Sophie Bennett
Chickens are the most widely produced meat in the world, with tens of billions slaughtered annually. In 2020, the United States Department of Agriculture reported that 9.76 billion land animals were slaughtered in the US, with 9.5 billion of those being chickens. The massive scale of chicken slaughter is a result of the steep rise in global chicken consumption, with annual per capita consumption increasing by nearly 500% between 1961 and 2021. This has led to chickens being selectively bred to grow unnaturally quickly, resulting in physical and psychological consequences. Additionally, the cruel conditions in which chickens are kept and the inhumane slaughter methods used contribute to the immense suffering endured by these animals.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of chickens killed for meat every year | 70-81 billion |
| Number of chickens killed for meat every 24 hours | 200-222 million |
| Number of chickens killed for meat every year in the US | 9.5 billion |
| Number of male chicks killed every year | 6 billion |
| Number of chickens slaughtered worldwide in 2021 | 119 billion |
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What You'll Learn
Male chicks are killed after birth due to lack of profitability
Chickens are the most widely produced meat in the world, with tens of billions of chickens killed every year. The average person now eats almost twice as much meat as they did in the mid-20th century, and this is almost entirely due to a steep rise in global chicken consumption.
Male chicks are killed after birth due to a lack of profitability. Male chicks are considered redundant to the egg-laying industry because they do not lay eggs, and only those in breeding programmes are required to fertilise eggs. Therefore, they are usually killed shortly after being sexed, which occurs just days after they are conceived or after they hatch. This practice is known as chick culling. Worldwide, around 4 to 7 billion male chicks are culled each year in the egg industry. In the United States alone, around 260 million male chicks are killed each year, amounting to 30,000 freshly hatched chicks every hour.
There are various methods of culling that do not involve anaesthetics, including cervical dislocation, asphyxiation by carbon dioxide, and maceration using a high-speed grinder. Maceration is the primary method in the United States and is often preferred over carbon dioxide asphyxiation in western countries as deaths occur immediately or within a second. In the US, some chicks are also killed by electrocution. When newborn male chicks are culled, they are most commonly either shredded alive or gassed to death.
There has been societal opposition to chick culling due to animal welfare concerns. In response, some countries have sought to ban the practice. In 2022, Germany and France became the first countries to prohibit all chick killing, with Italy set to follow suit by the end of 2026. Belgium's Wallonia region banned the grinding of male chicks in 2021, but not gassing. In-ovo sexing is a technique that has been developed to prevent male chicks from hatching in the first place by determining the sex of the embryo before the hatching date. This allows male eggs to be removed from incubation early on, so only female chicks emerge from the eggs.
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Chickens are selectively bred to grow unnaturally quickly
The selective breeding of chickens for rapid weight gain and muscle mass leads to various health issues. These chickens suffer from debilitating leg problems, making it difficult for them to walk. They experience disproportionate heart and lung development, abnormal muscle growth, and syndromes such as "wooden breast" and "white striping." The abnormal development of collagen and fat instead of healthy muscle reduces their range of motion, further impacting their quality of life.
The chickens are also bred to be constantly hungry, leading to a relentless search for food. This results in the chickens doing little more than sitting in front of their feeders, eating to satiate their unnatural appetite. The crowded and unhygienic conditions they are often kept in further exacerbate their suffering, with many developing ammonia burns on their feet, legs, and breasts from standing and lying in their waste.
The meat industry's preference for selective breeding practices that yield more breast meat and faster growth rates has led to immense suffering and an extremely poor quality of life for these animals. The lowest-priced animal products often come with the highest ethical cost, and chickens have become the species suffering the most from the world's expectation of cheap meat. However, there is a growing movement to improve chicken welfare through initiatives such as the Better Chicken Commitment, which aims to implement higher welfare practices, including more space, natural light, environmental enrichment, and slower-growing genetics.
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Avian flu has led to entire flocks being killed off
Avian flu, commonly known as bird flu, is an influenza type A virus that occurs naturally in wild birds. Since 2022, a highly pathogenic variant of the virus has been affecting both wild and domestic birds, including chickens. This has resulted in entire flocks being infected and subsequently culled to prevent further spread of the disease.
In the United States alone, avian flu has had a significant impact on the poultry industry. Between January 2022 and November 2024, the ongoing outbreak has cost over $1.4 billion, with $1.25 billion going towards indemnity and compensation payments to farmers. The highly pathogenic nature of the virus has led to high mortality rates in domestic poultry, with more than 22 million commercially raised chickens and turkeys killed since February 2022 due to outbreaks. In 2025, more than 20 million egg-laying chickens in the U.S. died in a single quarter because of bird flu, marking the worst toll on America's egg supply since the outbreak began.
To prevent the spread of avian flu, stamping-out campaigns are often implemented, which involve the culling of any chicken potentially exposed to the virus. This has resulted in the mass culling of entire flocks, with one technique known as ventilation shutdown plus heat (VSD+) being commonly used. This process involves shutting down ventilation and increasing heat to induce heat stroke in the chickens. While it is inexpensive and does not require specialized equipment, it can take several hours to kill all the chickens.
While the number of chickens killed by avian flu is substantial, it is important to note that the overall number of chickens killed by the disease is still lower than the number of chickens typically slaughtered for meat within 48 hours. For example, in the U.S. alone, 9.5 billion chickens are slaughtered annually, far surpassing the number of birds affected by avian flu. However, the impact of avian flu on the poultry industry, particularly egg prices, has been significant, and the situation is being carefully monitored by organizations such as the CDC and USDA.
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The US slaughters 9.5 billion chickens annually
The United States slaughters 9.5 billion chickens annually. This figure includes chickens killed by avian flu and those culled to prevent its spread. The US is one of the top three countries in the world for chicken slaughter, alongside China and Brazil.
Chicken is the most widely produced meat globally, with tens of billions of chickens slaughtered every year. The number of chickens killed annually for meat is estimated to be between 70 and 81 billion, with 75 billion being the most frequently cited figure. This amounts to over 200 million chickens slaughtered every day, or around 8.6 million per hour.
The US figure of 9.5 billion chickens slaughtered each year includes those killed by avian flu and those culled to prevent its spread. Since the ongoing bird flu outbreak began in late 2021, poultry producers have been killing entire flocks in an attempt to prevent the virus from spreading. While this strategy has been effective in the past, it has been notably unsuccessful during this outbreak, which is the deadliest and longest in history.
The US slaughters more chickens than any other type of animal for food. In 2020, the United States Department of Agriculture reported that 9.76 billion land animals were slaughtered, including 33.2 million cattle and 2.2 million sheep. However, when accounting for US animal meat imports and exports, the number of land animals killed to support the US food supply was 8.2 billion.
The high number of chickens slaughtered annually is due in large part to the steep rise in global chicken consumption. Between 1961 and 2021, annual per capita chicken consumption increased by nearly 500%, from 2.86 kg to 16.96 kg. Chickens have also been selectively bred over time to grow at an increased rate, resulting in more meat to sell and higher profits for the industry.
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Global chicken consumption has increased by 500% since 1961
This dramatic rise in chicken consumption has transformed the industry, with intensive factory farming practices becoming commonplace. Chickens are selectively bred to grow abnormally quickly, reaching a 'slaughter weight' of around 2.2 kg in just five weeks. The conditions they endure are often dismal, with chickens crammed into small, barren spaces, unable to even turn around due to lack of space. The negative impacts of such practices extend beyond the suffering of the chickens, as the environmental and wildlife consequences are also significant.
To meet the ever-increasing demand, the poultry industry has become highly efficient at killing chickens in vast numbers. Chick culling, the practice of killing male chicks at hatcheries due to their lack of profitability, results in the deaths of an additional six billion male chicks annually. The mass euthanization of chickens has also been employed in response to avian flu outbreaks, further contributing to the overall death toll.
The methods used for slaughtering chickens have evolved over time, with the development of stunning technologies playing a significant role. In the past, animals were killed using blunt instruments or gassed in chambers. Today, chickens are often shackled and passed through an electrified water bath to render them unconscious before slaughter. While regulations have been established to promote humane handling during the slaughter process, critics argue that distress and consciousness may not always be reliably prevented.
As consumers become more aware of the impact of their dietary choices, there is a growing movement towards plant-based alternatives and more ethical and sustainable meat consumption. However, with the global demand for chicken continuing to rise, the number of chickens killed each year is expected to remain high, highlighting the ongoing challenges in balancing human appetite with animal welfare and environmental sustainability.
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Frequently asked questions
Estimates vary, but it is believed that tens of billions of chickens are killed every year, with some sources giving a figure of 80 billion or more.
Sources suggest that between 206 million and 222 million chickens are slaughtered every 24 hours.
The primary reason for the mass slaughter of chickens is to meet the growing global demand for chicken meat.
