The Mail-Journal, Volume 6, Number 52, Milford, Kosciusko County, 28 January 1970 — Page 36

Duck is a gourmet dish

Maple Leaf Farms turns 'Ugly Duckling’ into world market

The Maple Leaf Farms. Inc., located in the New Salem community in the Lakeland area, is one of the world s largest duck processors They are processing 10.000 ducks per day on a five-day week — figure it out. that’s over two and a half million ducks a year — and there’s not an ugly one in the lot. Maple Leaf Farms was started in 1958 by the late Don Wentzel of Chicago During its first year 300.000 ducklings were produced for a Midwestern market. The company will put on the market nearly 20 per cent of the ducks processedjhis year, all this in 13 short years. The local company has helped make duck a world famous gourmet dish One of its best markets is in Hong Kong where stuffed ducks feet are a hors d’oeuvre. There are 160 people employed at Maple Leaf Farms in its peak

Maple Leaf Farms, Inc. is PROUD TO BE A PART OF THE Lakeland Community

We Invite Your Inspection Os Our Modern Duck Processing Plant ASSISTING 30 AREA FARMBS IN SUPPLYING 45 STATES AND A WORLD MARKET WITH QUALITY DRESSED DUCKS (We’ll Process 2% Million Ducks In The Year 1970) ■ * Maple Leaf Farms, Inc. PHONE: 658-4121 RJt 1, MILFORD, IND.

season, processing the ducks raised on about 25 area farms. The day-old ducks are bought from hatcheries and placed with area fanners in flocks of from 1,000 to 10,000 and each farmer will maintain four flocks of different age ducklings. The baby ducks spend the first week and a half in a starter building and the next two weeks in an advanced environment, with the remainder of their life on an open rage with a concrete pool in which to swim. Fifteen thousand tons of pelleted feed is purchased annually from local commercial feed manufacturers to feed these chicklings When the ducklings are seven weeks old and weigh 6 1 ? pounds, they are delivered to the processing plant at Maple Leaf where they are processed in a modern plant with freezing facilities. The ducks are processed under

the Maple Leaf brand as well as labeled for national chain stores like National Tea Company, Safeway Stores and others. The company maintains its own sales force and has offices in Chicago and San Francisco, with distribution in the continental U.S. and abroad. The company’s market includes 45 states, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico. South America, Europe and Japan. The company states every part of the duck is sold except the quack. Duck feathers are used in fine furniture, sleeping bags and arctic military uniforms. Fifty per cent of the feathers are exported to Germany for use in feather ticks and pillows. Visceral are frozen and sold for mink feed in Wisconsin and Michigan. With the passing of Don Wentzel. Mrs. Wentzel became president and treasurer, and Brooks C. Pinnick as secretary.

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