How Bales Farms Strives to Produce the Most Natural Pasture Raised Eggs

Who Is Bales Farms?

They are a 6th generation family farm in East Tennessee. They produce grass fed and grass finished beef. Pastured pork and high quality chicken eggs are also part of their operation. You can keep up with them by checking out their Website, following their YouTube Channel, and also their Podcast Episodes.

Why should you care where your eggs come from?

Our ancestors (thousands of years ago) recognized food as an essential measure for survival.  Food is meant to provide our bodies with macro nutrients (natural fats, proteins, and carbohydrates) and micro-nutrients (vitamins and minerals). Without quality macro and micro nutrients, our bodies will invariably suffer over time (fatigue, illness, disease, etc.). Learn more here…

If eggs are a normal part of your diet (I think they should be), then learning a few things about maximizing nutrient quality could help you move along the spectrum towards higher levels of health and happiness! 

Chickens are considered omnivores, which means that they prefer to eat grass, bugs, lizards, worms, and a variety of real plant and animal foods. The raw nutrients that the chickens ingest, will in turn be passed along to the eggs that they produce. Additionally, any inappropriate substances or toxins that the chickens ingest, will most likely be passed along to their eggs as well.

So, if you’re anything like me these days (Learn more here), I’ve been putting a lot of time and energy into learning about how to move towards higher levels of health and happiness. Bringing in more nutrient dense foods is one of the easiest places to start. With eggs being one of the most nutrient dense foods (assuming the laying hens had plenty of access to a natural habitat), finding a good source of eggs has just now become your number one goal! Bales Farms has just raised the bar!!

How does Bales Farms produce high quality eggs?

In my personal opinion, the most nutrient dense chicken egg would come from a laying hen that had access to as much natural, chemical free, healthy, lush, pasture and brush as she needed in order to satisfy her foraging aspirations. She would have a diet rich in vegetation, bugs, and any other natural treat that tastes good to her. She would soak up plenty of natural sunlight and quench her thirst with mineral rich water running pure from a nearby spring.

As the sunlight started to fade, she would make her way to the safe confinement of a special chicken den, where no predators could sneak in and inflict harm. She would sleep peacefully through the night, wake the next morning, drop a beautiful nugget of nutrient dense gold in her nest, then trek out to do it all over again.

I’m pretty sure that we all understand that perfect nugget of nutrient dense gold is not very likely to come from a laying hen living the kind of life outlined above. With changes in seasons, predators, and many other unknown factors, most chickens need a certain level of care in order to keep them as naturally healthy as possible and safe from predators.

What’s the next best option? Find a farmer that checks as many of these boxes as possible:

• All day access to fresh, chemical free pasture
• Plenty of acreage to forage for natural vegetation, bugs, etc.
• Unrestricted access to natural sunlight and chemical free water
• Proper shelter to keep predators away
• Quality (non-GMO) supplemental feed to keep the laying hens healthy during times when natural foraging is limited (e.g., during the winter months)

I have spent quality time speaking with Aliceson Bales, with Bales Farms. I can honestly say they are doing things right!

Plenty of access to natural pasture at Bales Farms

Every laying hen that comes to Bales Farms will spend the rest of her life on the farm. From arrival as a day old chick learning the ropes, to fighting for pecking order as a youngster pullet, to adulthood delivering some of the most nutrient dense eggs, on into her later years delivering fine fertilizer back into the pastures, she truly is honored and respected for all that she provides.

Bales Farms utilizes an “egg mobile”, in order to help recreate that natural environment for the laying hens. The egg mobile offers shelter, nesting boxes, and is accompanied by Premier 1 poultry netting to establish a large boundary with plenty of square footage for the hens to forage. After a day or two of foraging, fertilizing, and egg laying, the egg mobile and poultry fencing is moved to another fresh area of pasture. It’s a great way to give the hens fresh ground, shelter, protection, produce great nutrient dense eggs, and fresh natural fertilizer to boot!

A chicken tractor is similar to the egg mobile, but mainly for smaller scale flocks (like raising backyard chickens and eggs).

Livestock guardian dog at Bales Farms

A chicken foraging in the pasture, feeding on the many forms of vegetation and bugs, and fertilizing the pastures shared by the grass fed cattle is not free from danger. Chickens tend to be pretty low on the food chain while out in nature away from the protection of four walls, and a roof. 

There couldn’t be a better way to hand back nature to a chicken then striking up a friendship with Bales Farm’s mobile security officer.

Learn more about some of the best livestock guardian dog breeds.

Wild and Primal Summary

What personal motivators can you find in your own life to help guide you towards achieving higher levels of health and happiness?

For many people, just living life in the “status quo” seems to be par for the course. I know it used to be for me. When it comes to health and happiness, most of us are healthy and happy, until we are not. This change is very rarely abrupt, most often times it is sneaking up on us year by year.

The life we live from day to day directly contributes to our rising or falling levels of health and happiness. Each one of us has our own unique breaking points on this rising or falling level of health. Some people experience head aches as their level declines, others might notice fatigue, low energy levels, and weight gain. As the level of health notches down even more, certain illnesses and diseases can take root.

The good news is, we can all reverse the downward trend of health. I’m not talking about medication either. I’m talking about giving our bodies the building blocks that it needs in order to be strong and versatile. These building blocks are still found today in the same place they were found thousands of years ago. 

You will find the essential building blocks (natural nutrients, vitamins, and minerals) to move towards higher levels of health inside of the plants and animals here on this earth. Not just any plants and animals though. 

The spectrum of quality building blocks will range from:

• Low Nutrient Quality: Conventionally raised plants/animals that have been fed an un-natural diet full of chemicals/pesticides/medications
• High Nutrient Quality: Naturally raised plants/animals that have been fed a natural chemical free diet

Oh, and back to personal motivators…

Do you want to feel better and look better?

Is making a better example for your children or grandchildren important to you these days?

Maybe you’ve noticed that you’re overweight and losing a few pounds is needed?

To each their own and I believe that almost any reason to move towards higher levels of health and happiness is worthy. 

For me, my journey towards making changes started with feeling fatigued and overweight. As the changes that I started making began to improve how I felt and I started losing weight, I then needed a new motivator in order to keep improving.

I have now adopted a mindset of longevity (a never ending motivator). My new goals are to continue moving towards higher levels of health and happiness so that I can live long and strong for years to come.

I challenge you to find your motivators that will help guide you in making better decisions with your eating and exercise.