Breeders defend UK standards for bird welfare

Marc Cooper, the RSPCA's chief scientist on poultry welfare, visited Thailand last year, because it sells a large number of chickens to the UK.

His report started with a summary of the astonishing precautions against Avian Influenza – still only a worry on the horizon here.

He saw a farm where, to get to work, workers had to swim under three barriers, to make sure they were properly dipped. Once in, they stayed until the flock was slaughtered.

On bird welfare, Dr Cooper said the big company he was inspecting met the British Red Tractor standard – and more. Stocking densities were lower than required here and all the birds "are of a genotype that would be marketed in the UK as 'slower growing'".

Birds designed for superfast fattening are prone to lameness and heart problems.

Dr Cooper noted that the Thai birds got a longer "dark period" for sleeping than their British equivalents, as part of the slower growing process, and were caught individually, "rugby-ball style", rather than carried in bunches by the legs.

The farm was not up to RSPCA standards, as required for the Freedom Food label. But Dr Cooper concluded: "We would advocate the consumption of chicken meat from this company in Thailand over that of 'standard' meat from the UK – but obviously not over Freedom Food, Free Range or Organic."

Dr Cooper has since been to Brazil, another big exporter, and at a press conference last week, he said: "The production there is more variable, but again, it would be incorrect to assume that chicken from overseas is being reared to a lower standard."

The RSPCA backed him up – to the fury of British farmers.

David Clarke, head of the Red Tractor certification body, commented: "Let us be clear that he is not saying every Thai chicken farm is better than every farm over here.

"It is very difficult to compare standards 7,000 kilometres apart. The cost of labour is different, the cost of land is different, the indigenous challenges are different."

He said the UK Red Tractor standard was higher than most European standards and was applied consistently. Slower-grown British chickens were an option in the range British producers made available. And there were other issues besides bird welfare, like hygiene and local sourcing.

Yorkshire broiler producer Paul Stephens commented: "I, too, went to Thailand. There are some very good units. But the majority of birds were kept in conditions that would in no way conform with any European standards.

"I would dearly love to grow a 'higher welfare' bird. The fact is the market for them is limited to less than 10 per cent. The public are not prepared to pay any more."

CW 6/11/10