City chickens keep Duluthians sustainable

• Chickens

Lindberg says raising chickens in your backyard has many benefits to cluck about. Submitted photo
• Cara Lindberg

Cara Lindberg

Talk about it

Raising chickens in your backyard has many benefits to cluck about

Local. Organic. Free Range. Sustainable. These are terms that we have been hearing more in the last several years, but what do they really mean?

Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans sustainability is a long-term maintenance of responsibility which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions. One way to look at sustainability as a whole is to recognize the “triple bottom line” — this term captures the relationship between economic, ecological and social successes. More simply — people, planet and profit.

One way some local citizens are reducing their collective carbon footprint is by raising their own chickens right at home. Duluth City Chickens is a group of individuals and families aho are licensed by the City of Duluth to raise chickens at home, right in their backyards. The one-year license can be obtained through the city clerk. The license cost is $10 and you must pass a mandatory inspection by the animal control authority. The mission of Duluth City Chickens is to promote responsible urban agriculture by establishing clear legal guidelines for raising chickens within the city of Duluth.

Duluthian Kyle Surrell and his family are reaping the rewards of raising their own chickens. It is a family affair for Kyle and his wife Kristen, stepdaughter Nikkala and son Kaden. “Everybody helps except the one-year-old, Kaden. He just chases them around from outside their cage. My wife Kristen is in charge of scrap food from the kitchen and my stepdaughter Nikkala is in charge of checking for eggs after school,” Surrell explained.

“We will feed them mainly scrap food from the kitchen. They like vegetables and most fruits. We just throw the leftovers in a coffee can and take it out. We also substitute in the winter by adding chicken scratch which is a mix of corns, seeds, and grains basically. You can make it yourself or buy it locally at Dan’s Feed Bin,” Surrell added.

One of the most important aspects to raising chickens is housing them. Surrell converted an old children’s playhouse into a chicken coop. The family’s three chickens have an indoor space of 4 feet by 5 feet and an outdoor run that is 4 feet by 8 feet. Surrell poured concrete around the outside area of the run so that nothing could dig its way in. Surrell said his biggest challenge was building the coop. “Figuring out the housing was the hardest for me. I think it is important to do your research before building your coop. You don’t want to do it twice!”

One of the misconceptions of raising chickens in the city is that they are stinky and noisy. This is generally not true. Hens are fairly quiet, other than a little singing; and roosters are not allowed within city limits. Keeping the coop clean will eliminate any odor. Chicken “litter” or manure is high in nitrogen and can be easily composted. Once it has broken down, it then becomes perfect food for the garden.

For the Surrell family, raising chickens at home provides many benefits. “They (chickens) are cheap and will basically produce your eggs during the year. We get about dozen eggs a week with a big slowdown in the coldest part of winter. Also, it keeps us a little closer as a family when we eat what we raise.”

There are many benefits to raising chickens in the city. For more information on raising chickens in the city of Duluth go to www.duluthcitychickens.org.

Cara Lindberg is the Board President of Sustainable Twin Ports. She lives with her husband in the Duluth area. Cara can be reached at lindberg.cara@gmail.com.

Tags: budge opinion, budgeteer