“Heritage breed” is a term we hear quite a bit, especially around this time of year, as Thanksgiving approaches and turkeys are being advertised. But what exactly is a heritage breed? Is it simply an old fashioned type of animal? Does the color of an animal's feathers or coat tell you whether it's a heritage breed? Is “heritage breed” just another one of those marketing buzzwords? Why don't all farms choose to raise heritage breeds? All of these questions are worth exploring, because while we absolutely believe in the importance of preserving heritage livestock, we also believe there is a place for improved breeds and crossbred animals in today’s agricultural landscape.
The term heritage breed is often used loosely, and that can lead to quite a bit of confusion. We support The Livestock Conservancy's approach to defining and identifying heritage livestock. Their criteria help distinguish breeds with a documented history and established characteristics from animals that simply look like the livestock our grandparents might have raised. In general, heritage breeds are traditional livestock breeds that have a long history, reproduce naturally, and retain the characteristics that allowed them to thrive before modern agriculture and intensive selection became widespread. An improved breed, on the other hand, is a breed that has undergone more intensive selective breeding to emphasize particular production traits. These might include faster growth, greater feed efficiency, increased meat production, higher egg output, or improved milk production. Where we tend to see confusion is when animals don’t look like the “commercial standard”. Take turkeys, for example. On our farm, we raise Broad Breasted Bronze turkeys. While 99% of the turkeys consumed by Americans each year are of the same breed (the Broad Breasted White), a turkey having black or brown feathers is not necessarily a heritage turkey. Likewise, an animal doesn't become a heritage breed simply because it is raised outdoors or on pasture. Breed identity is about genetics and history, not just appearance.
There is a very good reason organizations like The Livestock Conservancy work so hard to protect heritage livestock. Genetic diversity is an incredibly valuable resource. Over generations, livestock breeds have developed characteristics that allow them to thrive under different environmental conditions and management systems. Some are particularly hardy, some are excellent foragers, some tolerate heat or cold better than others, and some have unique reproductive or maternal characteristics. Maintaining a diverse genetic bank gives future generations of farmers more options. Agriculture is constantly changing. Climate conditions change, diseases emerge, feed availability fluctuates, and consumer needs evolve. Relying on a relatively small number of highly specialized breeds can leave our food system vulnerable. Preserving a wider range of genetics gives us the opportunity to draw on traits that may become increasingly important in the future. Heritage breeds are also part of our agricultural history. Many were developed through generations of farmers selecting animals that performed well in their particular regions and farming systems. Losing those breeds means losing a piece of that history, along with genetic traits that may never be recoverable. We believe that breed preservation is important, and we are glad there are farmers and organizations dedicated to it.
If heritage breeds are so valuable, why doesn't every farm raise them? The answer comes down to practicality and economics. Many heritage breeds were developed in a very different time than the one we live in now. They often have characteristics that make them particularly well suited to small scale, low input, or traditional farming systems. However, some are slower growing, less feed efficient, or produce less meat per animal than modern improved breeds. That doesn't make them inferior animals, it simply means the cost of raising them can be higher. As a small farm, we have to consider the economics of every animal we raise. Feed, processing, infrastructure, labor, and the amount of time an animal occupies space on our farm all factor into the final cost of production. We want to keep our prices as reasonable as possible for our customers, while keeping our farm financially sustainable so that we can continue producing food for our community for years to come. If choosing a particular breed means significantly increasing the cost of production, we have to weigh that against what it offers us and what it ultimately means for the customer. We don't believe that raising heritage breeds simply for the sake of being able to use the label is necessarily the best choice for every farm.
One of the tools we use when selecting livestock is crossbreeding. When two genetically different lines or breeds are crossed, their offspring can sometimes exhibit what is known as hybrid vigor, or heterosis. This is the phenomenon in which crossbred offspring perform better than the average of their parent populations for certain traits. Depending on the breeds involved, this can mean improved growth, fertility, survivability, hardiness, or overall productivity. Crossbreeding allows us to combine desirable characteristics from different breeds rather than relying on a single breed to meet every need. For example, one breed might offer excellent maternal characteristics and hardiness, while another brings faster growth and better meat production. A thoughtfully selected cross can help us capture some of the advantages of both. Hybrid vigor isn't guaranteed, and not every cross produces better results; it depends on the genetics involved and the traits being selected for. When done thoughtfully, crossbreeding can be an effective tool for producing healthy, productive animals that fit our farming system.
When we were deciding what breeds to raise, it all came down to one basic question: what is the best animal for our farm’s systems? Many factors were included in our decision making process:
Pasture suitability: We want animals that do well in a pasture-based environment. They need to be healthy, adaptable, and capable of thriving in Northern New York’s harsh weather conditions.
Meat quality and flavor: The quality of the food that we raise matters. We look for animals that produce flavorful, high quality meat that our customers will enjoy.
Productivity: An animal needs to be productive enough for raising it to make economic sense for our farm. We have to balance the cost of raising an animal with the amount of food it ultimately produces.
Growth and finishing time: This is a particularly important consideration for us. We need animals that reach a suitable finishing weight within a reasonable timeframe. We don't have the facilities to overwinter feeder animals, so a breed that takes considerably longer to mature is not a practical choice for our operation.
Ultimately, we look at the whole animal and how well it fits into our management system, rather than selecting based on one particular characteristic or label. We aren't opposed to heritage breeds, improved breeds, or crossbred animals. We simply want to select animals that allow us to raise good food, maintain high standards of animal care, and operate a financially sustainable farm.
We think sometimes the conversation around heritage and improved breeds becomes unnecessarily divisive. There is a tendency to view heritage breeds as inherently better or more desirable, while improved breeds are sometimes dismissed as products of industrial agriculture. We don't see it that way. Heritage breed preservation is important: maintaining genetic diversity, protecting rare breeds, and keeping traditional livestock genetics alive benefits the entire agricultural community. At the same time, improved breeds have a place in agriculture, too. Selective breeding has allowed farmers to develop animals that can produce food more efficiently and meet the demands of different farming systems. And crossbreeding gives farmers another tool to bring desirable traits together. There is no single breed that is best for every farm, every climate, every management style, or every customer. For us, the goal isn't to raise animals that fit a particular marketing category, it's to raise healthy animals in a system that works for them, produce delicious food for our customers, and keep our farm sustainable for the long term. Whether an animal is a heritage breed, an improved breed, or a cross of the two, what matters most to us is that it's the right animal for the job.
