‘Factory’ chickens can be a threat to health

ACCORDING to the latest report of the European Food Safety Authority, 83% of chickens entering Irish slaughterhouses are infected with campylobacter, a major source of gastroenteritis in humans. This is the highest figure in Europe after Malta and Spain. As if this isn’t bad enough, a staggering 98.3% were infected after slaughtering.

Every time the animal production system staggers into a new crisis (eg, BSE, foot and mouth, avian flu, campylobacter), all we usually hear about are the economic repercussions, the threat to human health, the plight of farming families.

Little, if any, mention or investigation of the unnatural production systems and the animal welfare requirements for which legislation sets such low barriers.