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Poultry farming is the practice of raising poultry, such as chickens, turkeys, ducks geese, as a subcategory of animal husbandry, for the purpose of farming meat or eggs for food. The vast majority of poultry are farmed using factory farming techniques, according to the Worldwatch Institute, 74 percent of the world's poultry meat, and 68 percent of eggs are produced this way.^[1] Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... // Domesticated ducks Domesticated ducks are raised for meat, eggs and down. ... Domesticated geese are descendants of wild geese now kept as poultry. ... Shepherd with his sheep in Făgăraş Mountains, Romania. ... Farming, ploughing rice paddy, in Indonesia Agriculture is the process of producing food, feed, fiber and other desired products by cultivation of certain plants and the raising of domesticated animals (livestock). ... The factual accuracy of part of this article is disputed. ... The Worldwatch Institute is an environmental research organisation in the United States. ...

The contrasting method of poultry farming is free range, and friction between these two main methods has led to long term issues of ethical consumerism. Opponents of factory farming argue that it harms the environment and creates health risks, as well as abusing the animals themselves.^[2][3][4] In 2002, the United Kingdom also investigated the state of its own poultry farming methods with aims to investigate "animal welfare standards."^[5] The Vegetarian Economy and Green Agriculture (VEGA) research group also states that factory farming of poultry in South-East Asia is a key cause of Avian flu.^[6] However the same has also been said of free-range farming.^[7] Free range is a method of farming husbandry where the animals are permitted to roam freely instead of being contained in small sheds. ... Ethical consumerism is buying things that are made ethically. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... For the current concern about the transmission of an avian flu to humans see Transmission and infection of H5N1. ...

In return, proponents of factory farming highlight its increased productivity; stating that the animals are looked after in state-of-the-art confinement facilities and are happy;^[8] that it is needed to feed the growing global human population; and that it protects the environment.^[9]

Techniques

Free range

Free Range Chickens being fed outdoors.

Main article: Free range

Free range poultry farming consists of poultry permitted to roam freely instead of being contained in any manner. The principle is to allow the animals as much freedom as possible, to live out their instinctual behaviors in a reasonably natural way, regardless of whether or not they are eventually killed for meat. In the UK, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says that a free range chicken must have daytime access to open-air runs during at least half of their life. Unlike in the United States, this definition also applies to eggs. The European Union regulates marketing standards for egg farming which specifies a minimum condition for Free Range Eggs states that "hens have continuous daytime access to open-air runs, except in the case of temporary restrictions imposed by veterinary authorities".^[10] Image File history File links Freerangechickens. ... Image File history File links Freerangechickens. ... Free range is a method of farming husbandry where the animals are permitted to roam freely instead of being contained in small sheds. ... Instinct is the inherent disposition of a living organism toward a particular behavior. ... The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is the United Kingdom government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in England. ...

Yarding

Main article: Yarding

Ducks and other poultry

While often confused with free range farming, yarding is actually a separate method by which a hutch and fenced off area outside are combined when farming poultry. The distinction is that free-range poultry are either totally unfenced, or the fence is so distant that it has little influence on their freedom of movement. This is common technique used by small farms in the Northeastern portion of the US. Daily releases out of hutches or coops allows for instinctuial nature for the chickens with protections from predators. The hens usually lay eggs either on the ground of the coop or in baskets if provided by the farmer. This technique can be complicated if used with roosters though, mostly because of difficulty getting them into the coop and to clean the coop while it is inside. This territorial nature is apparent while outside in which they have a brood of hens and sometimes even informal land claims. This can endanger people unaware of the existence of the territories who are attacked by the larger birds. In poultry keeping, yarding is the practice of providing the poultry with a fenced yard in addition to a poultry house. ... Download high resolution version (1600x1080, 195 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1600x1080, 195 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

Factory farming

Warehouses in which chickens are confined in a "concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO).

In factory (also known as battery) poultry farming, particularly for eggs, birds are kept in rows of cages, with their environment, ventilation, heating and lighting are dictated automatically.^[11] Extra lighting can be added beyond normal daylight hours to facilitate more egg production, and extra hormones and growth stimulants are added to the feed to encourage egg production or weight gain depending on whether the birds are being farmed for eggs or meat.^[6] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Advantages and disadvantages

Agriculture General Agribusiness · Agriculture Agricultural science · Agronomy Animal husbandry Extensive farming Factory farming · Free range Green Revolution History of agriculture Industrial agriculture Intensive farming · Organic farming Permaculture Sustainable agriculture Urban agriculture Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 644 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (900 × 838 pixel, file size: 187 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... In agriculture, agribusiness is a generic term that refers to the various businesses involved in the food production chain, including farming, seed, agrichemicals, farm machinery, wholesaling, processing, distribution, and retail sales. ... Agricultural science is a broad multidisciplinary field that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic, and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. ... Agronomy is a branch of agricultural science that deals with the study of crops and the soils in which they grow. ... Shepherd with his sheep in FăgăraÅŸ Mountains, Romania. ... The small pig farm in Swiss mountains. ... The factual accuracy of part of this article is disputed. ... Free range is a method of farming husbandry where the animals are permitted to roam freely instead of being contained in small sheds. ... The Green Revolution is a term used to describe the worldwide transformation of agriculture that led to significant increases in agricultural production between the 1940s and 1960s. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... These female brood sows are confined most of their lives in gestation crates too small to enable them to turn around. ... Intensive Farming Intensive agriculture is an agricultural production system characterized by the high inputs as relative to land area (as opposed to extensive farming). ... Organic farming is a form of agriculture which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, plant growth regulators, and livestock feed additives. ... Permaculture Mandala summarising the ethics and principles of permaculture design. ... It has been suggested that Small-scale agriculture be merged into this article or section. ... Urban (or peri-urban) agriculture is the practice of agriculture (including crops, livestock, fisheries, and forestry activities) within or surrounding the boundaries of cities. ... Particular Aquaculture · Dairy farming Grazing · Hydroponics · IMTA Intensive pig farming · Lumber Maize · Orchard Poultry farming · Ranching · Rice Sheep husbandry · Soybean System of Rice Intensification Wheat Workers harvest catfish from the Delta Pride Catfish farms in Mississippi General Agribusiness · Agriculture Agricultural science · Agronomy Animal husbandry Challenges of industrial farming Extensive farming Factory farming · Free range Green Revolution History of agriculture Industrial agriculture Industrial agriculture (animals) Industrial agriculture (crops) Intensive farming · Organic farming Permaculture Sustainable agriculture Zero... Dairy farming is a class of agricultural, or more properly, an animal husbandry enterprise, raising female cattle, goats, or other lactating animals for long-term production of milk, which may be either processed on-site or transported to a dairy for processing and eventual retail sale. ... Grazing To feed on growing herbage, attached algae, or phytoplankton. ... NASA researcher checking hydroponic onions with Bibb lettuce to his left and radishes to the right Example of Autotrophic Metabolism [1] Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions instead of soil. ... Harvesting of kelp (Saccharina latissima, previously known as Laminaria saccharina) cultivated in proximity to Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) at Charlie Cove, Bay of Fundy, Canada. ... These female brood sows are confined most of their lives in gestation crates too small to enable them to turn around. ... Timber in storage for later processing at a sawmill Lumber or Timber is a term used to describe wood, either standing or that has been processed for use—from the time trees are felled, to its end product as a material suitable for industrial use—as structural material for construction... “Corn” redirects here. ... A community apple orchard originally planted for productive use during the 1920s, in Westcliff on Sea (Essex, England) An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs maintained for food production. ... This article is about a type of land use and method of raising livestock. ... For other uses, see Rice (disambiguation). ... Australian Sheep Sheep husbandry is the raising and breeding of domestic sheep. ... Binomial name (L.) Merr. ... The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) is a method of increasing the yield of rice produced in farming. ... Species T. aestivum T. boeoticum T. compactum T. dicoccoides T. dicoccon T. durum T. monococcum T. spelta T. sphaerococcum T. timopheevii References:   ITIS 42236 2002-09-22 For the indie rock group see: Wheat (band). ... Issues Animal rights · Animal welfare Antibiotics Battery cage · Biosecurity · BSE Crop rotation Ethical consumerism Environmental science Foie gras Foodborne illness Foot-and-mouth disease Genetically modified food Gestation crate Growth hormone Pesticide Veal crates Water conservation Weed control For the album by Moby, see Animal Rights (album). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... An antibiotic is a drug that kills or slows the growth of bacteria. ... Battery Cage is an American electronic music project led by Tyler Newman. ... A biosecurity guarantee attempts to ensure that ecologies sustaining either people or animals are maintained. ... Classic image of a cow with BSE. Source: APHIS Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is a fatal, neurodegenerative disease of cattle, which infects by a mechanism that surprised biologists upon its discovery in the late 20th century. ... Satellite image of circular crop fields in Haskell County, Kansas in late June 2001. ... Ethical consumerism is buying things that are made ethically. ... Environmental science is the study of the interactions among the physical, chemical and biological components of the environment; with a focus on pollution and degradation of the environment related to human activities; and the impact on biodiversity and sustainability from local and global development. ... Pâté de foie gras (right) with pickled pear. ... A foodborne illness (also foodborne disease) is any illness resulting from the consumption of food. ... Not to be confused with hand, foot and mouth disease. ... Genetically Modified (GM) foods are produced from genetically modified organisms (GMO) which have had their genome altered through genetic engineering techniques. ... Female pigs used for breeding are confined in 7 ft by 2 ft gestation crates for most of their lives. ... Growth hormone (GH or somatotropin) is a 191-amino acid, single chain polypeptide hormone which is synthesised, stored and secreted by the somatotroph cells within the lateral wings of the anterior pituitary gland, which stimulates growth and cell reproduction in humans and other animals. ... A cropduster spreading pesticide. ... Veal is the meat of young calves (usually male) appreciated for its delicate taste and tender texture. ... Water conservation refers to reducing use of fresh water, through technological or social methods. ... Weed control, a botanical component of pest control, stops weeds from reaching a mature stage of growth when they could be harmful to domesticated plants, sometimes livestocks, by using manual techniques including soil cultivation, mulching and herbicides. ... Large corporations Bernard Matthews Cargill ContiGroup Companies Maple Leaf Foods Monsanto Philip Morris Smithfield Foods Tyson Foods Wayne Farms Bernard Matthews is a food processing company headquartered in Norwich, Norfolk, with 57 farms throughout Norfolk, Suffolk and Lincolnshire [1]. They produce and market turkey and other meat products, oven-ready turkeys, day-old turkeys, fish products and other poultry products. ... Cargill, Incorporated is a privately held, multinational corporation, and is based in the state of Minnesota in the United States. ... Formed in 1813, ContiGroup Companies, Inc (CGC) was originally founded by Simon Fribourg in Arlon, Belgium as a grain-trading firm. ... Maple Leaf Foods TSX: MFI is a major Canadian food processing company. ... The Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) is a multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation. ... Altria Group, Inc. ... Smithfield Packing Company was founded in 1936 by Joseph W. Luter and his son Joseph W. Luter, Jr. ... Tyson Foods, Inc. ... Formerly operating under Allied Mills, the Poultry Division of ContiGroup Companies, Wayne Farms LLC is the sixth largest vertically integrated producer and processor of poultry in the United States. ... Categories Agriculture by country Agriculture companies Agriculture companies, U.S. Biotechnology Farming history Livestock Meat processing Poultry farming Agropedia Portal

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Free range

Advantages

Free range poultry farming has the advantage of enabling the poultry to move around, foraging for their natural diet and living in more cleanly conditions than in battery farming. In some farms, the manure from free range poultry can be used to benefit crops.^[12]

Disadvantages

The practical construction of a free range poultry farm can present more problems than the battery alternative. Finding suitable land with adequate drainage to minimise worms and coocidial oocysts, suitable protection from previaling winds, good ventilation, access and protection from predators can be difficult.^[13] Excess heat, cold or damp can have a harmful effect on the animals and their productivity.^[13] Unlike battery farms, free range farmers have little control over the food their animals come across which can lead to unreliable productivity.^[13] For other uses, see Worm (disambiguation). ...

Free range farming in the UK, which accounts for 26% of production,^[6] has come under similar criticism as battery farming in terms of animal welfare. This is due to the social abnormalities of having large numbers of birds in an outdoor space.^[6] Beak trimming due to cannibalism and infighting is common in this form of poultry farming as well as in batteries. Diseases are common and the animals are vulnerable to predators.^[6] In South-East Asia, a lack of disease control in free range farming has been associated with outbreaks of Avian flu.^[7] For the current concern about the transmission of an avian flu to humans see Transmission and infection of H5N1. ...

Factory farming

Advantages

The small cages restrict movement, and allow for more birds per unit area, and this allows for greater productivity and lower space and food costs, with more efforts put into egg laying.^[6] Battery farming is quicker, more economical and pratcial, and growth and output can be specifically controlled. The poultry are at less risk from predators and outdoor elements such as cold, heat, wind or damp, all of which can have significant impact on yield and health of the animals.^[13]

Disadvantages

The small environments reduce stimulation of the poultry, which often results in pecking each other or themselves whereas in the outdoors they would have other stimulation.^[6] A study by the Agricultural and Food Research Council in 1992 also found that 50% of battery farmed poultry had bone disorders such as osteoporosis^[11] or breakages.^[14] Battery farms are also at greater risk of fire, due to the amount of electrical equipment and the liklihood of rodents chewing through the wiring.^[13] Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Osteoporosis is a disease of bone in which the bone mineral density (BMD) is reduced, bone microarchitecture is disrupted, and the amount and variety of non-collagenous proteins in bone is altered. ...

Battery farming is also the subject of much criticism and the products are often less popular than free-range alternatives,^[15][16] and the mislabling of one as the other has led to outrage in some consumer groups.^[17] The use of gas to kill the birds^[11] prior to harvesting was also criticized by Dr. Mohan Raj of United Poultry Concern who stated that current use of carbon dioxide fails to cleanly kill the birds, causing a "a painfully slow death of suffocation"^[6] VEGA states that "millions" or male chicks are killed in this way as they do not produce eggs. Debeaking is also heavily criticised due to the pyscological effects and pain involved.^[11] the act of forced staravtion to reduce periods of off-lay are also unpopular.^[11] In order to meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article requires cleanup. ... Debeaking, also known as beak trimming, is a process by which parts of the beak of a chicken are removed. ...

Health concerns are not limited to the animals in battery farming, however. The US Department of Health released a list of risks to humans working in poultry battery farms and those living nearby, which included respiratory illnesses and musculoskeletal injuries, infections, odors and flies and chemical and infectious compounds in the soil which included the mixtures of antibodies, pathogens, nutrients, pesticides, hormones and other chemicals that are found in or are administered to battery poultry. Trace elements of copper or arsenic were also found.^[3] Each antibody binds to a specific antigen; an interaction similar to a lock and key. ... A pathogen or infectious agent is a biological agent that causes disease or illness to its host. ... Link title {{portal|Food} A nutrient is either a chemical element or compound used in an organisms metabolism or physiology. ... A cropduster spreading pesticide. ... Norepinephrine A hormone (from Greek όρμή - to set in motion) is a chemical messenger from one cell (or group of cells) to another. ... A chemical substance is any material substance used in or obtained by a process in chemistry: A chemical compound is a substance consisting of two or more chemical elements that are chemically combined in fixed proportions. ... For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... General Name, Symbol, Number arsenic, As, 33 Chemical series metalloids Group, Period, Block 15, 4, p Appearance metallic gray Standard atomic weight 74. ...

Outbreaks of Avian flu have also been blamed on battery farming in South-East Asia.^[18] Battery farming is prohibited in a number of countries, including Switzerland and Sweden, with movements in favour of banning active in the United Kingdom, Australia and Denmark.^[11] For the current concern about the transmission of an avian flu to humans see Transmission and infection of H5N1. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ...

Notes