The most unique duck you will find on the market, these Muscovy ducks have spent their days foraging on flooded rice fields, feeding on duckweed and other weeds in the rice fields, as well any and all insects they find in their path. The ducks spend their nights in “The Duck Shack”, a shelter to keep them safe from predators overnight. These ducks have been raised on an Organic Certified farm and raised using organic practices. Weight is approximately 3.5-4.5 lbs. This product is frozen.

Lopes Family Farms, Codora, CA – As a small rice farm, they are uniquely positioned to try new ways of farming that use less resources yet provide more food with the same land. This father-son team grows organic rice using ducks to lower their farm inputs. Rice and duck farming harnesses the power of the ducks’ little claws and their mobile little bodies. The ducks are working livestock on the farm, busily weeding, controlling pests, and fertilizing the rice fields.

Other rice farmers rely on the deep water method for suppressing weeds, where the water depth is too deep for weeds to get established. This method creates weaker rice stems, which will cause the rice to flop over when the water is drawn down, resulting in crop losses. The water is kept shallow enough so that the ducks gently scratch the soil while swimming, creating muddy water to prevent photosynthesis for weed growth. This has resulted in 1/3 of the water required to grow the same amount of rice! The rice stalks are also strengthened from the ducks regularly brushing against the rice stalks as they swim by, allowing the rice to stand tall even after the water level is drawn down.