Ammonia from poultry litter causes significant respiratory welfare harm in broilers and laying hens. Effective ventilation management is a critical but underappreciated welfare intervention.
Ammonia exposure is a welfare harm that is largely invisible to consumers and underappreciated even within the poultry industry. Eye damage from chronic ammonia exposure — measurable through corneal pathology — affects a substantial proportion of commercial broilers. Respiratory inflammation increases susceptibility to infectious disease, compounding welfare harm. The welfare solution is straightforward in principle: effective litter management and ventilation reduce ammonia to levels that do not cause harm. The practical challenge is that intensive systems with high stocking densities inherently generate high ammonia loads that require active management. Higher-welfare systems with lower stocking density and better litter management inherently produce lower ammonia exposure, adding respiratory welfare to the list of benefits these systems provide.