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In this June 20, 2017 photo, 9-day-old chickens eat a mix of corn and soybeans and drink water inside a chicken house north of Plumerville, Arkansas. Perdue has joined Tyson Foods to put in more humane ways to kills the birds. Photo: AP

US firm rolls out gentler methods to slaughter chickens in nod to animal welfare

Perdue Farms is rolling out gentler slaughter practises as part of its efforts to reduce trauma and discomfort for birds.

The company will increase its use of gas stunning, according to the first annual progress report on animal care released by Perdue on Monday. The process exposes birds to a gas mixture that renders them insensible to pain or distress before slaughter.

It’s the latest step in the poultry industry’s campaign to respond to consumers, especially millennials, who are increasingly concerned about animal welfare. The Salisbury, Maryland-based company, the fourth-largest US chicken producer, is pushing for better poultry care, improved relationships with its contract farmers and transparency with consumers, according to Chairman Jim Perdue.

“There are a lot of reasons for us to move forward on better care,” Perdue, whose grandfather started the company in 1920, said in a phone interview. “It’s good for the chicken, farmer and the meat.”

The company will introduce the gas stunning at a Delaware chicken plant in November and gradually implement it in all its facilities. The process is already used at its turkey plant in Indiana.

Ancho chile chicken thighs with tomato chutney. The rising preference by millennials for organic food and the humane treatment of animals is forcing companies like Perdue to craft humane treatment of chickens on their farms. Photo: Detroit Free Press/TNS

Discerning consumers are rapidly leaving their mark on US agriculture, whether it’s through surging demand for organic products, increasing focus on food that’s considered sustainable, or greater attention on animal treatment. The poultry industry has come under fire after reports from activist groups in recent years highlighted poor conditions for both animals and employees. Last month, Tyson Foods, the largest US chicken producer, introduced a series of measures to make its operations more humane.

Perdue has made several other recent changes to address bird welfare, adding more space, daytime light, windows in chicken houses, dark resting time and physical activity. The company has introduced incentives for farmers who adopt the practises.

“Not only is it the right thing to do for the birds, but it’s the right thing to do for the business, given the certain direction of the market,” Leah Garces, the US executive director of Compassion in World Farming, said in a statement. Perdue’s efforts will put pressure on other poultry producers to do the same, Josh Balk, vice president of farm animal protection at the Humane Society of the US, said.

Perdue is also continuing to study slower growing birds. The industry has been criticised for producing fast growing big birds with disproportionate top half for white meat. Some animal welfare groups have filmed birds that can’t walk under their weight because of faster growing.

While less than 1 per cent of Perdue’s birds are breeds considered slower growing, the company has been studying them for five years, evaluating health, growth rate, feed efficiency and meat quality, according to Bruce Stewart-Brown, Perdue’s senior vice president of food safety, quality and live production.

The so-called woody breast texture problem that’s appeared in some chicken meat doesn’t show up in slower-growing birds, and chefs say birds raised for longer offer enhanced flavour, particularly in broths, he said.

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