Wish I could send you some of this nice weather. It is a balmy 75
degrees here today.
I can't disagree with your position at all. Chicken (and other
products are cheap enough to make not worth your time to grow your own.
But some of those products are so contaminated, not only with herbicides
and pesticides, but with fecal matter and other contaminants gained in
the processing that in the long run it almost makes it (and sometimes
does) worthwhile to spend that extra effort and money.
I no longer raise chickens because my wife has an allergy to chicken
feathers. So I had to stop raising my own. But the last time I checked,
day old or three day old chicks were still available in the local feed
store in the next town (9 miles away). And I can buy (at a higher cost)
locally grown and processed chickens that are a bit safer than Tyson's or
some of the others. And if I look in the right places, I might even be
able to pick up a live one to pluck myself should I get the urge. So,
yes it is still available here, but slowly dying out. And basically for
the reasons you delineated. Too bad.
--Dan in Sunny Puerto Rico--