Research has confirmed that chicken is still Australia’s favourite meat. It also told us that Australians might have the wrong end of the chicken drumstick when it comes to facts about Aussie chicken meat. Learn the facts here…
Did you know that chicken meat is now the most frequently consumed meat product in most Australian households? Research1 tells us that Australian consumers select chicken meat for its value, taste, nutrition and versatility. And it’s good to know that chicken has the lowest environmental footprint of any meat.
Cooked chicken offers a wide range of nutritional benefits. Chicken is an excellent source of protein and source of key vitamins and minerals.
No need to worry – Australian chickens are not given hormones in any way. Their size occurs naturally due to selective breeding and optimal nutrition. Hormones haven’t been used in the chicken meat industry for more than 60 years.
Like hormones, Australian chickens are not given steroids in any way. Their size occurs naturally due to selective breeding and optimal nutrition. Steroids and hormones haven’t been used in the chicken meat industry for more than 60 years.
Even with the best practices, animals can still get sick. That’s why on occasions veterinarians need to prescribe antibiotics. Not treating sick birds and allowing them to suffer would compromise their welfare.
Nearly all fresh and frozen raw chicken meat available in Australia is in fact ‘born, bred and raised’ in Australia. Our chickens have been grown on Australian farms, and processed in Australian processing plants, to the strictest of Australian standards.
Meat chickens in Australia are never raised in cages. Australian meat chickens are grown on the floor of large sheds or barns.
The welfare of chickens is of critical importance to both chicken farmers and chicken processing companies. This is out of respect for the chickens themselves and out of respect for community expectations for the humane treatment of animals.
It’s a fact that most commercial chicken meat production today is farmed intensively, but did you know that this helps to contribute to its very modest environmental impacts? In fact, chicken has the lowest environmental footprint of any meat.
The poultry industry in Australia is highly regulated, and therefore maintains high standards across all areas of growing, production, distribution, and consumption.
Did you know that hormones have not been used in chickens since the 1950s?
And cages are not used to raise meat chickens?
And all raw chicken meat you buy has been born, bred, and raised in Australia?
The latest national survey of antimicrobial resistance in Australian meat chickens found that resistance to antimicrobials, and particularly to antimicrobials that are of critical importance to human health, remains low.
Take a look what higher animal welfare standards are on Australian free range and conventional chicken farms under the RSPCA Approved Farming Scheme.
The Australian Chicken Meat Federation (ACMF) is calling for one of the most long-standing and widely-held myths about chicken to be busted once and for all. The fact is that hormones and steroids are NOT fed to chickens!
The Australian Chicken Meat Federation Inc. (ACMF) is the peak coordinating body for participants in the chicken meat industry in Australia.
ADDRESS
Level 7, 122 Walker Street
NORTH SYDNEY
PO Box 579, North Sydney NSW 2059
CONTACT
Email: acmf@chicken.org.au
Phone: 02 9929 4077
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