Family Holds Annual Chicken “Bee”

Family Holds Annual Chicken “Bee” FARM HOME Food For the past 5 years the Cable family of Melvin Iowa has held a chicken plucking bee when their broilers were ready Three generations of the family make a special day out of processing 60 birds “I remember going with my mother to her parents to process chickens every summer ” says Lori Schiernbeck “Now the children in our family will remember this ” Schiernbeck and her husband Troy raise the broilers and host the event which includes her parents as well as her brother and his children Everybody has a role to play bleeding the birds out plucking the feathers removing heads and feet and finally cutting them up and vacuum packing them for freezing Backs ribs and other bony parts are collected to be cooked later and canned as chicken broth Schiernbeck also keeps layer hens for local egg sales off the farm When they are finished as layers they too will be processed cooked and canned “It’s easy to make chicken noodle soup when all you have to do is open a jar ” says Schiernbeck Schiernbeck’s mother Connie Cable brings years of expertise to the event She recalls her parents and siblings butchering from 25 to 50 chickens every Saturday for sale to a local restaurant “There are now 4 families involved and we each take home 15 chickens ” says Schiernbeck “It’s a lot of work but knowing what goes into your food makes it taste better ”

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