A new study published in Nature Food finds that the European Chicken Commitment (ECC), a pledge that urges food companies to adopt slower-growing breeds and higher welfare standards, comes at a surprisingly low cost, while the welfare benefits are enormous.
The researchers calculated that switching from fast-growing to slow-growing chickens avoids 15-100 hours of acute pain per bird and costs just US$1 extra per kilogram of meat. In terms of EU carbon pricing, this equates to less than one-hundredth of a cent per hour of pain avoided—the equivalent of driving a car just 15 meters.
This study challenges the notion that high welfare systems are too expensive or harmful to the environment. It also highlights the suffering caused by intensive farming: rapid growth leads to lameness, heart problems, and constant hunger, while parent birds struggle with food shortages throughout their lives, resulting in thousands of hours of starvation.
“This framework allows us to put animal welfare on the same level as other priorities,” said Dr. Kate Hartcher, senior researcher at the Welfare Footprint Institute.
Lead author Dr. Cynthia Shuk-Palm added, “Very few people realize that the suffering of female hens’ extreme hunger begins before the chicks are even born. Without genetic changes, their suffering would continue.”
These findings are based on the Welfare Footprint framework, a new methodology that measures animal welfare in measurable units alongside financial and environmental standards. Experts believe this approach could reshape food policy and ensure animal welfare is no longer sidelined in sustainability debates.
This research paper has been prepared in collaboration with the Welfare Footprint Institute, Stockholm Environment Institute, and University of Colorado Boulder (USA).