Decades of selection for rapid growth in broiler chickens has created birds with chronic health problems. Transitioning to slower-growing breeds offers substantial welfare gains and is increasingly demanded by major food companies.
The broiler industry's single-minded selection for growth rate has created a welfare crisis hiding in plain sight. Fast-growing broiler chickens are bred to be so heavy so quickly that their skeletal and cardiovascular systems cannot keep pace with their muscle growth. The result is birds that spend significant time sitting on their hocks (causing painful contact dermatitis), unable to walk normally, and at risk of sudden death syndrome from cardiac failure. These are not occasional welfare failures but statistically predictable outcomes of the genetics themselves. The Better Chicken Commitment represents the most significant collective industry welfare initiative in the history of poultry farming, but implementation has been slow and voluntary. The welfare case for slower-growing breeds is overwhelming; the economic barrier requires consumer willingness to pay the modest premium for more slowly grown chicken.