Broiler survey

[cassie]

1.Factory raised broilers have good living conditions~SD

I have spent the past several years living smack dab in the middle of commercial broiler country...the smells, the rotten carcasses, the dark and airless buildings in which the dust, ammonia and noise is at a horrible level is not good for animal nor man. I've talked with those who work there and it's among the most horrible jobs I can ever imagine.

And this is the video showing the improved chicken houses...

carefully edited to NOT show the dead birds that have to be collected each day, which is most likely why they are shown walking down the chicken house near the end, looking for carcasses~that is one of the jobs of those who work in these places..collecting the dead bodies each day.

2. Factory raised broilers are healthy~SD

See vid above and let me know if any of the birds in your flock can barely walk, staggering a few feet and dropping down. If you saw a human in that condition, would you think they were healthy?

3.Factory raised broilers are raised in humane conditions~SD

See vid above and define humane...and keep in mind that this is a video dressed up to promote the business. Imagine the vids that show it how it really is...watch Food, Inc and get back to me.

4.Factory raised broiler chickens are just the same as dual purpose chickens in terms of meat~D

Depends on if the DP birds are also raised in a factory. But, generally, no...the broiler birds are younger and the meat has less overall flavor than an older bird. Much like veal has a different taste than a beef steer butchered at the appropriate age. The meat texture, color and taste is completely different.

5.Factory raised broiler chickens are better than dual purpose chickens in terms of meat~ A

They have more meat per carcass and get to processing size quicker.

6.Factory raised broiler chickens are very disadvantageous when it comes to the quality of their meat~N/A

It's a trade off...more meat at a quicker rate, less taste and texture overall.

7.Factory raised broiler chickens will make you sick~A

Over a life of eating it or anything raised, made, or developed in a factory will eventually make you sick.

8.Factory raised broiler chickens are safe~D

See #7

For many years, I lived right down the road from several Foster Farms broiler houses in California. I had to drive right by them every day when I was going to school. The only time I ever noticed an odor was when the houses were being cleaned out between batches, and even then it wasn't bad. Never smelled any dead carcasses either. I am sure they had some, but evidently they were collected and disposed of promptly. The houses that I am familiar with were open air. When I left California, Foster Farms was in the process of constructing some of those enclosed climate controlled buildings, so things may have changed. As for the odor issue, I don't think that would ever be a problem there because there are a lot of things you can't get away with in California, and building a new facility that makes a big stink is one of them. There was a very large egg farm I drove by every day too. I was never inside, but from the road there was never any odor. As for getting sick from eating factory produced chickens, if that were true, I would have been dead long ago. Or at least very sick. I'm not.