Meat&Poultry - June 2013 - 40

koch’s turkey farms

or 5.6 billion lbs. dressed weight. More than 10 percent

Small, but professional

is exported to other countries, and the average American

The brooder or starter houses are filled with small birds

consumes about 16 lbs. per person annually.

for four or five weeks, and the birds are free to run around
the barn, with enough space to keep them free from stress.

Value-added options

The finishing barns are used for live grow-out, until the

While turkey used to be a commodity product, it is becom-

birds are ready to go to market, which takes 18 to 20 weeks,

ing a value-added product. The company produces fresh

longer because no antibiotics are used unless they become

and frozen turkeys plus turkey products, selling more than

ill. Ventilation is controlled by a computer, so that removes

50 products produced at the farm. Fresh products include

the possibility of human error.

fresh, young, all-natural turkeys, including whole birds

There is just a single line, which processes 20 birds a

and parts, and ready-to-cook, from 12 to 30 lbs. They

minute. The company employs 90 people. Their prod-

also offer fresh, young, certified-organic turkeys ranging

ucts are sold through the Mid-Atlantic states, New Eng-

in size from 12 to 24 lbs. These fresh products consist of

land, the West Coast and the Midwest around Chicago.

smoked turkey breasts, thighs, drums and wings. Another

Koch sells between 14,000 and 16,000 lbs. a week to

product is certified-organic turkey bacon

Whole Foods, its largest customer. “They audit every-

Frozen products include all-natural turkey with mashed

thing here at Koch’s Turkey Farm from the delivery of

sweet potatoes and parmesan cheese, gravy, stuffing, car-

the poults to how they’re raised, including documenting

rots and green beans, as well as a heat-and-eat turkey pot

standards of feed and water they receive, down to how

pie. Other frozen meals include turkey lasagna, turkey

many pounds of turkey can be raised in so many square

chili, turkey Alfredo and turkey burgers.

feet,” Koch says. “We’re only allowed to grow 7-1/2 lbs.

The company also sells a line of seasoned turkey fil-

per square foot, while the larger industry can grow 14 lbs.

lets, including Korean sesame, honey ginger, ginger teri-

per square foot, so that’s a big space difference.”

yaki and lemon pepper. Other products include ground

To no one’s surprise, Thanksgiving is still a high-de-

all-white meat turkey, turkey patties and turkey sausage

mand time for turkey, but people eat more turkey all year

patties, and on the deli line, oven-roasted and smoked tur-

round than they used to.

key breast, and vanilla pepper turkey breast.

Only 31 percent of American turkeys are consumed
during the holidays today, 69 percent are consumed the rest

It may be a small operation by industry standards, but
Koch’s Turkey Farm is going strong. ■

of the year. Each year, American turkey farmers produce
about 250 million birds, about 7.1 billion lbs. live weight,

40

• Meat&Poultry • June 2013 • www.MeatPoultry.com

Bernard Shire is M&P’s Washington correspondent, contributing editor
http://www.MeatPoultry.com
Meat&Poultry - June 2013

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