by Liz Suozzo

I set out to visit Cold Spring Chicken Ranch on a clear, blustery February afternoon. The ranch sits on a 2.5 acre farm that has been in Tom Grystka’s family for generations.  Owners Tom and Donna Grystka sell eggs to River Valley Market under the name “Happy Hillbilly Chickens.”

Tom had assured me that I’d have no trouble finding his place, because chickens would be running around in the driveway.  Indeed, as I drive up Cold Spring Road, I saw the chickens even before I saw the house number on the mailbox. Tom came out to welcome me with a firm handshake, twinkling eyes and a wide grin.  A tall, lanky man with a gray goatee, his quiet manner masked a wealth of knowledge about all things fowl and a passion for sustainable farming practices.  For many years, Tom and Donna farmed and raised chickens for their own use. Tom’s primary source of income came from a family-owned building business, but five years ago, with a decline in that industry, Tom searched for a source of reliable income. Enter. . . the eggs.

Our first stop was a pile of moistened mulch.  Or so it seemed.  The mulch turned out to be mash, a grain by-product of the brewing process, which supplies nutrients and proteins to the chicken’s diet.  The mash is supplied by Opa-Opa Brewing Company in Southampton and varies in content, depending on which grain was used to produce the particular type of beer.

Picking our way over the ice and snow, we made our way to a sturdy lean-to. Cackling chickens rushed in to get a glimpse of the newcomer, and Tom pointed to several feed barrels. The feed, a mixture of corn, soybean and Omega 3-rich flax, came from Poulin Feed, a Vermont company that’s been in business since 1936.  In the winter, the chickens dine on other grain mixes to supplement those supplied by Opa-Opa and Poulin.  Cracked corn mixed with barley, oats or wheat make up ‘scratch feed;’ corn, barley, and/or oats comprise a homemade mash that Tom concocts in his basement.  In warm weather, the chickens supplement their diet with nutritious pasture greens-red clover, plantain, dandelion, dock and grass.

Next we visited the bedding pack, an unheated indoor pen roughly the size of a small bedroom. About 50 chickens and a few roosters raced around, chattering all at once.  Thirty small waist-high cubbies or “nesting boxes,” lined one wall and a third of another.  Padded with hay, these cozy nests are reserved for egg-laying hens.  Most of the eggs had been collected by Donna that morning, so only a few remained.

Tom pointed out individual members of his flock and rattled off their breed names: New Hampshire Red, Silver Lace Wyandotte, Ameraucana,  and Speckled Sussex (the latter breed gained notoriety in the 1947 film “The Egg and I,” with Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert). At one point, Tom grabbed a rooster who then protested, flapping his wings and squawking.  But Tom carried on in a quiet, calm voice, gazing directly at the rooster.  He explained that this rooster is unusually kind to the hens.  “He picks up bits of grains and brings them to the hens to feed on,” said Tom, looking at the rooster with a fondness that can only come from knowing one of his flock.

Tom’s inspiration to raise healthy chickens came in1992 after reading an article about Joel Salatin.  Joel practices radical sustainable farming methods on his farm in Virginia, and is featured in The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollan’s bestselling book about American food and agriculture. Each year, Joel offers seminars and tours to teach people what he practices:  environmentally-friendly, community-based farming (rotating and pasture-feeding animals, creating a plant-animal symbiosis). In 2004, Tom attended a workshop and discovered that eggs were his calling.

Today, Cold Spring Ranch supports 400 chickens and 48 ducks.  Tom, like Joel, believes that the way in which you raise animals affects the kind of food they’ll provide.  “It’s common-sense nutrition,” he explains.  Tom contends that pasture feeding is one of the major differences between his “family-friendly farm” and the farming of modern agriculture. “Because of their massive size and all the machinery that’s needed, it’s really not possible for them to put the animals out to pasture,” he explains.  “My paradigm would be holistic, and theirs would be financial.”

Tom’s small-scale operation is vastly different from an industrial farm. He allows his animals to run freely and to eat grasses and grains.  Hens lay eggs at their leisure, and he handles and feeds his animals with care.  Although this costs large quantities of his time and attention, he believes in the value of family-run farms.  “Financial gain is not a bad thing, but if you have to sacrifice quality to a greater degree in food, it doesn’t work out that well,” he says.  “Our way requires a lot of hands-on work.  We’re trying to make a number one, Grade-A product.”

So what do chickens need to produce a good quality egg?  According to Tom, they need clean food, clean air, clean water and clean pasture in season---just what we humans need.  (And this is exactly what he gives his chickens.)  Tom must be doing something right, because his eggs are delicious! As soon as the eggs are cracked into a pan, they roll around, their bright golden-orange yolks intact.  And once they are cooked, their taste is full and rich.

Tom credits River Valley Market with helping him stay in business.  Last winter, when grain prices were high, he was forced to increase his prices.  This left him with a surplus of eggs because businesses were choosing to buy from cheaper, non-local sources instead.  But the co-op, intent on supporting local family farms, was willing to pay his prices. Just before the store opened last April, Tom received a call from the Merchandising Manager at the co-op, Joanne Grisanti.  “[She] called me up and ordered 90 dozen eggs.  Three days later, she called me again and ordered 90 dozen more! If it weren’t for River Valley Market,” says Tom, pointing to his flock, “you wouldn’t see any more chickens here.”

Passing through the mudroom on my way out, I notice two straw baskets filled with eggs. The eggs, just collected this morning by Donna, range in color from soft shades of turquoise and brown to linen-white. The scene resembles a centuries-old painting, a peaceful image of life on a family farm.