Chicken Coops for Sale in Annville, Pennsylvania
Chicken Coops for Sale in Annville, Pennsylvania
Agrotop's Green Henhouse Hotel For Humane Poultry That Matches EU Standards
Chickens won’t cluck at this: Aside from making life more comfortable for the hens, Agrotop’s henhouse incorporates wind and solar power, recycles wastewater, and even processes chicken waste into biofuel.
, but many people aren’t happy with the way chicken arrives at their table – both from a humanitarian and an environmental point of view. Most of the poultry you buy in the market is raised in factory farms, where the birds contend with overcrowding, disease and worse.
To correct this foul situation, beginning in 2012 the European Union (EU) will require farms to provide more space and more fresh air – and even a mattress or a pillow – for each bird. To comply with these regulations, farmers in the EU and in countries like Israel that sell poultry products in Europe are going to have to upgrade their henhouses. Israel’s Agrotop is poised to help, with its award-winning “henhouse of the future.”
For Agrotop, “award-winning” isn’t just corporate marketing fluff. The company really did win an award from the Ministry of Agriculture this year for its new industrial chicken coop design, which not only meets the new EU standards, but is also completely “green,” says Gaby Pelleg, one of Agrotop’s partners and directors.
A clean, green, aesthetic, humane coop “We designed the coop to physically match its surroundings, so that the natural beauty of the area where it is built will not be compromised. Plus, we use wind and , recycle the wastewater for use in the coop, and in addition we process the chicken waste to manufacture biofuels. Farmers can sell the power to the electric company, and thereby enjoy an additional stream of income,” Pelleg tells.
Chickens had it rough before, but the new EU regulations, which cover all fowl that are raised for food – and which Israel is planning to adopt as well – will make life much more pleasant for them.
Henhouse cages must provide at least 116.25 square inches of space per bird (nearly double the current standard) and provide enough space for birds to move around in freely, with access to fresh air and natural light, enabling them to flap their wings, etc. Cages will be equipped with natural or artificial grass or sand, imitating the birds’ natural environment, and each cage will even be equipped with soft material – a sort of ‘mattress’ or ‘pillow’ – for the birds to rest on.
The regulations were developed in part because of the impact of the animal rights movement, but polls show that most consumers, including those who don’t consider themselves animal rights activists, prefer to see animals well treated.
How green is your coop?
The Agrotop coop complies with the new EU rules and does them one better – by turning the coop into a model of green technology and environmental responsibility.
Industrial chicken production has also been the bane of environmentalists for years. For example, chicken manure has high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus, which when discharged into the water “steal” oxygen from fish. Many areas with large poultry production facilities report occasional “fish kills,” where large numbers of fish die off, with scientists connecting their deaths directly to manure levels in the water, and environmental activists demanding that henhouses be closed down.
So in addition to being a boon for animal welfare, Agrotop’s henhouses are good for the environment, too, “The coops are built of recycled material wherever possible,” says Pelleg. “In Israel, most of the coops are in the Galilee, so we designed a low-slung building for Israeli farmers to fit in with the natural topography. The coop is raised off the ground, built on piles, ensuring that it remains a closed system that does not affect the surrounding environment – not even the grass or topsoil on which it stands.
“The roof of the building has wind turbines and , for the production of [solar] electricity. And we recycle the birds’ manure, turning it into a methane-based gas,” Pelleg continues.
While the energy produced by the coop could be used to power the building and its equipment, Pelleg says he recommends to farmers that they sell the energy back to the electric company, because they can make more money that way. “So besides lessening the birds’ impact on the environment, our coops provide farmers with an additional income stream,” he contends.
Long-lasting henhouses ready soon
It was these green innovations that pushed Agrotop’s design to the top of the Agriculture Ministry list, says Pelleg, enabling the company to beat out four other competitors for the crown. Although there was no cash awarded for the prize – just recognition – Pelleg believes that the honor will help the company to sell more henhouses, both in Israel and Europe.
Agrotop, which has been in existence for decades, is Israel’s largest manufacturer and builder of turnkey poultry production systems, and has clients in 35 countries. In Europe, Agrotop’s chief partner is Germany’s Big Dutchman, one of the world’s biggest animal husbandry companies. According to Pelleg, European customers of Big Dutchman are itching to get their hands on Agrotop’s coops. Production has just begun, and the first coops will be ready to ship at the beginning of next year.
Changing their entire production system to comply with new government regulations is expensive, and both Israel and the EU countries will be subsidizing the cost of the new henhouses.
“Our design is engineered to last a long time, because we know that even with the subsidy, most small farmers are going to have a hard time finding the funds to buy a new coop. On average, farmers buy a new coop maybe once every 20 years, and we want to ensure that the coop they buy from us lasts at least that long,” Pelleg says.
(This story was written by David Shamah and first published on ISRAEL21c – )
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Baby Chicken in Annville, Pennsylvania
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Annville Pennsylvania" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Annville Pennsylvania chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Annville, Pennsylvania With the significant rise in chicken keeping there has been a just as big increase in the variety of poultry materiel for sale. Chicken real estate is a case in point. It's likewise a timeless example of the great old bandwagon being jumped on as various potential chicken real estate specialists peddle an array of lodging declaring to be the optimal option to your chicken real estate demands. Commonly the price looks appealing, the house looks appealing, heck also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Certainly they understand a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are lots of cheap and also horrible coops swamping the market. I recognize this as I've tested a number of them in the area, as well as seen a ewe run straight through one when the feed bucket appeared. The result was just a costly pile of fire wood and a small flock of bemused and now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Quality in Annville, Pennsylvania
More often than not these mass produced models are built of rapid grown hardwood - come the very first decrease of rain they swell, leaving you either fortifying a door that will not close, or ripping the door furniture off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking inhabitants. The initial warm and comfortable day means the hardwood dries out and fractures, the really felt roof covering bubbles as well as boils, and come nightfall the chickens refuse to enter. This is not as a result of their frustration at the decrease of their when eye-catching building however considering that the hovel is currently a place for, and also possibly crawling with, the poultry caretaker's nemesis, red mite. Add on the fact that it claimed on the blurb that it would suit 4 large chickens when that equipping density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and exactly what are you left with? A couple of joints and also some kindling. A good coop for thee to 4 birds ought to cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you choose for a cost-free standing house or one with a run attached. Assuming you are varying your birds in a large area and also the pop opening door is big enough for the breed you keep, then the main demands of real estate boil down to 3 points which will define the variety of birds your home will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. Most breeds of chicken will certainly perch when they go to roost during the night, this perch must preferably be 5-8cm large with smoothed off sides so the foot rests conveniently on it. The perch ought to be higher than the nest box entrance as chickens will additionally naturally seek the highest point to perch. A perch less than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they produce the most poo) causing stained eggs the following day. They shouldn't however be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries could possibly occur when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens require about 20cm of perch each (in tiny types this is undoubtedly much less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in your house they ought to be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors yet are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Ideally your home needs to have a the very least one nest box for each three birds as well as these ought to be off the ground and in the darkest location of your home. Your house should have adequate ventilation: without it after that condensation will accumulate every evening, even in the coldest of weather condition. Understand, air flow deals with the concept of warm air leaving with a high void attracting cooler air in from a reduced gap - it's not a collection of openings on opposite walls of your home as well as at the very same degree, this is just what's called a draft. If you have a house with a run connected then the factors above are still real, however you need to also think about the run size. The EU optimum lawful equipping thickness for a totally free range bird is (as well as let's encounter it, one of the motivations for keeping some hens at home is possibly enhanced or far better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m settled. Take a close look at several of the bargain houses - it could well be your house has the ideal perches, right air flow as well as sufficient nest boxes for an affordable number of birds, but will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to spend the day on? Therefore as the claiming goes, "you obtain what you pay for". You may assume you've got hold of a deal, but you as well as your group could rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house and it will last for a couple of decades, if not longer given the appropriate treatment. In the end your chicken as well as your fowl keeping experience will certainly be much the far better for it.build build
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