CHICKEN PRICE TAG

The $1.00 per pound you might pay for chicken at the supermarket reveals little about the many social and environmental issues behind its production, processing, and distribution.

CHICKEN COST TAG

Mileage

1,000 miles. Chicken production is centralized in Maryland and Arkansas where large corporations dominate.

Genetic diversity

90% of the 7.5 billion meat birds produced in the U.S. are “commercial broilers” based on limited genetic stock.

Social cost

Small farms throughout the U.S. once provided chickens for local markets; today fewer than 40 corporations produce 97% of the chickens consumed. Corporate control and large markets magnify potentially small food safety issues into significant health risks for large numbers of people. To keep pace with economic conditions, workers in poultry plants now handle up to 91 carcasses a minute. This has led to dramatic increases in repetitive motion injuries.

Environmental impact

Centralized production and processing means large concentrations of manure and offal, creating water pollution and odor problems.

What can you do?

Buy chicken directly from local farmers who have their birds processed at state certified facilities. Seek out farms that use natural, humane production practices, such as pasture systems. “Pastured poultry” is a promising form of small-scale agriculture, and many proponents claim the meat from pasture-raised birds is better tasting and more nutritious than conventionally raised birds.

Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, UW-Madison
1450 Linden Drive
Madison, WI 53706
(608) 262-5200
www.wisc.edu/cias/

copyright 2000, UW Board of Regents