About
Our Chicken
At Chick-fil-A, we're all about
chicken, so you can be sure that we're extremely demanding about the chicken we
serve. All of our chicken sandwiches are made with whole breast meat - not
ground up pieces preformed into a patty. Each piece of chicken is hand-breaded (with what?) in the Restaurant
where it is served to you - fresh, hot and delicious.
Where
Our Chicken Comes From
All
of our chicken comes from facilities inspected by the USDA (aka CAFO’s)
and routinely monitored by third party auditors (names please) to ensure food safety. We work diligently to keep the quality of our
ingredients up to the level demanded by our customers (a high end family farm cannot keep up
with this demand), so we continually visit our chicken suppliers'
facilities, making sure they meet our high expectations.
We
are proud to have many long-standing relationships with our chicken suppliers,
who highly value their association with the family farms where the chickens
grow. (again, names please) Often these farms are diversified - they raise a variety of crops
and livestock.(like
CAFO’s) Our
suppliers follow strict animal welfare and nutrient management practices.
(according to what laws?)
The **National Chicken Council (which promotes CAFO’s, see additional information
straight from their website below)** publishes a set of guidelines for
the proper and humane raising and processing of chickens. All of our suppliers
abide by these guidelines, and in fact, some of our suppliers were instrumental
in helping to develop these standards for the whole industry.
What Our Chickens Eat
Each
of our suppliers has its own proprietary feed formula. In general, the feed
contains from 68 percent to 82 percent grain —corn, soy and wheat — with the balance comprised of vitamins, minerals and
protein-based products.
The
United States government strictly regulates all feed additives and does not
permit any type of hormones to be added to feed or otherwise given to chickens.
(The use of hormones in poultry has been banned by the USDA since the 1950s.)
Avian antibiotics are only used in very limited circumstances to ensure bird
health. Our suppliers maintain proper testing programs to ensure only safe
products ever reach our customers.
(this is all a lie, see website
exerpt from the National Chicken counsel below)
For further information, read the Focus on Chicken on the
USDA's Web site.
NOTE: Chick-fil-A does not verify
the accuracy of the content contained in the preceding website.
AKA CAFO
Production and Processing in the Vertically Integrated Chicken Industry
The
commercial chicken industry has become a sophisticated and efficient vertically
integrated industry. Through the process of vertical
integration, chicken
processors and members of the allied industry, who provide products and
services to the poultry industry, work together to produce the high
quality, nutritious products consumers have come to expect.
A typical vertically integrated broiler (or meat-type chicken) company today consists of several production stages combined under one company in an efficient operation. The following is a brief description of the various stages in the production of chicken products.
A typical vertically integrated broiler (or meat-type chicken) company today consists of several production stages combined under one company in an efficient operation. The following is a brief description of the various stages in the production of chicken products.
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Today's chickens are large, healthy
and meaty.
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Primary Breeder Company
Development and reproduction of strains of chicken that meet the requirements of chicken producer/processing companies are the responsibility of Primary Breeder Companies (PBCs) (aka CAFO’s who are not humane). These companies maintain diverse populations of chickens that are used for breeding purposes. Often beginning with selected lines, also referred to as the pedigree lines, chickens are multiplied over several generations to achieve desirable characteristics such as abundant white meat and efficient feed conversion. Breeder chicks with the appropriate mix of desirable characteristics are then sold to integrated chicken firms.
Development and reproduction of strains of chicken that meet the requirements of chicken producer/processing companies are the responsibility of Primary Breeder Companies (PBCs) (aka CAFO’s who are not humane). These companies maintain diverse populations of chickens that are used for breeding purposes. Often beginning with selected lines, also referred to as the pedigree lines, chickens are multiplied over several generations to achieve desirable characteristics such as abundant white meat and efficient feed conversion. Breeder chicks with the appropriate mix of desirable characteristics are then sold to integrated chicken firms.
Feed
Mill
Chicken companies own feed mills that convert raw materials such as corn, soybean meal, vitamins and minerals into finished feed according to very specific formulas developed by poultry nutritionists. Over the course of 6 to 7 weeks required to grow broiler chicks to market weight, the feed given to the birds is formulated into 4 or 5 different phases to meet the changing nutritional requirements of the birds as they grow.(A normal chicken should grow to adulthood in 9 months, not less than 2)(chickens were not meant to eat, corn <aka sugar>>or soybean meal)
Chicken companies own feed mills that convert raw materials such as corn, soybean meal, vitamins and minerals into finished feed according to very specific formulas developed by poultry nutritionists. Over the course of 6 to 7 weeks required to grow broiler chicks to market weight, the feed given to the birds is formulated into 4 or 5 different phases to meet the changing nutritional requirements of the birds as they grow.(A normal chicken should grow to adulthood in 9 months, not less than 2)(chickens were not meant to eat, corn <aka sugar>>or soybean meal)
Breeder Farm
Often breeder farms are operated by contract growers who raise the breeder chicks to adult birds. Breeding hens and roosters are kept under tight biosecurity on breeder farms to produce fertile hatching eggs for the integrated company. (Why the hell would you put a chicken in “bio” security of any kind?)The offspring of breeder parents will then be raised to become broilers for the market.
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Eggs are
kept under controlled conditions of temperature and humidity until the chicks
are ready to hatch out. The equipment automatically turns the eggs to keep
the chick from sticking to the inside of the shell.
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Hatchery (They start in trays, how is this humane)
A hatchery is a specialized facility designed to hatch fertile eggs received from breeder farms. Fertile eggs are placed in incubators and carefully monitored to ensure that correct temperature and humidity levels are maintained throughout the entire incubation period. Eggs are automatically turned in the incubators hourly to keep the embryo from sticking to the shell. Towards the end of incubation, the eggs are placed in hatching trays where the chicks hatch out by pecking their way through the large end of the egg. The chicks are inoculated against disease either while they are still in the egg on the eighteenth day of incubation or shortly after hatching.(first shot of death)
A hatchery is a specialized facility designed to hatch fertile eggs received from breeder farms. Fertile eggs are placed in incubators and carefully monitored to ensure that correct temperature and humidity levels are maintained throughout the entire incubation period. Eggs are automatically turned in the incubators hourly to keep the embryo from sticking to the shell. Towards the end of incubation, the eggs are placed in hatching trays where the chicks hatch out by pecking their way through the large end of the egg. The chicks are inoculated against disease either while they are still in the egg on the eighteenth day of incubation or shortly after hatching.(first shot of death)
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Chickens in a growout house.(This picture is not accurate)
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Growout
The newly hatched chicks are transported to growout farms where independent farmers raise them to market weight under contract with the company. The company provides the chicks, feed, and any necessary pharmaceuticals;(why would a chicken need any kind of pharmaceutical? And who is “The company”?) the farmer provides the (no light) growout house, water, bedding ("litter")(aka it’s own feces) , electricity, and his own management skill. In a few cases, the broiler company owns and manages its own growout houses, but the contract arrangement is more typical.
The chickens’ diet consists of feed made mainly from corn and soybeans. Feed may contain compounds that prevent disease and promote growth of the animal by improving its intestinal flora. Feed does not, however, include any hormones or steroids. Under regulations of the Food and Drugs Administration, no hormones or steroids are allowed to be given to chickens, and none are used in U.S. chicken production. Pharmaceuticals approved for animal use by the Food and Drug Administration are used to treat outbreaks of illness if they occur; if medication is used, there is a withdrawal period before slaughter.(this entire statement is an oxymoron) The chickens reach market weight of approximately five pounds in six or seven weeks and are collected to be taken to the processing plant.
The newly hatched chicks are transported to growout farms where independent farmers raise them to market weight under contract with the company. The company provides the chicks, feed, and any necessary pharmaceuticals;(why would a chicken need any kind of pharmaceutical? And who is “The company”?) the farmer provides the (no light) growout house, water, bedding ("litter")(aka it’s own feces) , electricity, and his own management skill. In a few cases, the broiler company owns and manages its own growout houses, but the contract arrangement is more typical.
The chickens’ diet consists of feed made mainly from corn and soybeans. Feed may contain compounds that prevent disease and promote growth of the animal by improving its intestinal flora. Feed does not, however, include any hormones or steroids. Under regulations of the Food and Drugs Administration, no hormones or steroids are allowed to be given to chickens, and none are used in U.S. chicken production. Pharmaceuticals approved for animal use by the Food and Drug Administration are used to treat outbreaks of illness if they occur; if medication is used, there is a withdrawal period before slaughter.(this entire statement is an oxymoron) The chickens reach market weight of approximately five pounds in six or seven weeks and are collected to be taken to the processing plant.
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Quality
control employee of chicken processing plant conducts microbiological test.
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Processing Plant
At the plant, chickens are stunned unconscious by a low-voltage electrical charge and are then humanely killed. The feathers, feet and head are removed and internal organs pulled for inspection by USDA. Inspectors look for signs of poultry disease and for manufacturing defects, such as broken wings.(how is a broken wing considered disease?) After inspection, the carcasses are immersed in ice-cold water to reduce their temperature to 40 degrees Fahrenheit to inhibit bacterial growth. After chilling, whole chickens are packed for distribution or cut into parts.
At the plant, chickens are stunned unconscious by a low-voltage electrical charge and are then humanely killed. The feathers, feet and head are removed and internal organs pulled for inspection by USDA. Inspectors look for signs of poultry disease and for manufacturing defects, such as broken wings.(how is a broken wing considered disease?) After inspection, the carcasses are immersed in ice-cold water to reduce their temperature to 40 degrees Fahrenheit to inhibit bacterial growth. After chilling, whole chickens are packed for distribution or cut into parts.
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Employees check chickens for quality assurance.
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Processing plants operate under
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles to reduce
potential hazards from microbiological, chemical and physical sources. Plants also operate under USDA
Pathogen Reduction rules to improve the microbiological quality of the product.
Some plants are on a system in which plant employees conduct sorting of
processed chickens for defects under USDA oversight.(this does not make me feel safe what
so ever)
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Employee
checks temperature of cooked product to make sure it has reached minimum
required level 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Further
Processing
Further processing plants are specialized operations or plants that receive whole chicken or cut-up parts and perform a variety of further processing steps, such as cooking, breading, or marinating.(like for McDonald’s chicken nuggets, yep you ate an eye ball or an innerd)
Transportation and Marketing
Chicken products are transported in refrigerated trucks from processing and further processing facilities to market outlets such as supermarkets, foodservice operations, distributors and other market channels to reach domestic and overseas customers.
Whether the product is a whole bird, cut-up parts, or a further-processed item, the industry continually seeks to produce products that meet changing consumer demands. Vertical integration within the poultry industry gives producers greater control over the production of quality products that successfully meet consumer wants and needs in an attractive, timely, and efficient manner.(how about their nutritional needs or health and safety?)
Further processing plants are specialized operations or plants that receive whole chicken or cut-up parts and perform a variety of further processing steps, such as cooking, breading, or marinating.(like for McDonald’s chicken nuggets, yep you ate an eye ball or an innerd)
Transportation and Marketing
Chicken products are transported in refrigerated trucks from processing and further processing facilities to market outlets such as supermarkets, foodservice operations, distributors and other market channels to reach domestic and overseas customers.
Whether the product is a whole bird, cut-up parts, or a further-processed item, the industry continually seeks to produce products that meet changing consumer demands. Vertical integration within the poultry industry gives producers greater control over the production of quality products that successfully meet consumer wants and needs in an attractive, timely, and efficient manner.(how about their nutritional needs or health and safety?)
Not sure about you, but I was raised
that if you didn’t meet it, don’t eat it.
Not to mention Chick fil’ A started in Kentucky and Kentucky is the
biggest state to have the most chicken CAFO’s in our country.
Let us know what you think of what Chick fil' A has to say about their own chicken on their own labeling.
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