A Peek Behind the Scenes at Keegan-Filian Farm

I've you've eaten out at one of the nicer places downtown recently, you're probably noticed "Keegan-Filion Farm" chicken or pork on the menu.  The folks over at The Glass Onion have a nice profile of Mark and Annie Filion on their Soulfood Food blog.

It probably shouldn't, but it still surprises me when I read profiles like this that, even with as much success as the Filions have had getting their fantastic products into so many restaurant kitchens, it still isn't generating a whole lot of income (Mark Filion continues in a day job in industrial sales).

I have this notion in my head that we would all be better off if we ate half as much meat but paid twice as much per ounce in order to have the really good stuff.  For instance, instead of going to the grocery store and plunking down 5 bucks for a 3 to 4 pound whole industrial-farmed chicken you paid ten bucks for a high-quality, free-range chicken that had spend most of its life wandering around a grassy field and had actual flavor to its meat.   And, you stretched that high quality bird out over two 4-serving meals rather than one.

Could the economics works?  Could the logistics?  Is there even enough land around for farming that this would be practical if a significant number of people adopted the "pay more, eat less" mantra?  I mean, no one is going around America today suffering from a lack of protein in their diet.

I'll continue looking into it.  Until then, though, if you see Keegan-Filion chicken or pork on a local menu, do your palate a huge favorite and order it post haste.