Our newest vendor to the market, Bad Back Acres, comes all the way from Fort Payne, Alabama and is bringing his farm fresh chicken and duck eggs each week. What started as a backyard operation a few years ago has grown into a father-son passion that has the McElhaney family as happy as chickens eating watermelon. Michael and his son Brandon run the poultry operation and ensure their flock are cared for.

They are 4H certified and have their own nursery for their baby chicks. Along with local feed and kitchen scraps, they use spent beer grain from Big Frog Brewing in Redbank. Besides being resourceful with the feed, Michel has found a clever way to reuse his feed bags as he staples them up in the coop to add insulation.

They are very much concerned with the comfort and welfare of their chickens. Michael says, “As we like to say ‘Happy Chickens Lay Happy Eggs.’” They hope to have mushrooms, blackberries and raspberries for sale next year so be sure to stop by and welcome him and Brandon.

A great tip for boiling farm fresh eggs: Steam them, don’t boil them!

Steam eggs for 13 minutes then ice bath for 13 minutes. The shells come right off.