Duck meat production welfare receives far less attention than broiler chicken welfare despite similar concerns about housing, growth rates, and access to water.
Duck welfare in meat production is among the most neglected areas of farm animal welfare - these birds receive a fraction of the research, regulatory, and consumer attention directed at broiler chickens, despite facing similar welfare challenges. Commercial ducks are raised in systems designed around chicken production systems rather than duck-specific needs, denying them the water access fundamental to their biology. The relative invisibility of duck welfare in the food system means consumers making welfare-conscious choices about poultry typically overlook duck entirely.