Welfare During Poultry Catching and Transport

The catching and loading of broiler chickens for slaughter is one of the most acute welfare challenges in poultry production, causing injuries, stress, and mortality in millions of birds daily.

Key Facts

Fractures and dislocations from rough handling affect an estimated 5-10% of birds at catching
Mechanical harvesting machines can reduce injury rates compared to manual catching
Birds are typically caught at night when they are less active and visibility is lower
Transport journey duration affects stress, injury, and pre-slaughter mortality rates
Death on arrival rates at slaughter plants are used as a welfare indicator in auditing

Welfare Considerations

The catching, crating, loading, transport, and lairage of poultry constitutes a sequence of highly stressful events for animals that have no understanding of what is happening. Manual catching by teams working through large barns in hot conditions often involves rough handling that causes wing fractures, dislocations, and internal haemorrhaging. Birds are inverted and carried by their legs, a posture that causes pain. Mechanical harvesters that scoop birds onto conveyor belts without inversion have shown reduced injury rates in controlled comparisons.

What You Can Do

Advocate for mechanical harvesting standards in large commercial broiler operations
Support welfare labelling that includes catching and transport method information
Ask retailers to require journey time limits and death-on-arrival monitoring from suppliers
Reduce or eliminate consumption of intensively farmed chicken
Support research into minimally stressful catching and transport methods