Midvale Ag Students Process Chicken Raising Project
Last Tuesday was a fine sunny day for Midvale students to spend class time outside. Indeed, it was the culmination of Ag teacher Matt Jones’ unit on raising poultry. He said the students had requested a project they could see from start to finish and poultry provided that opportunity.
The school’s new barn was home to the 120 chicks which arrived a few months ago. After raising them to size, the students butchered and packaged them for sale. Most were pre-sold for $20 each to customers around the area.
Helping with the project were Matt’s parents, Butch and Susan Jones of Midvale. Equipment used included a double cone stand where the students inserted each chicken upside down and Matt slit its throat, a pot for scalding, a knife for removing feet and an electric plucking tub where Butch pulled out mostly feather-free chickens. At the table were several students, guided by Susan, who finished cleaning and preparing the birds. They were then packaged for customers to pick up that afternoon.
This is the second time a poultry project has been done at Midvale, but it’s the first using the new barn which was built last summer and fall with a grant from the State of Idaho for vocational education.
