I've had chickens for over 15 years and have just started to raise them for food.

Raising 100s of them for food is a different ballgame than 5 pet birds who give you an occational egg but lots of coo's and sweet chips.

We decided on using chicken tractors for raising a few 100s of birds a year. They eat healthier when they get natural food, they are kept cleaner and though this year, they still got some store-bought feed, they are healthier meat for us.

We run the chicken tractors through the permacultured orchard where there are trees, strawberries and rows of grasses and clovers for them to feed on.

I was skeptical at first thinking domesticated birds could so well but they enjoyed the summer sun and twice a day moves to new scratching ground. The routine gave them plenty of variety of fresh clover, grass and bugs in their diet. We also add kelp to their scratch for totally tasty, nutrient dense eggs during the summer. Just move them 2 times a day with 1/4 the feed you would usually feed them, make sure they have plenty of fresh water and collect your eggs.

The hens made it to the barn for winter. I chose the biggest roosters to hang out with them and hope to learn about incubating eggs this spring. We also have a plan to grow 1/2 acre of yellow peas, dent corn, sunflowers and millet for bird "hay" as their feed for next winter.

All in all, I would add chickens as another dimension of permaculture since they have been valuable in keeping the orchard clean and bug free, they naturally fertilizing the area and give eggs endlessly.

To grow your own feed, use yellow peas for high protein, dent corn for starch, sunflowers for oils and proteins and millet. Bale this into hay and store in a dry place. You only need to crack feed for baby chicks, which falls to the bottom over the winter anyway so its easy to collect in spring. Mature birds will forage hay and gladly work to take out grains and sweet gren leaves. . .which keeps them busy. Dedicate 1/2 acre for growing hay food for 100 birds as winter feed. The only things left to do is add kelp for dense micro-nutrients and calcium for good shells and fresh clean water year round.