Brooks Edmundson is a row crop farmer from North Eastern North Carolina and to help supplement his family farming operation he started raising broilers for Sanderson Farms. Brooks is setting the farm up in hopes that one day his boys will come back to the family farm to raise their own families.

His farm was one stop on the tour during the Chicken Media Summit held in the New Bern, NC area. Bio security is an extremely important aspect in keeping the birds healthy and our food supply safe. Before stepping into the barns we all suited up from head to toe. Wild birds and people are the largest cause of diseases in flocks. I chatted with Brooks after we got an up close and personal view of the life of a chicken farmer and he shared some more incite into his daily responsibilities caring for the birds and how he utilizes the use of technology to meet his goal of having a consistant 6 1/2 pound bird.

“We get these birds at several hours old and they are very cute and fuzzy. We keep them for 49 days. It’s a constant process of checking on, but everything is automated. It’s a great process for us. We’ve enjoyed it.”

“The system we use is hooked to the internet. I can sit hear and observe my whole farm from either my cell phone or when I’m on my tractor or combine I have my Ipad. I know everything that’s going on at all times.”

Listen to my interview with Brooks here: Brooks Edmundson

Check out photos from the event here: 2013 Chicken Media Summit Photo Album