The very genetics of chickens, along with their feed and environment, were now intensively manipulated to produce either excessive amounts of eggs {layers} or flesh, especially breasts {broilers}. From 1935 to 1995, the average weight of "broilers" increased by 65 percent, while their time-to-market dropped 60 percent and their feed requirements dropped 57 percent. To gain a sense of the radicalness of this change, imagine human children growing to be three hundred pounds in ten years, while eating only granola bars and Flintstones vitamins.
Chickens have undergone significant genetic manipulation, along with changes in their diet and living conditions, to enhance their production as either egg layers or meat providers. This intensive breeding has led to a dramatic increase in the size and growth rate of broilers, with their average weight rising by 65% from 1935 to 1995, and their time to reach market weight being reduced by 60%. Moreover, their feed consumption has decreased by 57%, showcasing a remarkable shift in poultry agriculture.
This stark transformation can be likened to imagining a scenario where human children grow to weigh 300 pounds within a span of ten years, subsisting solely on low-nutritional foods like granola bars and vitamins. Such hyperbolic change emphasizes the extent of manipulation in poultry farming, illustrating the surreal evolution in growth and efficiency that modern practices have achieved in the industry.
