I say this because every year I struggle to find turkeys for those of you that want to cook them. Local farmers raise turkeys for Christmas here, scheduling the slaughter date for sometime in November, and if I'm lucky they have a few birds left in the deep freezer from last year's Christmas season. 

 

This year was no different. No more turkeys in the deep freezer at Ferme Crepuscule, our long time poultry collaborator. So I sent messages to all the farmers I know asking them to put me in touch with farmers they know, and finally, I cracked the code. At this time of year, we must get turkey from Ontario, where Thanksgiving IS a real holiday. 

 

Kirkview Farms, a multigenerational family farm in North Glengarry, Ontario, is located only an hour and a quarter away from Montreal. It started out over 200 years ago as an organic farm, using regenerative practices (of course no one called it that back then, it was just how farming was done). As farming trends changed so did the practices at Kirkview Farms, and for 60 years it became what we now call a conventional farm, using chemical inputs and limiting the variety of things grown and produced on the land. But the latest generation to steward this land, Mike and Cora MacGillivray, have converted the farm back to its original form. They raise chickens, turkeys, pigs and cows, using only locally grown organic feed and their own pastures. They are committed to providing their animals with an environment that will allow them to naturally express the uniqueness of their species, while improving the land in the process. For turkeys this means a warm safe environment for the first few weeks, followed by freedom to roam on pasture, eating seeds and bugs and worms and hanging out with their friends for the rest of their time on earth.

 

Turkey - like chicken, eggs, milk and maple syrup - is subject to the Canadian Quota System, which manages supply and demand of these products, province by province. In Ontario, farmers that want to raise turkeys commercially apply for quota from the Turkey Farmers of Ontario. The permits are limited, and expensive, and come with a lot of rules about farming practices that often don't align with the principles of smaller farms that prioritize animal welfare and the environment (an average big turkey farm in Ontario raises about 30,000 birds a year). Those farms that raise turkeys without quota, like Kirkview Farms, are limited to 50 birds a year, as to not disturb the carefully maintained equilibrium. That's not a lot of birds! We will be driving to North Glengarry to pick up our precious allotment of turkeys on Thursday October 9th. We will only get as many as are pre-ordered, so if you want one please call us (514-277-8880) or reserve on our online shop!

The gorgeous turkeys pictured below are a breed called Bronze Orlopp, and is the breed raised at Kirkview Farms. It's a breed generally favoured by small farms that take a longer time to raise their turkeys,  and is good at foraging and free-ranging.

 

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