Poultry Catching Welfare: Mechanical and Hand Loading at Slaughter (2026)

The catching and loading of poultry for transport to slaughter is a high-risk welfare period, with significant rates of injury from both traditional hand-catching and mechanical harvesting systems.

Key Facts

Around 1 billion chickens are slaughtered annually in the UK, all requiring catching and loading
Hand-catching teams typically work at night to catch birds in darkness when they are calmer
Mechanical harvesters use rotating fingers and conveyor systems that can cause bruising, fractures, and dislocation
In-house mortality during catching (birds crushed or suffocated) adds to the welfare burden of the catching process

Welfare Considerations

Hand-catching causes acute fear and struggling responses, with birds inverted (hung upside down) during loading — a highly aversive position causing wing and leg strain. Catching team skill and training significantly affects injury rates. Mechanical harvesting causes abrasion injuries and fractures from contact with harvesting machinery, particularly in birds with pre-existing leg disorders. The catching environment — dust, ammonia, other birds — is highly stressful. Low-catch-damage performance is achievable with trained staff and appropriate harvesting speed, but is not consistently monitored or enforced.

What You Can Do

Advocate for mandatory poultry catching training and welfare monitoring as part of food business operator requirements
Support welfare audit schemes that include pre-slaughter injury scoring at abattoir reception
Choose higher-welfare poultry products from systems with slower catching processes and better catching records
Raise awareness that the catching and loading process is a significant but underreported welfare issue in poultry production