The Poultry Research Centre at the University of Alberta farm was an internationally recognized research, development, and learning hub. It began the Rare Poultry Conservancy Program in 1986 as a way to maintain heritage chicken breeds. In 2009/10, as a result of the global financial crisis, university funding was reduced, and every campus department needed to cut programs or find creative ways to finance them outside of the traditional methods. By 2014, the funding cuts posed a grave concern for the continuation of the heritage chicken program. Annual costs of CA$75,000 were required to maintain the flocks with very limited financial return. However, a leader at the Poultry Research Centre felt that the birds were important enough to develop a model where they could pay for themselves.