The St. Louis FFA members traveled to Munsell’s Poultry Processing for the 2024 Michigan Broiler Contest Friday, Nov. 8.
Before traveling to this broiler event, months of previous work in raising chickens for the event took place at Saint Louis High School. There were three teams of students, with each one responsible for a pen of chickens, and FFA members had to keep accurate records of feed and water intake, as well as the weights of their chickens.
After the chicken raising process was completed, FFA traveled to the processor where the chickens were harvested, and the meat was collected. The best birds of all the flock were presented, during which a designated speaker provided an oral presentation on the birds. These presentations included information such as how they were fed, how the FFA members set up the pens, and more details regarding the entire process. Judges then gave insight on the poultry with what could be improved, and the reports were submitted for the competition.
“Overall, it was a fun event. The worst part was probably waiting for the meat to cool down to the right temperature for packaging. We learned a lot, and I think the overall shape of the birds and process we took was better than my sophomore year. I’m excited to see how the teams place,” said FFA member Rebekah Ross.
Michigan Broiler Contest participant Branden Dill also shared his thoughts regarding the event: “It’s a fun and creative process. It gets people out of school for the day, but the event also helps people learn more about agriculture and what comes with it. The people who live in the city, or don’t have the chance to have animals, get to know what it’s like to take care of them every day.”
