hatchery in Mifflintown, and that all of its chickens and turkeys are grown on small family farms within a 90-mile radius of the Mifflintown plant. Empire claims that its quality control inspectors are "five times stricter than USDA inspectors", and says that its poultry also adheres to the following standards: Animal feed is all vegetarian. No antibiotics. No growth hormones. Animals must be traceable to the farm where they were raised. Animals are cage-free and free-roaming. Empire passes regular third party animal welfare audits, including those conducted by customers such as Whole Foods and Costco. In addition, Empire offers a line of Organic products. The company recently launched a "Green Kosher" marketing campaign. Kashrut and processing A team of 65 rabbis oversee the kosher slaughter process in Mifflintown. The rabbis live in on-site dormitories during the week, and the plant has its own mikvah and shul. Empire poultry is raised, slaughtered and processed in accordance with the rules of kashrut, and is certified by the Orthodox Union and Rabbi Yechiel Babad, Tartikov Rav. Until recently, KAJ from Washington Heights NY, have been one of the main Kosher supervisors on most Empire Products. KAJ pulled its Rabbinic supervision after it was not guaranteed tha with the inclusion of another Rabbinic supervision its strict Kosher protocols will be met . As part of the kosher production process, salt is used to cleanse blood from the animal. A result of this is that kosher poultry is preferred by some non-kosher consumers for the alleged "juiciness" provided by this brining. Cook's Illustrated regularly recommends Empire Kosher chickens and turkeys in part due to this distinctive taste. Distribution Empire products are available in national and regional supermarket chains including Trader Joe's, Shaw's, Star Market, Safeway, and Giant. Empire is also available at many Costco stores, and through a number of online grocers. It sells its Kosher Valley line exclusively for Whole Foods. In 2010, Empire acquired the Kosher Valley brand from natural and organic foods producer Hain Celestial Group. In March 2015, The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN) Hain Celestial Group, announced the acquisition of the remaining approximately 80% that it did not already own of EK Holdings, Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary, Empire Kosher Poultry, Inc. for a purchase price of $57.6 million, which included net debt that was repaid at closing. See also Impact of the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic on the