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Selection for fast early growth-rate, and feeding and management procedures to support such growth, have led to various welfare problems in modern broiler strains. [1] Welfare of broilers is of particular concern given the large number of individuals that are produced; for example, the U.S. in 2011 produced approximately 9 billion broiler chickens.
Smithfield Foods hog CAFO, Unionville, Missouri, 2013. In animal husbandry, a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO), as defined by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is an intensive animal feeding operation (AFO) in which over 1,000 animal units are confined for over 45 days a year.
Diseases can be avoided with proper maintenance of the feed and feeder. A feeder is the device that supplies the feed to the poultry. [8] For privately raised chickens, or chickens as pets, feed can be delivered through jar, trough or tube feeders. The use of poultry feed can also be supplemented with food found through foraging. [9]
In the U.S., the average feed conversion ratio (FCR) of a broiler was 1.91 kilograms of feed per kilograms of liveweight in 2011, an improvement from 4.70 in 1925. [18] Canada has a typical FCR of 1.72. [19] New Zealand commercial broiler farms have recorded the world's best broiler chicken FCR at 1.38. [20]
Worldwide, in 2005 production was 71,851,000 tonnes. From 1985 to 2005, the broiler industry grew by 158%. [1] A key measure of performance is the feed conversion ratio (FCR), the ability to convert feed into edible product. In 2018 the FCR of broilers is about 1.5, or 1.5 kg of feed to produce 1 kg of meat. [2]
Organic broiler chickens are reared under similar conditions to free-range broilers but with restrictions on the routine use of in-feed or in-water medications, other food additives and synthetic amino acids. The breeds used are slower growing, more traditional breeds and typically reach slaughter weight at around 12 weeks of age. [41]
A free range pastured chicken system. Pastured poultry also known as pasture-raised poultry or pasture raised eggs is a sustainable agriculture technique that calls for the raising of laying chickens, meat chickens (broilers), guinea fowl, and/or turkeys on pasture, as opposed to indoor confinement like in battery cage hens or in some cage-free and 'free range' setups with limited "access ...
The USDA reports that the United States is the "world's largest producer and second largest exporter of poultry meat." In 2010, it produced 36.9 billion pounds of broiler meat and exported 6.8 billion pounds of broiler meat. This equates to an estimated retail value of 45 billion dollars in 2010. [26]