Readers of this blog most likely recognize the name of Paul Bradshaw as the founder of Southern Strategy Group, one of the state’s most powerful lobbying firms. What they may not know is that Bradshaw is the owner of Greenfire Farms where rare breeds of chickens, such as the Indonesian Ayam Cemani, can sell for as much of $2,500.
And while Bradshaw’s name recently popped in the media because of his firm’s eye-opening second-quarter compensation report, the husband of former Jeb Bush chief-of-staff Sally Bradshaw, is getting national ink for his, um, taste in chicken.
Bradshaw and Greenfire Farms are highlighted in this month’s issue of Food & Wine, whose editor-in-chief Dana Cowin discusses Bradshaw’s passion in a second medium, this one on Yahoo:
“To be fair, it is an all black chicken,” Cowin 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.”
Collectors buy the bird because it’s exotic and beautiful. Cowin says you can collect the large, cream-colored eggs and eat them… but:
“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.”
