What is Free Range Chicken?

From the age of Hang Tuah to the 1980's free-range system was the popular way to raise poultry in Malaysia. It produced meaty, gamey taste birds at a reasonable cost, using a reasonable amount of labor and providing valuable fertility to the land. Its also the main source of protein for the rural folks who does not have the capability to buy meat. Many chicken farmers raised less than 1,000 birds on short-grass pasture ("range"), for both chickens and ducks (back then this is a commercial scale chicken farmers).

With the rise of industrial agriculture and the development of the confinement broiler barn, this sustainable and profitable system was discontinued by means of withdrawing growers contracts. Left with no market or processing facilities the practice was abandoned within less than 5 years. However, even though the system was phased out here in Malaysia and some part of Asia, it has a continuing popularity in Europe, even to the point of having legislated standards. In France, in 2000, over 20% of all poultry (90 million birds!) was raised using the free-range system.

In Malaysia the awareness of raising chickens in free range chicken is still very new and very low. People are often confused with the term Free Range Chicken/ Ayam Kampung Ori/ Organic Chicken. All these three type of chicken is totally different and is focusing on different things and different outcomes and views.

The term Free Range Chicken is focusing on how we raised the chicken and in what condition. The term Ayam Kampung Ori is focusing more on what breeds of chickens that we raised. While Organic Chicken focusing on what type of feed that we give for the chickens to grow. You cannot compare these 3 types of chicken farming because they were raised for different types of customers.

Today I want to share the awareness of raising Free Range Chickens. To accommodate this ‘new awareness’ in poultry farming, this is some of the essentials in free range standard according to most farmers in Europe especially in UK.

Free-Range Poultry Essentials

- Maintain at least 150’ between skid houses (reban bergerak) and field perimeter fencing to minimize predation problems.

- Maintain at least 100' between each skid house to maintain flock separation.

- Move skids ahead 50' to fresh pasture as necessary, generally every three to four weeks or as needed to keep birds out of mud. Usually. any time the birds have trashed an area around the skid that is larger 5 feet it is time for a move.

- Expect the birds to range about 40' out from each skid.

- Remember: While feed savings will be realized from pasture usage the goal is not so much feed savings as to provide vitamins, minerals, and exercise for enhanced animal welfare and improved meat quality

- Chicken must be reared at least 75 days for them to develop dark muscle so that it could hold a ‘good’ amount of omega 3 in its meat.

- Chicken can start be freed to roam the field at the age between 2-5 weeks, depends on weather condition at the time of the year.


** please be noted that this is for free range chicken, not organic chicken neither corn fed chicken or ayam kampong ori.. The chicks can be selected from various species of chicken (ayam kg, ayam kg kacuk, ayam merah or even ayam daging-putih), what we did is to rear chickens in free range condition. In free range farming we are focusing on how we raised the chickens and the time needed to raised them.