Farm Animal Welfare

Farm Broiler: Pre-Slaughter Catching Welfare

The catching and loading of broiler chickens for slaughter is one of the highest-risk welfare points in poultry production, involving multiple potential injury and stress events.

Key Facts

Traditional hand catching involves workers grabbing birds by the legs and carrying them inverted
Machine harvesters collect birds mechanically but can cause bruising and wing damage
A typical catching operation processes 30,000-50,000 birds per night
Injuries including wing fractures, dislocations, and haemorrhages are detectable at slaughter
Pre-slaughter mortality during transport ranges from 0.1-0.5% in standard UK production

Welfare Considerations

Catching is a high-intensity welfare event for broilers experiencing human contact for the first time at high density and often in darkness. Fear, injury, and social disruption are measurable welfare harms. Two-handed catching methods and mechanical systems designed to reduce injury, along with catching record monitoring, are welfare priorities for the industry.

What You Can Do

Support labelling standards that include catching method requirements
Ask poultry producers about their catching protocols and injury monitoring
Advocate for mandatory CCTV coverage in broiler houses during catching operations
Support research into less stressful harvesting methods
Choose higher-welfare chicken products from certified schemes with catching standards