Author Topic: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?  (Read 12510 times)

Gimesalot

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Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« on: May 02, 2015, 11:20:27 AM »
This is a really dumb question, but hey this is the internet, it isn't the first, won't be the last...

I got an advertisement for cheap chicken at a new place down the street.  Here are the prices:

40 lb leg quarter $23
10 lb leg quarter $6
5 lb drumstick $4
40 lb drumstick $30

Part of me is excited about cheap food... Another part of me is worried that this chicken is somehow inferior to the chicken (not organic, natural, etc.), I buy at the more expensive store.  Rationally, I know it is the same.

Please facepunch, if required, because my brain is unwilling to be logical.

ender

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2015, 11:34:21 AM »
I've periodically seen chicken about those prices at a local grocery store.

swick

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2015, 11:53:45 AM »
Call them ask and see where they source their chicken from - and what country. Be prepared that it is most likely factory farmed - and decide if that is okay for you. Mustachianism isn't about always getting the lowest possible price, it is about knowing what your priorities are and honoring what is important to you while cutting out or replacing all the crap that isn't - f you are not in debt.

Personally, I don't think super factory farmed chicken is  worth it eating, we would rather eat much less and source it organic and local, we buy whole birds and use every scrap - but that is just because it is important to us and we spend less in other areas to do so.

mozar

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2015, 04:14:56 PM »
I don't think it's a dumb question, but can you realistically eat that much chicken before it expires?

Erica/NWEdible

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2015, 04:45:48 PM »
Here's a link to the Business Costco's price for chicken in bulk. It should help you get a sense of what wholesale pricing is for bulk chicken:

http://www2.costco.com/Common/CostcoCategory.aspx?cat=12045&whse=bd_827&topnav=&hierPath=11123*&lang=en-US

MMMaybe

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #5 on: May 02, 2015, 04:49:01 PM »
I think it's very reasonable to wonder why its so cheap. This is not always the case, but quite often its cheap for a reason :)

minority_finance_mo

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #6 on: May 02, 2015, 04:53:19 PM »
I'm probably just massively ignorant, but I never bought into the whole organic thing. Call them up and ask for their source; as long as it's not really shady (although where the line to shady is when butchering chickens...), go for it.

Mozar brought up a good point about whether you'd be able to finish all of that chicken though...

swick

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #7 on: May 02, 2015, 05:40:22 PM »
I'm probably just massively ignorant, but I never bought into the whole organic thing. Call them up and ask for their source; as long as it's not really shady (although where the line to shady is when butchering chickens...), go for it.

Mozar brought up a good point about whether you'd be able to finish all of that chicken though...

For us it isn't so much about it being organic as "cruelty free" I had a friend who worked in an industrial chicken farm. The absolutely horrible conditions, I figure, have to have some effect. We feel that food animals should only have 1 bad day in their life -  and being able to support our local farmers and keep more money local is important to us. Although...I would be even more concerned if I was in the US...now that they are allowed to ship live chickens over to China to be butchered and processed and still sold as US chicken.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #8 on: May 02, 2015, 05:47:12 PM »
I'm probably just massively ignorant, but I never bought into the whole organic thing. Call them up and ask for their source; as long as it's not really shady (although where the line to shady is when butchering chickens...), go for it.

Mozar brought up a good point about whether you'd be able to finish all of that chicken though...

For us it isn't so much about it being organic as "cruelty free" I had a friend who worked in an industrial chicken farm. The absolutely horrible conditions, I figure, have to have some effect. We feel that food animals should only have 1 bad day in their life -  and being able to support our local farmers and keep more money local is important to us. Although...I would be even more concerned if I was in the US...now that they are allowed to ship live chickens over to China to be butchered and processed and still sold as US chicken.

+1. Environmentalism plays a role for me as well, and supporting my local farming economy. I am literally supporting relatives when I do that =)

minority_finance_mo

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #9 on: May 02, 2015, 06:00:56 PM »
I can totally appreciate you doing that. Up-thread, swick mentioned it's a value call and if this is important to you, I love that you're putting your money where your mouth is!

Bracken_Joy

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #10 on: May 02, 2015, 06:07:35 PM »
I can totally appreciate you doing that. Up-thread, swick mentioned it's a value call and if this is important to you, I love that you're putting your money where your mouth is!

Exactly. Especially with wanting good savings, we all have to decide which values we're willing to fund. =)

Roland of Gilead

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #11 on: May 02, 2015, 07:24:58 PM »
Although...I would be even more concerned if I was in the US...now that they are allowed to ship live chickens over to China to be butchered and processed and still sold as US chicken.

But think about all that tasty melamine the Chinese put in the chicken before they send it back!

TheRedHead

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #12 on: May 02, 2015, 07:33:37 PM »
I have chickens. I would never, ever by bulk cheap chicken. I strongly believe in cruelty-free if at all possible.

garion

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #13 on: May 02, 2015, 07:35:21 PM »
You don't have to worry about eating all the chicken before it expires, you can always FREEZE the majority of it... And check how the place sources the chicken. While you're at it, check where your more expensive grocery store sources their chicken too. More expensive doesn't necessarily = well sourced.

forummm

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #14 on: May 02, 2015, 07:54:32 PM »
Here's a link to the Business Costco's price for chicken in bulk. It should help you get a sense of what wholesale pricing is for bulk chicken:

http://www2.costco.com/Common/CostcoCategory.aspx?cat=12045&whse=bd_827&topnav=&hierPath=11123*&lang=en-US

Costco's chicken is somewhat more expensive than in grocery stores in my area. I think they source their meat more sustainably, but I'm not certain what that means.

OP, the prices you report are similar to what I have in my grocery store. I actually got a 10 LB bag of leg quarters for $4.49 recently. It's usually $6.

mozar

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #15 on: May 02, 2015, 07:57:03 PM »
OK you can keep chicken in the freezer for a year before it starts to deteriorate. I cannot realistically eat 100lbs of chicken in a year. But I'm just one person. That's why I asked.

garion

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #16 on: May 03, 2015, 09:15:47 AM »
OK you can keep chicken in the freezer for a year before it starts to deteriorate. I cannot realistically eat 100lbs of chicken in a year. But I'm just one person. That's why I asked.

Ah okay. My husband and I once bought half a pig (~60 pounds of meat) and finished it all in 4 months. So my perception might be a little skewed.

Spondulix

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #17 on: May 03, 2015, 06:30:10 PM »
I know turkey farmers who said they would never eat their own birds. The birds are sold pretty skinny, but get totally pumped full of liquid after butchering. So a lot of the weight you're buying could be artificial.

Have you taken a look at the chicken yourself? I've seen the cheapest of cheap at ethnic markets (especially Asian) but it just smells wrong and tastes funky. I'm a fan of buying better quality but eating a smaller portion size.

kewper

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #18 on: May 03, 2015, 06:58:26 PM »
I buy cheap bulk chicken.  It's fine. 

Jakejake

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #19 on: May 03, 2015, 07:47:12 PM »
The last chicken I bought was on sale - 39 cents a pound for chicken leg quarters. I got 30 pounds, and froze most of it. I've been buying chicken like that for years, I can't taste a difference between it and costco or aldi chicken.

sarah8001

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #20 on: May 04, 2015, 07:20:31 AM »
I occasionally get chicken cheaper than the prices you posted. My experience has been that the chicken is not organic and probably not cruelty free. Organic, cruelty free chicken runs about 2.79/lb here, about five times the cost of "conventional" chicken. The super cheap chicken I buy is usually not as clean (more feathers still on the bird) as more expensive, but still not organic chicken although I have gotten poorly plucked, poorly cleaned birds from "regular" stores. My biggest beef with cheap chicken is that it usually comes in packs of ten pounds or more that are all frozen together. You have to thaw them to break them into smaller packages. Sometimes the huge frozen packages are awkward to store. Otherwise they taste fine and no one has gotten sick in my household even though we have been eating them for a couple years. We'd like to get the organic, cruelty free, but we are still paying off debt. Maybe when we're in a better place financially.

FarmerPete

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #21 on: May 04, 2015, 08:11:57 AM »
Chicken prices seem to be going down.  I just picked up BS breasts for $1.57lb on Saturday.  We're ordering a 40lb box of BS Breasts from Zaycon for $1.69lb this June.  Both locations sell better quality than you'll get from standard grocery stores.  I like Sams, but their stuff is pumped full of broth to inflate the prices.  Meijer is our go-to store, and their stuff is alright.  You can get fresh BS breasts for $1.99.  We often buy the leg quarters for $0.80 a lb. 

A few weeks ago, Kroger has whole chickens on sale for $0.59 a lb.  I bought 4, cut them up, and then boiled the carcass to get all of the useable meat off.  I could/should have continued to make stock, but we don't use chicken stock, so last time it was wasted effort.  Either way, I calculated that I saved about $10 based on the final lb of each chicken part, based on standard prices that we pay.  Took me an hour from start to finish.  Not exactly the solid win that I thought it might be, but since I probably would have frittered away that hour doing something pointless, it was fine.

Bob W

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #22 on: May 04, 2015, 08:25:21 AM »
Thanks for reminding me a local store has chicken breast (with bone) on sale for $1 a pound.   Need to go scam that up.  I can usually find dark meat for around 50 cents a pound.

I have seen how chickens are raised-  it ain't pretty but I still eat it.  Probably the cheapest source of animal protein.

But yes,  we should all be very worried about our food supply chain in the US.  Antibiotics, hormones,  injected weigh enhancers,  chemically laced feed ---- it is all in that chicken we are buying so cheap and feeding our children. 

Scandium

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #23 on: May 04, 2015, 08:28:46 AM »
Do most here by meat on the bone, or whole chicken? I bought bone-in breasts to save some money once and then had to spend a looong time cutting out the bone and nasty fat chunks to get off the breast, and the $/lb if remaining meat must have been much higher. Not sure it's worth it in  time at least. Usually we just buy clean breast pieces. Those cost $6-9 per pound, but obviously has no bone. I buy the ones one step above store brand for ~$5/lb, while my wife prefer the "smart chicken" or something for almost $9/lb! (especially now that we have a kid). The latter does look cleaner and has less fat and sinew on it though.

I don't believe there is a antibiotics, cruelty, whatever difference but she does. I keep pointing out that nobody uses hormones in chicken in the US, but I don't know anything about antibiotic use so I can't say much about that. I just let it go.

FarmerPete

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #24 on: May 04, 2015, 08:29:36 AM »
Thanks for reminding me a local store has chicken breast (with bone) on sale for $1 a pound.   Need to go scam that up.  I can usually find dark meat for around 50 cents a pound.

I have seen how chickens are raised-  it ain't pretty but I still eat it.  Probably the cheapest source of animal protein.

But yes,  we should all be very worried about our food supply chain in the US.  Antibiotics, hormones,  injected weigh enhancers,  chemically laced feed ---- it is all in that chicken we are buying so cheap and feeding our children.

Don't worry.  The nugget of the chicken isn't susceptible to all those hormones and antibiotics.

FarmerPete

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #25 on: May 04, 2015, 08:32:49 AM »
Oh, but to answer your question about should you be worried...Maybe.  I'll tell you this much, I wont buy any fish that comes from China after I learned what they feed their fish...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-10-11/asian-seafood-raised-on-pig-feces-approved-for-u-s-consumers

Gimesalot

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #26 on: May 04, 2015, 10:23:17 AM »
So I bought the 5 lb drumsticks because the 10 lb leg quarters were frozen.

It turns out that the place is owned by an immigrant family and it was their opening week so they marked everything super cheap to drive up business.  Also, they are in a huge food desert in a VERY VERY poor neighborhood, so they are trying to provide affordable service.

The chicken was fine.  There was a lot of "juice" left in the bag so I suspect that water was added to increase the weight at the meat packing plant.

I don't really like eating or cooking meat, but my husband is kind of upset that he has lost so much weight on our mostly veggie diet, so I am trying to add meat once or twice a week.

catccc

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #27 on: May 04, 2015, 10:51:18 AM »
Don't worry.  The nugget of the chicken isn't susceptible to all those hormones and antibiotics.

ha, hilarious.

I've been vegetarian for almost 20 years now but DH is on the cusp of raising his own, which I will probably help process and eat.  not helpful.  Just rambling.

whiskeystache89

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #28 on: May 04, 2015, 02:24:40 PM »
Another thing to watch out for is how Organic can be a misleading label.  Part of the requirements is that the chicken eats a all vegetarian diet but this could mean that the chicken never foraged naturally and ate bugs and insects.

Homey The Clown

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #29 on: May 04, 2015, 02:32:00 PM »
We spend $3.50/lb for whole chickens that are raised in moveable pens. They forage on pasture, scratching and eating bugs as they should. They aren't organic, but organic mostly refers to the feed. I've got a 6 lb bird on the grill right now. It will make 3-4 meals. Tonight we'll eat the wings, legs, back (me), and most of the thighs. The breasts will make at least two meals, burritos with beans and rice, and chicken/rice or some other similar baked/stove top dish. $21 is an expensive chicken (you can get a fully cooked chicken at Costco for $6 or so), but I feel good about how our chicken was raised and processed.

jeromedawg

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #30 on: May 04, 2015, 02:47:13 PM »
Chicken prices seem to be going down.  I just picked up BS breasts for $1.57lb on Saturday.  We're ordering a 40lb box of BS Breasts from Zaycon for $1.69lb this June.  Both locations sell better quality than you'll get from standard grocery stores.  I like Sams, but their stuff is pumped full of broth to inflate the prices.  Meijer is our go-to store, and their stuff is alright.  You can get fresh BS breasts for $1.99.  We often buy the leg quarters for $0.80 a lb. 

A few weeks ago, Kroger has whole chickens on sale for $0.59 a lb.  I bought 4, cut them up, and then boiled the carcass to get all of the useable meat off.  I could/should have continued to make stock, but we don't use chicken stock, so last time it was wasted effort.  Either way, I calculated that I saved about $10 based on the final lb of each chicken part, based on standard prices that we pay.  Took me an hour from start to finish.  Not exactly the solid win that I thought it might be, but since I probably would have frittered away that hour doing something pointless, it was fine.

This will be my third time going with Zaycon as well. It's a really great deal and a good way to keep the freezer constantly stocked. Glad the prices went down to $1.69/lb this time around - I went ahead and got in on it just because of that. Just got in on the last round for $1.99/lb back in Feb too so I'll be stocked for a really long time. The first batch I had lasted probably over a year too.

otter

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #31 on: May 05, 2015, 11:11:50 AM »
No, you are not stupid, and it's not a dumb question. Selling price is not everything when it comes to food, especially meat.

I (for one) will spend what it takes to get good-quality meat that has good flavor and is, preferably, ethically raised or caught. I eat a veg-heavy diet anyway, and I think it is better to eat high-quality meat and less of it than to eat cheap meat and more of it.

katsiki

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Re: Am I Stupid for Being Worried About Cheap Chicken?
« Reply #32 on: January 10, 2018, 06:03:38 PM »
Chicken prices seem to be going down.  I just picked up BS breasts for $1.57lb on Saturday.  We're ordering a 40lb box of BS Breasts from Zaycon for $1.69lb this June.  Both locations sell better quality than you'll get from standard grocery stores.  I like Sams, but their stuff is pumped full of broth to inflate the prices.  Meijer is our go-to store, and their stuff is alright.  You can get fresh BS breasts for $1.99.  We often buy the leg quarters for $0.80 a lb. 

A few weeks ago, Kroger has whole chickens on sale for $0.59 a lb.  I bought 4, cut them up, and then boiled the carcass to get all of the useable meat off.  I could/should have continued to make stock, but we don't use chicken stock, so last time it was wasted effort.  Either way, I calculated that I saved about $10 based on the final lb of each chicken part, based on standard prices that we pay.  Took me an hour from start to finish.  Not exactly the solid win that I thought it might be, but since I probably would have frittered away that hour doing something pointless, it was fine.

This will be my third time going with Zaycon as well. It's a really great deal and a good way to keep the freezer constantly stocked. Glad the prices went down to $1.69/lb this time around - I went ahead and got in on it just because of that. Just got in on the last round for $1.99/lb back in Feb too so I'll be stocked for a really long time. The first batch I had lasted probably over a year too.

Can any of you guys familiar with Zaycon share any recent feedback?  I just found out about this company.  They are doing chicken breasts for 99 cents per pound right now for 40lbs.  I'm tempted to give them a try but that is a lot of chicken to experiment with!