Food and Drink - July/August 2011 - (Page 88) >p PRODUCERS Vande Bunte Eggs Colony Condos Vande Bunte Eggs is leading the way in the egg industry by keeping its hens in more spacious and productive surroundings. By Russ Gager eing free-ranging sounds good if you’re a cowboy with a gun, but if you’re a hen, there are dangers. That is why Vande Bunte Eggs, which is part of Konos Inc., is the first company in Michigan converting its 16 barns of nearly 2 million egg-laying hens to new colony-enriched housing. “Colony-enriched is a real blend between giving the hens the ability to exhibit their natural behavior and relieving company profile aggression, but also keeping them safe from themselves, from predators and keeping them diseaseVande Bunte Eggs free,” Vice President of Operations Rob Knecht www.vandebunteeggs.com Headquarters: Martin, Mich. says. “The hens win because they are in a much Specialty: Eggs better environment, and you as a consumer win Rob Knecht, vice president of operations: “It’s a very unique because you get a better and safer egg.” time to be in the industry and The colony-enriched housing system encloses a incredibly fun.” group of hens in cages that measure approximately 88 food & drink • july/august 2011 • www.fooddrink-magazine.com << The Humane Society of America has signed off on requiring all hens to have colony-enriched housing by 2029, and Vande Bunte Eggs already is ahead of curve. B 12 feet by 6 feet and are about 2 feet high. It provides easy access to water and feed, allows the birds to stretch out their wings, use scratching pads and lay eggs in a more private, darker area. At the end of each row of perches is a box with red plastic flaps where the hens lay their eggs, and each hen has a perch on which it can sit. “When they’re free-range, they can be exposed to predators and disease,” Knecht points out. “In nature, they’re also exposed to wild birds, which carry the bird flu along with a myriad of other diseases. Egg-laying hens by nature are http://www.fooddrink-magazine.com Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food and Drink - July/August 2011 Food and Drink - July/August 2011 Contents News a la Carte Consumer Trends Social Media 101 Strengthening Brands Food Law Producers: Hidden Pandemic Independent Distillers S. Martinelli & Co. Wyandot Inc. Berto’s Gelato & Sorbet DairiConcepts Gills Onions LLC Neri’s Bakery Products Inc. Ramar Foods International Banks Holdings Ltd. Leclerc Foods USA Inc. Mariani Packing Co. Inc. Sam A. Lupo & Sons Inc Faribault Foods Inc. Suiza Dairy Corp. Sunset Farm Foods Vanns Spices Berner Food & Beverage Inc. Cajun Specialty Meats Inc. Cristalia Premium Water Green Organic Vegetable Inc. Vande Bunte Eggs Motivatit Seafoods LLC Pak-Sher Navarro Pecan Co. Alpine Meats West Liberty Foods LLC Wilber Packing Co. LLC Restaurants: Tax Incentives Cheeburger Cheeburger Restaurants Inc. Famous Famiglia Grand Traverse Pie Co. HuHot Mongolian Grills LLC Glacier Restaurant Group Jake’s Wayback Burgers Original Tommy’s World Famous Hamburgers Sam & Louie’s Pizzeria Flippers Pizzeria Larry’s Giant Subs Mario’s Pizza Shake’s Frozen Custard The Fish Market Distributors: A Package Deal Diaz Foods Arista Industries CarbAmericas Columbia Distributing Allied Specialty Foods Fresher Than Fresh Golden Valley Industries Lancaster Foods LLC Milne Fruit Products Retailers: SBA at the NRA Cooke’s Food Store Gulf Island Shrimp and Seafood New Leaf Community Markets Three Things Food and Drink - July/August 2011 http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_20110708 http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_20110506 http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2011summer http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2011spring http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2010winter http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2010fall http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2010summer http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2010springsummer http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2010spring http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/businessmedia/fd_2010winterspring http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/schofield/fd_2009winter http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/schofield/fd_2009fall http://www.nxtbookMEDIA.com
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