When you get right down to it, Jim Wilcox says, he doesn't really know whether the 600,000 chickens his family keeps in cages are any less happy than the 100,000 that get to go outside every day and stretch their wings in open courtyards.
"If I were a chicken, I know where I'd want to be," he said, "but who's to say, really? Chickens are not the most intelligent animals on Earth."
What Wilcox does know is that more and more U.S. shoppers believe eggs from free-range, organic birds are healthier. And he knows that when they see the words "free-range" and "organic" on a carton of eggs, they will pay a dollar or two more per dozen.
That goes a long way toward explaining why Wilcox Family Farms, the giant Pierce County egg producer celebrating its 100th anniversary this week, finds itself on the cusp of a revolution in corporate food production and the darling of environmentalists trying to save Puget Sound.
Scientists say the Puget Sound ecosystem is nearing collapse, battered by pollution and loss of habitat. Agriculture is by no means the main culprit, but in certain critical areas, primarily along rivers and at their deltas, farmers face heavy pressure to change practices ecologists say contribute to the death spiral.
Environmentalists and government regulators are doing their best to convince farmers that sustainable agriculture and a healthy Puget Sound can make good economic sense.
SUPPORT OUR
SPONSORS
Sustainable Agriculture in Washington Helps Protect Puget Sound
-
Wilcox Family: Sound-friendly farming
Wilcox Family Farms: Environment-friendly practices work out for egg producer as it marks its 100th anniversary
By Rob Carson
The Tacoma News Tribune - WA, Aug 2, 2009
Straight to the Source
