Rare Chicken Is Lamborghini of Poultry Cemani in central Java

[Glenda Heywoodo]

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  ‎JoAnna Mertz‎ to Glenda Heywood
  
  · 15 mins ·
  
  Rare Chicken Is Lamborghini of Poultry : "Its feathers are black. Its organs are black. Its meat is black. So it's very special, it's a rare breed chicken." How much would you pay for a chicken?
  Paul Bradshaw, a breeder in Florida at Greenfire Farms, sells chickens for $2,500...per chicken, that is. And $4,999 for a juvenile pair. Bradshaw says the rare Indonesian breed Ayam Cemani is “my most requested bird, ever.”
  It remains to be seen if there's a mainstream market for th...e bird. He’s the first U.S. breeder and doesn’t expect to have chicks available until early 2014.
  We asked Dana Cowin, editor-in-chief of Food & Wine, why this chicken costs so much.
  "To be fair, it is an all black chicken," she says. "So it's very chic. Its feathers are black. Its organs are black. Its meat is black. So it's very special, it's a rare breed chicken."
  The chicken is named after a village (Cemani) in central Java. The black coloring is the result of a genetic trait known as “fibromelanosis” and is also characteristic of Chinese Silkies, a black chicken treasured across China.Collectors covet this bird because it's beautiful, exotic and hard-to-get. Greenfire Farms says it was able to legally import the Ayam Cemani despite a current USDA export ban on importing live chickens from Indonesia. Their website says the “friendly” chickens are renowned in Asia “for the mystical powers of their black meat.” It’s traditionally eaten as part of various rituals. So while they are relatively cheap in Indonesia, the delicacy won’t have a chance to catch on in the U.S. until the Cemani are more widely available.
  Bradshaw expects that eventually the Cemani population will grow and the price will fall. Then the bird could be sold in specialty meat markets, especially Asian markets across the U.S.
  Cowin says you can collect the large, cream-colored eggs and eat them too. But she thinks the current price tag could cause some buyers to think twice before they slaughter this bird.
  "At $2,500 a pop, $5,000 for a pair, you're probably not gonna go eat that bird anytime soon," she notes. "The market is not large, but it's passionate. This guy [Paul Bradshaw] who has imported this breed...he has a higher demand for these chickens than any other chickens in his rare breed collection. So among the people who care... they do care a lot."
  For comparisons sake: Cowin notes you can get 15 run-of-the-mill chicks sent to you for about $85. And other special breeds – like the Chocolate Wyandotte – sell for $149 for a dozen. So the Ayam Cemani definitely stands apart.
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[Glenda Heywoodo]

FROM WIKIPEDIA
Etymology

Ayam means "chicken" in Bahasa Indonesia. Cemani refers to the village on the island of Java whence this breed of chicken originates.
Origin

The breed originated from the island of Java, Indonesia and have probably been used for centuries for religious and mystical purpose. The breed was first described by Dutch colonial settlers[1] and first imported to Europe in 1998 by Dutch breeder Jan Steverink. Currently, these breed of chicken are kept in the Netherlands, Germany, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. It is thought that Ayam Cemani may have also been brought to Europe by Dutch seamen.[2]
Description

Their beak and tongue, black comb and wattles; even their meat, bones and organs appear black. The blood of the Ayam Cemani is normally colored.[3] The birds' black color occurs as a result of excess pigmentation of the tissues, caused by a genetic condition known as fibromelanosis.[4] This gene is also found in some other black fowl breeds.[5][6] The roosters weigh 2–2.5 kg and the hens from 1.5–2 kg. The hens lay cream-colored eggs with a slight pink tint, although they are poor setters and rarely hatch their own brood. Eggs weigh an average of 45 g.[7]
In the past individual birds in the United States of America have been priced at $2500.[8]

Ayam Cemani

Cemani Hen​

Country of origin Indonesia

Traits​

Weight

• Male:
  2–3 kilograms (4.4–6.6 lb)​
• Female:
  1.5–2 kilograms (3.3–4.4 lb)​

Skin color Black
Egg color Tinted / light brown
Comb type Single

Classification

• Chicken
• Gallus gallus domesticus

 

[Fluffers]

love this breed

 

[Pyxis]

If anyone is interested, we have a thread for this breed here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/862688/the-american-cemani-breeders-club-open-forum

Also it's not true that they are poor setters and rarely hatch Here are two of my hens co-brooding.