The Danish government is seeking to ban 'turkey chickens' nationwide and is calling for a ban on this fast-growing breed across Europe. Previously, a large Danish chicken producer was accused of violating regulations, which sparked widespread outrage.
According to a documentary aired by Danish TV2 last week, manufacturer Christian Tevego violated Danish laws by only providing chickens with half of the sleep time they need each day in order to encourage them to eat more. The documentary included secret footage taken from a chicken coop in Nordjylland.
The Ross 308 variety is known as the "turbine chicken," and it is the most common breed in Danish poultry farming. It can grow from about 50 grams to 2 kilograms in just 33 days. Danish media reports that such rapid growth may lead to problems with the animal's bones and organs. Other chicken breeds take 46 to 63 days to reach the same weight.
Denmark's Minister of Nature and Animal Welfare, Christian Labiol Madsen, said that he advises Danes not to purchase turbo chickens. He told Danish TV2, "I hope to push for a national ban. But this obviously requires investigation from both legal and economic perspectives." He also said, "We will now promote a national ban, as well as a ban at the EU level."
Regarding this documentary, Tevego admitted that he made some wrong decisions. He told TV Channel 2, "I have reflected on myself, and I must admit that I made some wrong decisions. There is no excuse for this, but I can learn from it and correct the areas where I did not do well enough. I have already done this: both the lighting arrangements and the workflows, procedures, and schedules in the chicken coops have been improved."
The proposal to ban turbo chickens is gaining political momentum and has received cross-party support in Denmark. Industry experts warn that for any ban to be effective, it must also cover imported chickens.
Chicken producer Danbo’s CEO, Clement Hinkbeer Ribego, said: “If Denmark bans the production of fast-growing chickens on its own, while stores, restaurants, and consumers in Denmark can still continue to buy imported fast-growing chickens that are more or less of poor quality, we will be facing a situation where animal welfare will not improve at all.”
The UK's The Guardian believes that since fast-growing varieties are so common across the EU, this will mark a "milestone shift".
According to the ‘European Animal Groups’, 95% of chickens in the EU are raised in intensive systems, and they are bred to produce the maximum amount of meat at the lowest possible costs, leading to fierce competition. René Khemelers, CEO of the advocacy organization, said: ‘Fast-growing varieties are inherently vulnerable: their bodies grow too quickly, and they can hardly stand steady. Denmark’s decision to stop this practice is an example that the EU should follow, as it demonstrates the progressiveness required by the industry, and there is scientific evidence to support this.’
Danish animal protection organization CEO Britta Ris said that turbo chickens are the product of an 'extremely unethical and absurd breeding method', leading to 'systematic abuse and great suffering for poultry'. The organization calls for all chicken breeding cycles to be the same as those for organic breeds, which is 56 days.
In recent months, animal welfare has taken an important place in the public debate in Denmark. The issue of pig farming dominated the last election, which was dubbed the “Pig Election”.
