gardens were in those 15 miles ? No idea. Wife and I have raised chicken for over 30 years, same home, phone number and wife for 44 years. Day old chicks arrived, put them in pen, all warm with water and feed. WE went to diner. Next morning I went to check on our new chicks found 9 out of 36 dead. First time that many have die on us, 1 or 2 maybe, but never 9. WE got to talking, wife remembered a county work truck spraying ditches on our road as we were going to diner. Can not prove the spray got them but chick pen is only 300 feet from road and wind drifts do happen just before dark.
Main thing here is ” if its outside growing, it can not be “organic” no matter where a person lives.
Purina / land o lakes are not organic nor will they ever be they are in cahoots with Monsanto & are actively pushing GMO crops across the world buyer beware !
Indeed, given what humanity has done to this planet, there may be no truly “organic” food available anywhere – even in your home garden. I’m particularly doubtful about all the “organic” stuff coming from China. I do the best I can with what I can control. Technically, the USDA standard for “organic” prohibits use of GMO seeds, anyway – but I was shocked (though not surprised) to learn that it says nothing about the quality of the water used in the farming, which apparently may be any old polluted urban waste water, heavy metals, antibiotics and all. I remember when I heard that the organic farming community was looking to the government to establish and enforce a standard, I figured it would have loopholes big enough to drive a team of horses through. Maybe someday people will get over worshipping the State (the Golden Calf of our time) and looking to it to protect us. Makes as much sense as hiring a fox to protect the henhouse.
I think that they are on the evil side. Personally for me, they have done to much damage to ever be trusted. Also being owned and involved with the names they are, they can’t be trusted. The other fact to consider is that it is better to buy local and not from the big corps.
I would trust Purina (owned by Koch) about like I would trust anything owned by Monsanto or Nestle. These big corporations, with appalling histories, will not or cannot change their stripes. They are just producing organic products to keep from losing their customers. I could never trust their motives or the sourcing of the ingredients. These corporations are the epitome of evil. If you don’t know about them you need to educate yourself. (gas chambers in Germany, agent orange in Vietnam, glyphosate and GMO’s, growth hormones in our dairy animals) They have NEVER produced a HEALTHY or SUSTAINABLE product. They have always produced poisons!!! So you save a few bucks on their feed? REALLY? Support the producers who from the beginning had INTEGRITY and were producing organic feeds in the beginning to a small customer base. You vote with your dollars, be sure you support the right companies. Do your research. If not willing to do that…just go buy your chicken and eggs at Walmart. Purina could never redeem themselves with me.
I go out of my way to find not only organic, Non GMO but no soy food for my girls and their guy. Nothing compressed all grains.
I would not trust Purina with any of my animals foods. Sorry!
i could never support this large corporation since i know that EVERY problem of significance on this planet which can be humanly remediated sS CAUSED by rich people, making CONSCIOUS choices to increase their profits at the expense of anyone and anything else. No toxic situation on this planet is happening on a small scale with significance – it is ALWAYS corporate or corporate/government.
When Monsanto chose to kill and damage unknown thousands of Americans in multiple states, from multiple facilities, in multiple decades – that was for profits. Nestle’s as an owner/shareholder of Purina should more or less just be shot and put out of our misery. They WANT YOUR WATER and have formally stated (echoed by the UN now) that you have NO right to water. They say that it “is a commodity” which needs to “be regulated by government and corporations.”
Wrong and wrong. Commodity is a label applied to various THINGS by the business community. Before there was a business community, a civilization WITH a business community, even prior to humanity – there was this life essential resource that we call water. Therefore water can NOT simply be a “commodity”.
REGULATED by govt and corporations? Let’s avoid the illegitimacy of govt for right now – but we need to know that NO corporation has regulatory authority. At best – they have CONTRACTUAL AUTHORITY with the people with whom they have a legal, signed contract.
So i will not buy Purina even if it’s organic.
NEXT – Organic is not enough. USDA organic basically sucks in my mind, because it is entirely about PROCESS instead of product. Some of the old, more effective verification systems would throw your organic claims away if they found toxins and bad things in your SAMPLED AND TESTED foods. When you ate from these certification systems you had a reasonable assumption that the food was actually safe for you. USDA Organic does NOT do that.
It was developed with the input of (surprise) big Ag corporations – the evilest of the evil. It is designed to allow all the crops with GMO products to genetically contaminate your foods. They have GMOs for much more than we are allowed to know – there wasn’t supposed to be GMO wheat – yet it contaminated wheat in Oregon and Montana. How many other sneak attacks are out there we don’t even know to look for? These people are total psychopaths and are capable of anything – need i reiterate that they intentionally killed and damaged people – and did it because “we need every dollar of business we can get”. That was Monsanto.
So i grow what i can. i have smaller local company organic chicken crumble and scratch for my anarchy range chickens – they laugh at free-rangers. i get organic grain supplements for my American Guinea hogs, and my goats – and am restoring the neglected and mined pastures into rotational paddock systems, raising my own heritage grain emmer and Sonora White wheat, Blue Zapatista corn, etc. Will end up with millet, flax, the walnuts, etc – so i won’t need to buy anything off site but the diesel and parts to keep the tractor running, lol.
If TSHTF – no impossible problems. Get the book by King – Farmers of Forty Centuries -and find out how the most productive ag system in the world was run for 4,000 years and still sustainable until the Orientals went into western ag systems and ruined their everything quickly. One square mile in multiple areas of China fed 5,200 people their ENTIRE diet – hog, chicken, a huge variety of vegetables, grains, some mushrooms, etc. PLUS provided fuel, building materials, and fertilizers to keep the entire system going.
As a matter of fact, I just picked up a couple more bags this morning. I prefer to augment my girls’ free ranging with a more local company’s organic pellet (the girls tend to waste too much of the crumbles), but I can never get it. I had been using a non-GMO feed, but really wanted to go organic. I eat those eggs, as do my friends and family, so it is important to me. Purina is about the same price as the local folks, but is always available, so gets bought more often.
The hens like it, they are thriving, and eggs are lovely. While I agree that Purina is doing this to cash in on the organic movement, that’s actually a positive: we’re getting big enough to be pandered to! I will buy it for the same reason I buy organic supplies for my household, including but not limited to groceries: support and sustain the organic market. The bigger we are, the more clout we have. We just have to demand that “organic” means what says and not let corporate America water down the standards for the label.
It all depends upon what is available. Purina reaches a lot of markets and small stores that other organic chicken feed producers might not reach. I do not use it because I currently use another brand. If this was the only organic available, if it were certified organic, I think I would purchase it.
I choose not to buy from companies that have their foot in both organic and non-organic unless I know they are thoroughly committed to the idea of organic and non-GMO but can’t always source it. Bob’s Red Mill is a good example of that. It seems that if I put my $$$ into supporting a company that does both in many instances that $$ goes to support the companies ongoing lobbying to lower the standards for organic or do all they can to stop GMO labeling. They are getting into the organic market for profit only not because of a core interest in sustainable agriculture.
No, i wouldn’t buy ANYTHING Purina. It is a Nestle (Swiss) company that is buying all the water rights in our country from all kinds of little, suffering towns across the land for pennies for millions of gallons, not to mentionCalifornia aquifers on permits for pennies that have been expired for 15 years, (I sure don’t get Governor Brown on THAT one..) just to sell it back to us in little plastic bottles. When they stop their world control of water, i MAY consider buying Purina. On that note, they are also cornering the whole market on pet foods. Ya gotta look really hard to find something NOT Purina, especially in a big box store…
It is so sad that we see this happening. “Being in business to make a profit”, which I define as wanting MORE, GREEDY HOARDING – rather than sustainably appropriate compensation for the long term is at the core of this. Man’s inhumanity to man as opposed to sharing and caring, balancing needs, nor nurturing unsustainable wants, is not going away without divine intervention. Bring it on Creator, Jah, Yahweh, and people, whatever you call our designer and maker, may our creator’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven, and then all creation will praise YOU and your gloriously balanced
power, love, justice and wisdom.
I am a sustainability consultant to the home building industry. Ten years ago it was difficult to find sustainable building materials, now you can buy them at the big box stores. I believe this is representative of a movement in the manufacturing industries to produce more “green” and “organic” products based on research on the buying preferences for more aware and educated consumers, as well as concerns of potential litigation from known toxins that have been used in products (like what happened with lead and asbestos). Started ten years ago with a couple of the big paint manufacturers offering low-VOC paints, now you can’t hardly find paints that aren’t. The food industry is also going thru this transition, whether it’s human or chicken feed. And the big manufacturers are starting to turn those big ships around…glad to see Purina taking the first steps for big feed companies. Just because you started down the wrong road doesn’t mean you can’t change with the times.
~Miki Cook, author “Green Home Building: Money-Saving Strategies for an Affordable, Healthy, High-Performance Home”, published by New Society Publishing (2014), sister company to Mother Earth News.
AS posted before no way unless purina has built a brand new plant designated to only organic there is no way they are organic !
I would never buy anything from this company. They are part of satan’s run organizations. No matter how hard they try to convince the public they are clean. They will always remain Monsanto based, dirty business.
It’s this feed non-gmo?
I think for me it would totally depend on where their supply of food is coming from and the percentage of organic feed to non organic feed in the bag. Most organic animal food is only a percentage organic and the rest or a certain ingredient non organic. I’m generally happy if it’s 80% organic, but again it depends on their supply and if that source is deemed as trustworthy. I care where it comes from and the intentions of the supplier. Are they just in it for the money or do they care to help our planet. ❤️
I keep reading comments here “if the price is right”. Well, the makers of Purina can afford to undercut all the dedicated organic only vendors who have struggled for decades to provide you with a good product. If you want them all to go out of business and if you want to be left with Purina’s “organic” as your only choice, buy Purina.
I am not in any way affiliated with one of Purina’s competitors.
id but it as long as its truely organic and at a fair price id buy it….i only have a small flock of about 15 chickens but i want them to be fat and happy which leads to healthy….they are free range chickens also.
There’s two parts to this.
1) Can we trust Purina ANYTHING to be really truly 100% organic? NO! We can’t count on them to keep Round Up or any bee and butterfly-killing insecticides out of feed or our food. The only honestly organic items I kind of trust are those with the USDA ORGANIC green and white sticker. One example, without that USDA Org sticker, Growers can take wastewater from oil or fracking fields’ drain off and irrigate food crops with it. Yecch, Ew, and OMG!!! So even if the seed itself hasn’t been bastardized by genetically modifying fruits and veggies with RNA, what they put on the food can be poison (contaminated chemicals wastewater, Round Up and other bee fatal insecticides, etc.)
2) I would fight against buying Purina or Nestle products. I hate how they do what they do, both internationally and locally.
A) First, they inject palm, palm oil and palm kernel into everything that doesn’t really require it. Instead, Safflower, Cottonseed, Grapeseed, or even Canola oils would grow and be harvested more locally and sustainability, but still taste great.
B) They ship tankerfulls of palm oil grown cutting down the rainforest trees that oxygenate us and planting palm plantations instead. Transport of the palm oil takes tons of fossil fuels and carbon emissions, then cuts down trees that would absorb these same carbon emissions, and expel oxygen to boot if left growing!
C) To grow the stupid, unnecessary palm plantations, they destroy the native rainforest habitats that are there for orangutans and other monkeys, macaws, and just about every sentient creature that is supposed to live naturally in the rainforest.
D) They use indigenous slave labor to grow, harvest, and process the palm kernels into oils.
E) Locally, I hate what they’re doing to California and hate the stupid judge who continues to let Nestle STEAL California’s water even with a drought! They shouldn’t take it, regardless if there’s a drought or not. Just because stealing the water is technically legal doesn’t mean it’s the correct thing to do. I don’t trust Purina/Nestle to be truthful about anything their products contain. I would never ever eat any animal, but I will eat eggs from my own beloved chickens. I wouldn’t feed my family, friends or any of my animals Purina/Nestle or Friskies given the givens!
I found out that the USDA allows bromide as pesticide in “Organic” strawberries. This is chemically similar to iodine, and causes thyroid issues. The do not enforce pasture requirements in dairy or chickens. They are Big Government which IS the actual problem with Big Corporations. I repeat: Big Gov and Big Corp are NOT antagonists, but partners.
Today, we are beginning to see some independent certifiers. They aren’t perfect, either, but they are closer. Consumers need to learn that if they go to the trouble of learning what is going on–they will never get “perfect,” but they WILL get better health. Look at bodies walking out of big-box stores vs health food stores and see for yourself.
I think we should Never support companies that are Green or Organic-washing!!! They are motivated by Money and not the integrity of Organic Neighbors! I have watched Countless companies break into the more Morally correct venue, only to take over and weaken and pillage it later when they knock off the Founders of the returning us back to Godly ways of Life. And even if they were ever Totally committed to doing the right thing, why should we give the 50cent cheaper price profits to Rich lazy Wallstreet stock owners rather than our Local Organic Neighbors!!!?!!? I have been in Organic for over 30 years…ever since i got free from ‘home’ and learned the Truth and cured that first part of my Lifetime of severe allergies…the Big corporations did not tell my parents how they had changed what my parents thought was still “Food” for their profits, and left us kids malNourished and getting sick…
Trust is earned, when broken, it’s gone for ever,! we just witnessed this with Hillery, nobody trusted her , no matter what she said!!!
Dear Marjorie, Well, the question for me is one of character and consistency. Your description of their past behavior omits a significant issue. In all likelihood, Purina originally sold cat and dog food by STARTING with the premise that they were concerned about the health and welfare of cats and dogs, and that they were humane, with a vested interest in helping an owner care for the health of his or her pet. The evidence you provided demonstrates, in and of itself, that, even if they do produce an organic chicken feed now, there is absolutely every likelihood that eventually they will toy with the product without telling the consumer, and the people eating those chickens may be affected negatively by whatever they have hidden. Perhaps, for example, they might add something to the feed that wouldn’t be detectable unless or until tge chicken lived to be older than most chickens live. If they can expect the chicken to be butchered, then such an additive might safely pass inspection, and only affect the person who is relying on the chickens for food.
I don’t trust untrustworthy people, and I would not buy or use their product.
Appreciate your story and style. Linda
I have 3 choices in my rural area – local hand-milled/mixed non-GMO grains to which none of the supplements stick (so the powder ends up on the bottom of the feeder), local (supposedly) non-GMO pelleted feed (grains are sourced from Canada where farmers of non-GMO wheat routinely kill their crops with glyphosate (RoundUp) in the spring before the rains come), and organic feeds from Purina and Nutrena. Sometimes our Co-op carries another brand of organic chicken feed but looking at the labels I see they aren’t always complete nutrient-wise. In the past – long before Land O Lakes ended up with the brand – I fed Purina to all of my animals (goats, hogs, chickens, and beef) with excellent results. I recently switched to Purina organic layer feed at nearly twice the cost, and I’m seeing an improvement in my chickens’ health and in the eggs they give. To me it’s a better choice than Nutrena even though it costs a little more, but I wish I had some alternatives..
When I started with chickens four years ago, I was just buying the cheap crumbles from TSC and when I found a source, I switched to non GMO feed from a feed store a couple hours away that delivers once a month to our area. I’ve been very happy with it but sometimes have to get a bag or two to hold me over until the next delivery…I had a little left so I just picked up s bag of the generic crumbles and when I opened it out did not even smell like grain. I ferment my feed and wetting the crumbles just dissolved into a slurry. They did eat it but I couldn’t wait to get the good stuff again… I don’t think i will ever purchase any thing but ground grain. I buy organic sometimes but it is twice the price of non GMO and we have 60 chickens. I may have a reason to try Purina some day but I doubt it.
It makes a big difference, as the new organic feed is better for you and it taste better too.
Kellogg’s now owns Kashi cereal. Kellogg’s mostly sells food that is genetically modified. I won’t buy Kashi because of the business practices of the company that owns it. Purina? I think not.
Hi I am not form your country but I would go to the trouble and have their organic food examined by expert as to whether they contain truly organic feed. This would be to satisfy my doubt first.
the concern is more in the long term. if this company buys out the organic producers. Here in AUS woolworth now owns MACRO who used to be Macro Wholefoods. so now we have Macro organic Chickens and Macro freerange… and i have not been able to find out what their free range means other than 1/2 the price.
organic is always the same between companies. Eden Foods has stricter and more ethical standards, for example, than ”O” organics. that said, i don’t know much about this new brand from Purina. however, i like to support locally grown businesses, and would prefer to buy from a local Organic/ beyond Organic grain/feed-maker , should i buy grain for my poultry.
in my previous comment, i meant to say ”organic ISN’T always the same between companies!! please excuse my mistake and accept the correction 🙂
”Organic” has come to mean so many things that aren’t ”Organnic” lately, that i would have to SEE exactly how they SOURCED all of their ingredients before i would tryst Purina.
they source by price & price alone ! little is payed attention to quality as with all corporations there is an account to pay for law suits they can care less for your animals it’s all about the dollar !
NO!….couldn’t trust em….they are just trying to be groovy but I like the comment…they are the fox in the hen house!
Never would I buy their products. I only support companies that support the earth and the cretures on the planet in a benefit ial way. Look at the connexions – just the mention of Nestlé and all the damage they are doing to water supplies….
we bought Purina once because we needed feed and that’s what we found convenient. made our chickens go stir crazy–we won’t be buying it again.
It warms my heart to see so many farmers caring about how their chickens are raised. I live in a township that requires a person to own 50 acres of land if you want to own 3 chickens. The next town allows 3 chickens in your backyard–just not roosters. We need chickens to be eating the ticks that are spilling over from the woods. Time to get our restrictions changed!
I vote with my wallet, so no way. I refuse to shop at Walmart too.
I was so excited that I wrote to Purina to thank them. Sure, they are aligned with some bad guys. But they are willing to listen and be re-educated!! We should support that! Corporate America loves money. If providing organic makes them money, then they will do it. It gives us a foot in the door to teach them why we love Mother Earth. At the same time, our animals get organic feed! I am highly allergic to GMO corn. So I don’t want to feed the chickens whose eggs I am going to consume GMO feed. Thanks Marjorie for this great article! Love your work! Email me your address and I will send you a copy of my first book (Christian Metaphysics) – it is all about natural healing!
IMO they can’t be trusted to change their evil ways and my money will not support a company that has and does so many bad things no matter how good one of their products are. Our only voice seems to be with our wallets, in this case you are either for or against the demise of our planet.
I looked at Purina organic at the store. It’s more expensive than what I buy and they of course are relying on soy beans for their protein. I don’t feed soy due to it’s purported similarity to hormones. I feed organic, non GMO, soy free to my girls. I drive 45 miles round trip to pick it up from a wonderful family of organic farmers in Westphalia, MI.
I don’t have chickens, but hope to get some as soon as I can figure a way to keep them safe from predators. Would I buy chicken feed from Purina? If there were an impending snowstorm or other event that would impede my travel, I suddenly found the chickens out of food, and that was the best available option in the store, I would most likely buy a bag to keep them from going hungry. Otherwise, probably not. There are some companies I just do not trust because they push the limit to see how much they can get away with to increase their profits without actually breaking the law.
No! They are not a company that can be trusted. Unless an trusted independent 3rd party test monitored it as safe. I would not buy organic from Horizon, tree of life or Aurora dairy and many others, as they have been caught selling products that were not organic. I am noticing the Organic Valley egg yolks are looking very pale lately-I am going to get something else in the mail this month. This is where “know your farmer” is applied.
Yes, I would!
I have a lot of respect for Purina because I got my B.S. degree in animal science (farm animal husbandry) and I know they do a lot of research on animal health, including reproductive health.
As to the cats and dogs–Purina is competing with many other companies, and most consumers consider only price. That is not Purina’s fault. Purina would LOVE to make a higher quality product and they are in a great position to do one of the most important jobs in regenerative agriculture: developing MEASURES of animal vitality that can be verified by third party verifiers.
When consumers can see something like “Animal Well-Being Rating 85” compared to a 90 and to unrated (which will usually mean junk), then pet owners WILL spend for better stuff.
Dr. Pottenger proved in the 1930’s that some things can be tolerated by the first generation, but there is no third generation. So a full certification needs to include that.
No, I wouldn’t buy from Purina/Nestlé. Regardless of the organic status of the product, my money would still be going to support a corporation that perpetrates/has perpetrated all kinds of wrongs I abhor.
Nope, no way. I support a smaller local business-Scratch & Peck. Been raising chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese on it for the last 3 years and they are wonderfully healthy and so are their eggs!
Wow, Was I surprised when I went into Tractor Supply and found Purina ORGANIC… I had been buying New Country Organics at a local distributer 45 minutes from me and they were selling their business — so Tractor supply had organics that I had previous bought… Yes Wow… Haven’t bought any yet, BUT will contemplate… New Country Organics is still a local, but 35 minutes away by interstate>>>
Is the Nutrena company more responsible?
I question how pure “organic, nonGMO, antibiotic free” anything is. We had 25 acres of pasture certified organic that our son-in-law grew “organic” crops on, in Missouri, within the last 3 years. We were shocked at the types of fertilizer that is allowed. “Composted” chicken or turkey litter from conventionally grown birds is/was OK’d. He says it’s still allowed. Rather disheartening. Food for thought.
Hi Marjory:
Thanks for asking this question!
Over the years and certainly in the last several, I have gotten so much information about the huge box companies. It has led me to disbelieve everything they claim and to run away from them entirely. The deceitfulness and concentration on profit is overwhelming to me. I cannot knowingly support any company which does not have the best interest in the welfare of their customers as their common goal and theme.
I understand that people need to make a living, companies need to have happy stockholders, and products should not be so expensive that only select individuals can purchase them. But when their products are harmful -and I absolutely believe the companies are aware what their products will affect – both to humans and animals, then I will boycott them at every turn. About 60 years ago my grandmother told me that the new plastic bowl the grocery store was handing out was full of everything harmful and would cause illness. We did not have the capability to check that information like we do currently, so we used the bowl anyway. How my grandmother understood all those many years ago about the dangers of plastic, I’ll never know. But she firmly believed that anything which was “created” by humans was going to do damage if it involved or revolved around something you ingested. She wasn’t afraid of the “new fangled” sewing machines or cars, etc.
So, as you may have guessed, I would/will not anything which is produced by these deceitful companies, and would be skeptical of claims made by smaller/newer firms.
GO ORGANIC!
Purina Mills, which makes livestock feeds and Nestle Purina are two different companies. The Purina company was split into two parts in 1986. The livestock feed company is part of Land O’ Lakes. I don’t know if Land O’ Lakes is a good or bad company but don’t lump it all together with Nestle. I understand the anger against Nestle company and I boycott them my self. On the other hand I would consider trying Purina Mills organic line if it were available to me.
When I saw the organic chicken food from purina i was amazed, since they have such a terrible reputation for less then healthy pet foods. I decided to try it only because the feed I normally used was out of stock and my chickens were out of food. Bad deal, my chickens woiuld hardly eat it, and only did because they were hungry. I learned my lesson, never again. Kat
I ended up here while googling if there is a new chicken feed on the market. I only eat organic eggs and recently developed an allergy to eggs and it made me think – what’s changed? I am so sad as I love my eggs so much.
Hi, I live in the UK, on a tiny homestead. We just recently went vegan because of all the issues of sustainibility and health concerning the production of meat..
HOWEVER, my biome (look up the latest health research into our inner biomes!) seems to not like all these beans and lentils and I am back to thinking that I’ll have healthier guts if I eat some meat for protein occasionally. Which brings me back to raising chickens for meat (which i’ve done before) but ON NO ACCOUNT would I do this again without being 100% ethically happy with what I’m doing.
So buying PURINA?! OF COURSE NOT!!
Wow. The Haters of Big Corporate Capitalist business. It was these BIG corporate businesses that made America the beacon of light for the world. Ford made cars affordable for the average person. The music we all listen to is by Big Corporate Capitalists. Capitalism did not destroy the earth. We all have done our share.
Having the big corporations see the value of going organic benefits everyone.
We use to go to specialty grocers to by organics and pay high prices. Now our local grocery stores sell organics. The common man can now prosper. Like the printing press that allowed everyone to learn. Cell phones use to be for the elites/wealthy (same thing). now we all are inter connected. And that is why Capitalism actually works on a large scale.
IMHO: It is the elite (meaning wealthy) progressives that pretend to care but want to have control of us peons/serfs…
They talk the talk and are out for themselves.
We all can buy stock in the corporations and all prosper.
A rising tide lifts ALL ships. Rich, poor or middle class.
Stop the elitism/class envy.
Sometimes it’s more about what direction you’re moving in, more than where you are right now. Like a lot of people, we’re trying to move in a healthy direction, step by step.
We’re raising chickens for eggs, a step in the right direction, but we’re currently still feeding them layer pellets from Atwood’s. We tried buying organic for a little while, but once we had to stop free ranging the hens, the cost became too much. So, organic Purina would probably be a step up for us. And once we get there, we can start looking for the next step.