Chicken Slaughter and Processing at Hammerie Farm
This is a hands-on learning experience for slaughtering and processing chickens. This will be 2 days but both days are not required.
Location
Hammerie Farm
3725 Palomino Road Northwest Somerset, OH 43783Refund Policy
Agenda
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday All Day
12:00 PM - 12:30 PM
Both Days - Break (As Needed Anytime)
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Monday - Clean and Sanitize
7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Both Days, Relax and Have Fun
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday All Day
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday - Clean, Pickup, and Sanitize
About this event
Do not feel obligated to stay the entire time. We have an agenda to give everyone an idea of timing it takes us with 2 people. If we have more help, we could finish much quicker! Also feel free to come and go as you please.
These volunteer days were created as our customers requested it! This is a hands-on learning experience on slaughtering and processing chickens. This will be 2 days but both days are not required.
Mondays we ask everyone to come anytime after 8:00 AM. We typically wake up at 4:00 AM, crate the chickens, setup our area, and most importantly wake up and drink coffee. By arriving after 8:00 AM, you allow us some time to wake up and get into a groove. Monday is not recommended for everyone. Typically, Kevin butchers and dresses the chickens and Clayton guts them. Dressed Poultry refers to poultry slaughtered for human food, with head, feet, blood, and to be removed. Once the chickens are gutted, we place them in coolers with ice to be packaged on Mondays. By placing them in coolers overnight it does 2 things for us, it gives us a break and it allows the chickens to continue to bleed out.
At the end of the day on Monday, the area is completely cleaned and sanitized. Cleaning takes approximately 2 hours with 2 people and we use bleach as well as a pressure washer besides just washing and scrubbing things by hand.
Tuesdays are a lot more relaxed compared to Mondays. We typically get started at 8 to 9 AM and package chickens until we are done. Packaging chickens is a lot easier for most people as the bird looks more store-ready at this point. We take chickens from Monday that are in the cooler and either package them whole or cut them up to a desired cut. We use meat packaging plastics and have 2 vacuum sealers to seal the meat. Once packaged, we weight it out, record it, and stock them in our freezers.
Note this is not a class and we do not have time to typically stop. However, once we are finished, if you have questions we can answer them then or another time over a beer.
Having volunteers takes planning on our part. We added a $10 fee to weed out fake sign ups and prevent last minute cancellations. We want committed volunteers. Anyone who attends and helps may get a reimbursement if they ask or we will use it to cover food and drink costs.
Frequently asked questions
Mostly our yard is not wheel chair accessible as we do not have many sidewalks on our farm. Please reach out directly to us at HammerieFarm@gmail.com and we will do our best to accommodate you.
If you have special needs, please bring your own food as we don't have the time to make special dishes for these volunteer dates.
Dress comfortably and consider wearing clothes that could be ruined. If you have boots, or a waterproof apron, that would be a good idea too. Consider bringing an additional pair of clothes for afterwards. Bug spray and sunscreen is also a good idea for afterwards if you plan to hang out.
We will be in the backyard by the wood shed, next to the garage on both days.
No, these days are not appropriate days to bring a pet. Please keep your pets at home.
No. We are very flexible and grateful for the help. Come and stay as long as you'd like. However, if you are not planning on staying for dinner please let us know so we don't have to make as much food.
No, you just need to understand what you are signing up for and be willing to do whatever you'd like to participate in. Please be respectful of the animals is all we ask.
Yes. We recommend everyone to bring a chair so you can take breaks and relax. These days will be informative but also a lot of work.
Yes but be mindful of what we are doing and note there are sharp knives and blood in the proximity. Also, we do not have time to watch your children and you are responsible for them. However, if you want your children to be involved, we encourage you to teach them the process.
Having volunteers takes planning. The $10 is to weed out fake sign ups and prevent last minute cancellations. We want committed volunteers. Anyone who attends and helps may get a reimbursement if they ask or we will use it to cover food and drink costs.
Organized by
All events at Hammerie Farm are private fundraisers for our farm to continue to upgrade and improve. We will offer brunches, lunches, BBQs, and dinners with all events being farm-to-table.