UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- A professor in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences is defying the norm by allowing chickens to graze in pastures rather than feeding them only stored grains in cages.

Heather Karsten, assistant professor of crop and soil sciences, has found that there are nutritional benefits to allowing chickens to forage on grasses which can provide high levels of protein and vitamins. She says while chickens can't get all their nutrients from pasture, those raised on fresh pasture instead of stored grain get more unsaturated fats and vitamins.

"It's like the difference between fresh and canned vegetables," Karsten says. "The nutrients are more available in the fresh leafy forage. And there are more unsaturated fats in fresh leaf tissues than in grain."

In addition, the chickens contribute to soil fertility by spreading their manure on pasture as they forage, and they may help reduce insect or parasite populations when following ruminant livestock.

Karsten found that legumes such as alfalfa and clover have higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids than grasses. Research has shown that omega-3 fats lower health risks such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, arthritis and autoimmune disorders.

Karsten collaborated with Paul Patterson, associate professor of poultry science, and Gwendolyn Crews, an undergraduate assistant, to find the most nutritious pasture-plant species.

The researchers rotated three groups of 25 chickens over a six-week period from grass, to red and white clover, to alfalfa. The chickens grazed for two weeks on each species. The birds were housed in mobile coops that could be moved around the field on wheels, providing protection from predators and functioning as a nest box. The mobile chicken coops were built by Penn State students in the Agricultural Systems Management Club. During each rotation, eggs were collected and analyzed for levels of vitamins A and E and unsaturated fats. Birds that had been pastured were found to produce about three times more omega-3 fat in their eggs than birds raised on grains. Further, the eggs of chickens that foraged on alfalfa had 25 percent more omega-3 fat than the eggs of chickens foraging on grass. Chickens on pasture also had twice as much vitamin E and 40 percent more vitamin A in their eggs than the caged chickens that were fed grain.

"From this study we confirmed the nutritional advantages to raising hens on pasture as compared to on an industry diet in cages," Karsten said. "And we learned how to manage chickens on pasture."

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Contact:

Cheryl Anthony cka106@psu.edu 814-863-0938 814-863-9877 fax

Chuck Gill cdg5@psu.edu 814-863-2713 814-863-9877 fax #227