Each year in the U.S., more than 9.7 billion chickens, turkeys, and ducks are killed for food. Unlike cows and pigs, these birds aren’t protected by the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, the federal law that requires animals to be rendered unconscious before being slaughtered. In 2005, following undercover investigations that exposed severe abuse, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminded the poultry industry that birds must be handled according to “good commercial practices” (GCP). However, compliance with these practices remains effectively voluntary, and the USDA rarely takes enforcement action for violations.

Now in its fourth edition, this report from the Animal Welfare Institute analyzes the USDA’s own records to determine the nature and extent of government oversight for farmed birds at the time of slaughter. To do this, the authors reviewed federal food inspection documents, including Noncompliance Records and Memorandums of Interview, issued by the USDA between 2020 and 2022. The goal was to assess whether the current voluntary system is effective at preventing animal suffering.

USDA Oversight Is Inadequate

The authors conclude that the USDA’s oversight of bird handling has been inadequate and that the GCP program was likely created to ease public concern rather than to prevent mistreatment.

The data reveals a significant lack of oversight and enforcement. From 2020 to 2022, almost half (45%) of all federally inspected poultry slaughter plants received no records for GCP violations, even though they slaughtered millions of birds during that time. During the same period, the USDA documented 979 incidents of inhumane handling. However, inspectors took regulatory control actions — such as stopping the slaughter line — in only 119 (12%) of those cases. By comparison, similar violations involving mammals covered under the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act resulted in regulatory action 45% of the time.

Records Reveal Severe And Repetitive Suffering

The USDA’s records document numerous instances of severe suffering, often involving hundreds or even thousands of birds at a time.

The most common violation was birds drowning in the scalding tank, which is designed to loosen feathers after death. Other common issues included the improper disposal of live birds in the trash, excessive use of force by workers, and birds dying from exposure to extreme heat or cold while awaiting slaughter.

Highly disturbing examples from the records include:

• One plant had two barrels full of birds who died by drowning in the scalding tank because they were improperly cut. Another incident at a different plant involved about 50 birds drowning with either no cut or only a superficial cut to their necks.
• On a day when the temperature was -2°F, 391 birds were found on a trailer at one facility frozen to death, with snow and ice on their bodies.
• At another plant, nearly 10,000 dead birds were reported on three trailers that had been parked in the sun for an extended period.
• One report described employees aggressively yanking birds from a “major clog” on the conveyor belt, while several others documented workers forcefully throwing birds at the shackles.

The findings show that this voluntary system has failed to prevent repeat offenses. Some plants were cited numerous times for the same violation, demonstrating that without meaningful consequences, there’s little incentive to improve practices. For example, one House of Raeford plant was cited 18 times in just six months for having conscious birds on the slaughter line just before the scalding tank.

Urgent Action Is Needed

The authors argue that the USDA’s strategy of allowing the poultry industry to police itself has failed. The voluntary GCP system isn’t preventing the mistreatment of birds, and legally enforceable regulations are urgently needed.

The report provides advocates with strong evidence to support several courses of action. Advocates can use the findings to lobby Congress to pass legislation that explicitly requires all birds killed for food to be rendered insensible to pain before slaughter. In addition, the USDA already has the authority under the Poultry Products Inspection Act to regulate bird handling to prevent “product adulteration.” Thus, advocates can pressure the agency to create and enforce binding regulations on issues such as worker training, holding conditions, and shackling.

Furthermore, while many local law enforcement officials incorrectly believe that the USDA has exclusive authority over slaughter plants, the report clarifies that federal law doesn’t prevent states from enforcing their own animal cruelty laws at these facilities. Therefore, advocates can use this information to urge local prosecutors to pursue cruelty charges against offending companies and their employees.

Finally, the report identifies the slaughter plants that received the most GCP violations between 2020 and 2022. Advocates can use this data to inform corporate campaigns targeting companies with the worst animal welfare records.

This summary was drafted by a large language model (LLM) and closely edited by our Research Library Manager for clarity and accuracy. As per our AI policy, Faunalytics only uses LLMs to summarize very long reports (50+ pages) that are not appropriate to assign to volunteers, as well as studies that contain graphic descriptions of animal cruelty or animal industries. We remain committed to bringing you reliable data, which is why any AI-generated work will always be reviewed by a human.