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GENETIC SELECTION HAS LED TO INCREASED GROWTH OF BROILER CHICKENS FOR CONSUMPTION.
According to research conducted by the University of Alberta, the genetic selection that has been implemented in chickens since 1946 and has since turned the poultry industry around worldwide, has caused the chickens we consume today to grow by as much as 400% in the last 50 years.
The intention was to create a chicken with huge thighs and breasts, with many layers of meat, capable of meeting the high demand for protein and also feeding a whole family for a minimum cost.
Martin Zuidhof, one of the authors of this research, explains that advances in technology allow for better genetic decisions. The trait of growth rate, performance and efficiency are fully heritable. And because the growth is really fast, the hens reach a period between 4 and 5 weeks for slaughter.
Related Note: Mortality in Birds
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (where this research was conducted), about 9.22 billion broiler chickens were produced in 2020. These chickens are usually raised in huge farms where they share their 40-day growing stage with tens of thousands of other birds. These spaces are not cleaned, which means that they remain all that time on their waste until they are slaughtered and a new litter of birds arrives.
