German state tightens rules on broiler production

The German Federal State of Lower Saxony, the country’s primary poultry producing state, has introduced stricter rules for broiler production, in particular in accordance to injuries on chicken feet.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture in Lower Saxony, the number and severity of injuries to chicken feet will be examined in the future. If violations are not corrected and conditions don’t improve, farmers need to reduce their stocking density.

To facilitate this, data in slaughterhouses will be collected and reported to the competent veterinary authorities. If more than 20% of severe injuries to chicken feet are being tracked, the stocking density is automatically reduced by the legally permitted 39 kilograms per square meter to 35 kilograms, and then to 32 kilograms per square meter.

The goal of the new rule is to provide more space for the animals. The state of Lower Saxony is the center of German chicken production with two-thirds of German chicken being produced there, and the percentage of poultry exports from Lower Saxony is also two thirds of total exports.