Every day is a holiday at local turkey producers across the nation – and it could be at your house too. At a time when many families are looking for better ways to serve up creative, healthy meals while supporting local food producers and reducing their carbon footprint, your local turkey farmer could be offering a tasty solution.
Traditionally, families only serve turkey on the holidays, and it’s a huge production with a full bird and all the fixings. But making turkey part of your regular meals doesn’t have to be a big ordeal. With the variety of fresh cuts available today, it’s easy to incorporate turkey into your daily menus.
So why should you make turkey a part of your everyday menu? Here are five great reasons:
1. It’s healthy. As one of the leanest meats available, turkey is a great option if you’re looking for a smart way to serve up healthy, low-fat meals.
2. It’s easy. Whether it’s turkey sausage and eggs for breakfast, a turkey burger for lunch or grilled turkey legs for dinner, this tasty, lean meat is easy to incorporate into most of your favorite recipes.
3. It’s fun. Add a new flavor to simple meals. Hold a backyard barbeque with turkey on the spit. Or bring some holiday cheer to summer and hold Thanksgiving in July.
4. It’s local. By choosing local turkey, you’re not only buying fresh, but you’re supporting the food producers and economy in your area
5. It’s the right choice. If you select locally-raised free range turkey fed a drug-free natural diet, you’re both reducing your carbon footprint and supporting cruelty-free practices.
Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating recommends choosing lower fat foods more often and including leaner meats and poultry in our diets. This means turkey is an excellent choice to help your family meet Canadian health standards.
The British Columbia Turkey Association agrees, adding that turkey is a great source of protein and chock full of essential nutrients, such as niacin, amino acids and phosphorous. So whichever way you slice it, turkey is an excellent way to add variety to your everyday meals, while helping you achieve a healthier lifestyle.
Jack Froese is the owner and founder of JD Farms Specialty Turkey, a family-run producer of specialty turkeys located in the beautiful Fraser Valley at Langley, BC. Jack and his wife, Debbie, grew up on farms in the Fraser Valley and continued their farming tradition with the purchase of their present farm in 1979. For over thirty years, JD Farms Specialty Turkey has been offering a diverse range of nutritious and wholesome solutions in their traditional country-style deli and bistro as well as supplying whole turkeys to families and retailers in the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley regions.
