Commercial turkey production intensifies dramatically before Thanksgiving and Christmas, with welfare compromises from accelerated growth rates and stocking density increases during peak demand periods.
Commercial turkey production has created animals so intensively selected for rapid breast muscle growth that many cannot walk, mate naturally, or live comfortably in their own bodies. The welfare cost is most visible at peak production periods when already-compromised birds are pushed through accelerated growth cycles to meet holiday demand. The genetic reform of commercial turkey lines to reduce growth-related welfare problems is technically achievable and practiced in heritage breeds — the barrier is cost and consumer demand for faster-growing cheaper birds.