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Friday, January 13, 2017

Study: Slower-growing broiler production has faults

Study reveals negative sustainability implications of ‘slower growing’ raising methods; NCC supports more research on chicken welfare

The National Chicken Council (NCC) urges consumers, the foodservice and retail industries, and non-governmental organizations to invest in studying the impact in the U.S. of the growing market for "slower growing" broiler chickens.

A study released January 11 by the NCC details the environmental, economic and sustainability implications of raising slower growing chickens, revealing a sharp increase in chicken prices and the use of environmental resources - including water, air, fuel and land. NCC also calls for more research on the health impact of chickens' growth rates, to ensure that the future of bird health and welfare is grounded in scientific, data-backed research.

"The National Chicken Council and its members remain committed to chicken welfare, continuous improvement and respecting consumer choice – including the growing market for a slower growing bird," said Ashley Peterson, Ph.D., NCC senior vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs. "However, these improvements must be dictated by science and data – not activists' emotional rhetoric – which is why we support further research on the topic of chicken welfare and growth rates."
Environmental implications

In assessing a transition to a slower growing breed, the environmental impact is an important component often left out of the equation. If only one-third of broiler chicken producers switched to a slower growing breed, nearly 1.5 billion more birds would be needed annually to produce the same amount of meat currently produced – requiring a tremendous increase in water, land and fuel consumption:

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6 comments:

Anonymous said...

National Chicken Council?!?! See folks, this exactly what happens when liberal progressive activist get involved with things, the results of their intrusions are much higher cost to everyone else. All for the mental health over a chicken?

Anonymous said...

Sigh. 611. Could you be anymore dumb or lazy? NCC is NOT a gov organization. In fact its the exact opposite. A trade group that lobbies the gov for private industry.

Anonymous said...

either way get ready to pay more for less chicken and more pollution. Meanwhile a privately held company worth a billion dollars continues to pollute the environment robbing future generations of potential use!

Anonymous said...

This is their way of telling you to prepare for pricing increases - and if they don't do it - they'll reap higher profits.....

Anonymous said...

The NCC lobbies for industrial factory farming. We won't have "less" food. China will. Just about the only thing we export is meat because even China has the sense to not let their land become toxic waste dumps.

Anonymous said...

8:35 your are a IDIOT! Do you ever watch the world news???? China is the place where, in Beijing, the residents walk around with breathing mask on their faces! They have the worse pollution problem than anyone! So, to correct you they also raise chickens just can't produce enough for the population.