Poultry: Animal Welfare

(asked on 2nd September 2026) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of UK-grown chickens in comparison with those farmed in other countries, particularly with regards to 1) animal welfare, 2) animal lifespan and premature mortality, and 3) food quality implications for humans on consumption.


Answered by
Stephen Morgan Portrait
Stephen Morgan
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This question was answered on 9th September 2026

As set out in the Animal Welfare Strategy, the government is considering how we can support voluntary efforts to move away from the use of fast-growing meat chicken breeds. The Department has not made such assessments of comparison between UK-grown chickens and chickens reared abroad.

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