Chickens are the most farmed land animal in the UK, with 1.1 billion raised and killed for meat every year. The Humane League UK argues that this is an unrivalled crisis in animal cruelty.
In the British Government’s animal welfare strategy they committed to supporting “voluntary efforts to move away from the use of fast-growing meat chicken breeds.”
Disappeared
Connor Jackson, chief executive of Anima International, said: “Any other explanation is BS. Frankenchickens pose the most serious animal welfare problem in the UK.
“These commitments created hope to resolve these issues, and abandoning these commitments is letting down not only millions of animals but a nation of animal lovers.
“Their commitments might have disappeared from these companies’ websites, but the animal welfare crisis in their supply chain has not gone anywhere.”
Tragic
Frankenchickens account for over nine in 10 chickens raised for their meat in the UK. They are bred to grow extremely large, extremely quickly, growing from chick to slaughter weight in just 35 days on average.
This unnatural growth rate maximises profit, but has severe welfare consequences including muscle diseases, bone deformities and burns from lying in their own waste.
Williams added: “Businesses should never be allowed to self-regulate, particularly in matters as vital as the treatment of sentient beings. It’s foxes guarding the chicken coop.
“This cartel of cruelty have completely shirked their duty to animals, and are patting themselves on the back about it. This is a massive backslide for animal welfare, and a tragic victory for factory farming.”
Allen Simpson, the chief executive, UKHospitality, said: “Consumer demand for chicken continues to soar. This demand comes at a time of acute chicken supply pressures and operators rightly have to ensure consistent and secure supply chains, while continuing to improve welfare standards and cut their environmental impact.”
Cruel
Lindsay Duncan, the UK farming manager at World Animal Protection, added: “We fear this new Sustainable Chicken Forum will make little improvements for the millions of chickens cruelly confined on industrial farms.
“The science-backed Better Chicken Commitment addressed the fundamental issues in chicken welfare by moving away from fast-growing breeds.
“Over 95 per cent of UK chickens are bred to grow so quickly, on industrial farms, they can barely support their own bodyweight. This causes immense suffering. If the industry does not move away from using these breeds, this cruelty will only continue.
“The backtracking of huge industry players shows a lack of responsibility and commitment to addressing the deeply cruel and harmful practices within their supply chain.
“It clearly shows that the industry won’t move forward without proper regulation. The UK Government must act now by banning fast growing chicken breeds and stopping the expansion of industrial chicken units across the UK.”
The Ecologist has contacted Nando’s, KFC, Wagamama and Burger King for comment.
This Author
Brendan Montague is an editor of The Ecologist.