Raising backyard chickens gives you more control over how your flock is cared for and what goes into their daily diet. For many chicken owners, that’s part of the appeal, you can choose their feed, monitor their health and enjoy fresh eggs right from your own backyard.
But when choosing chicken feed, you may come across both organic and regular (conventional) options. What’s actually different between them, and does choosing organic feed make a difference?
What Is Organic Chicken Feed?
In Canada, “organic” is a regulated term. Feed sold with an organic claim must meet applicable Canadian organic requirements; it isn’t simply feed made with ingredients that sound natural.
For certified organic poultry production in Ontario, birds must receive organic feed, and organic poultry production involves requirements beyond feed alone.
For a backyard chicken owner, choosing certified organic feed can be a way to have greater control over the type of feed being offered to the flock.
What Is Regular Chicken Feed?
Regular or conventional chicken feed does not have to meet organic-production standards. However, that does not mean it is automatically less nutritious.
A properly formulated complete poultry feed is designed to provide chickens with a balanced combination of nutrients. Complete feeds are generally the simplest way to provide a backyard flock with the nutrition it needs.
So, the difference between organic and conventional feed isn't simply “healthy versus unhealthy.” A major difference is how the feed and its ingredients are produced and the standards they must meet to carry an organic claim.
What Should You Feed Your Backyard Chickens?
Whether you choose organic or conventional feed, the most important consideration is choosing a feed appropriate for your chickens' age and stage of life.
Chicks, growing birds and laying hens have different nutritional requirements. For example, laying hens require considerably more calcium for eggshell production than growing chickens, which is why using the correct life stage feed matters.
Fresh, clean water should also always be available.
Why Choose Organic Feed?
Some backyard chicken owners choose organic feed because they want greater control over how their flock is raised and what goes into their feeding program.
If your goal is to follow organic practices at home, choosing properly labelled organic feed is a more reliable approach than assuming words such as “natural” mean the same thing as organic.
It can also make the backyard-chicken experience feel more connected to your food you know what feed you're purchasing, you're caring for the birds yourself, and you're collecting the eggs they produce.
Does Organic Feed Automatically Mean Organic Eggs?
Not necessarily.
This is an important distinction for chicken owners. Simply feeding a backyard hen organic feed does not automatically make its eggs certified organic.
For poultry products to be marketed as certified organic, the birds and production system have to meet broader organic-management and certification requirements. Canada's 2026 organic standard, for example, requires organic poultry products to come from birds under continuous organic management beginning no later than their second day of life.
So if you're simply raising backyard chickens for your household, it's better to think of organic feed as a choice about how you want to feed your flock, rather than a guarantee that your eggs are certified organic.
The Benefits of Raising Backyard Chickens
For many people, backyard chickens aren't just about the eggs. Caring for a flock can help you become more involved in where your food comes from and give you more control over your chickens' feeding and daily care.
And whether you choose organic or conventional feed, good nutrition remains the priority. Chickens need a complete, balanced diet formulated for their particular stage of life.
Organic feed: Produced and labelled according to organic standards and a good option for flock owners who want to follow organic feeding practices.
Regular feed: Does not follow organic-production standards but can still provide complete, balanced nutrition when properly formulated for the bird's life stage.
Neither choice replaces proper nutrition. The best feed is one that meets your chickens' needs while aligning with how you want to raise your backyard flock.
Not sure which option is right for your flock? Visit Ritchie Feed & Seed and ask our team about Organic Chicken Crumb, Lozana Meal, New Chick Kabous, and other poultry feeding options. https://www.ritchiefeed.com/
