Can chickens be raised like Kobe beef?

[Cara]

Here's a link to a UK supermarket that stocks them (you can order groceries to be delivered online there). They look a lot yellower in real life:

http://www.tesco.com/superstore/xpi/8/xpi52394868.htm

Here's some information from the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruetly to Animals) about them. They're not as radical as the Humane Society here, and their opinions are widely accepted and supported. They have a program called Freedom Food, which allows meat producers from approved sources to use their label on their products. It guarantees humane husbandry practices.

http://www.rspca.org.uk/servlet/Sat...newproducts&marker=11&articleId=1172248198069

ETA Here's a better link:

http://www.johnpettitbutchers.co.uk/products/chicken/4/

 

[dancingbear]

Some breeds of chickens have white skin, some have yellow. At least one has black.

I wouldn't think just corn would be adequate, either. I wonder if that's just what they finish them on.

 

[Cara]

I understand that, but in the case of a corn fed chicken the yellow skin colour comes from its diet:

Why do some chickens have yellow colored skin and some have white skin?

The yellow pigmentation in the skin of chickens is derived from xanthophyll, which naturally occurs in yellow corn. Chickens fed a high level of corn and corn gluten meal will have a naturally yellow colored skin. Chickens fed grains such as wheat, oats or barley that do not contain xanthophyll will not have yellow skin.

Because chickens taste like the feed they eat, an old fashioned chicken flavor will come from their organic vegetarian diet of corn and soybean flakes. Our chickens are never fed any animal fat or animal by-products so you get a true chicken flavor and taste in every ROSIE chicken you purchase.

 

[birdsofparadise]

The problem with your experiment is that it will probably lead to avian gout. The poor chicks get lumpy legs and feet and ultimately canʻt walk. I donʻt know if it would improve the meat any, but it sounds cruel.

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

Skin colour just like shank colour is controlled by genetics. Yes it can be influenced by diet but some birds have yellow skin to begin with. If they are raising cornish cross and they are bright yellow they have done it with diet. If they are raising heritage breeds they may have obtained it with genetics.

I tend to agree, if you fed ONLY corn you would have issues. I doubt they start them on corn, they would have too many losses in the early chick stage. They likely feed them more corn than most diets and add something to bring the protein up, like the soy mentioned on that site, then finish them on corn. There is another feeding way called Breise (sp) that is a milk and corn based diet, for very tender moist meat. So there the protein and other nutrients are made up by the high milk content.

 

[farmerbrown]

Kobe is a Wagyu and Angus breed together for US the US. The Angus helped then adapted to our weather better.
Kobe cows are feed beer and grain but don’t forget there daily brushings.

True Wagyu beef is out of Japan. It is very white (not red and not fat). The type of grain there feed is very different then anywhere else. There are Wagyus farms in the US but the stuff out of Japan is nothing like the US stuff.

If there fed pure corn I would think it would make there livers huge like in ducks.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Yeah the would have to finish them on corn as for a commercial producer to not feed soy or animal by-products would spell disaster for their operation. You have to have one or the other as they need some kind of protein when they are growing.

I could see when they are about 6 weeks old feeding them straight whole corn. They probably do this the last two weeks of production.

 

[Bossroo]

Hogs are fed a high percentage of corn as a staple... why is bacon white and not yellow? Beef are fed a high percentage of corn in the feed lot and are marketed as "corn fed"... why is their marbled meat (fat) white and not yellow? When I hunt pheasants in sugar beet fields their skin and fat is yellow, when I hunt them in corn fields, their skin and fat is a much more intense yellow. When any chicken is butchered and their innards removed, isn't their body fat yellow ( at least yellowish) no matter what their diet was? When a chicken with the genes for the expression of yellow is fed a corn diet, they will only have a more intense yellow color to it's skin and it's fat..

 

[Highlander]

A statement from the department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

What is "corn fed chicken"?

The term "corn fed" alone is not recognised by the EC Poultrymeat Marketing Standards. The only feed Special Marketing Terms (SMTs) for poultrymeat are "fed with x %….." (eg "fed with 50% corn") or "oats fed goose". However, the term 'corn fed' is commonly used, and is understood to mean that the feed formula given during the greater part of the fattening period contains at least 50% corn/maize. The fattening period is not defined in the regulations but is generally thought to be the latter half of the chicken's life.

In my opinion you pay a lot more for a corn fed chicken and I do not notice a significantly better taste and it is also much fattier.

 

[deb1]

Quote:
um...isn't she planning to eat those chickens? I don't think that I would want to be treated like a queen to only be eaten afterwards.