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Chooks choke when systems fail
20 Sep 2004
Growers that rear poultry for chicken meat processors are at odds over the quality of systems used to maintain conditions in electronically controlled, tunnel-ventilated chook sheds. The rearing practices keeping the average price of chickens down to $8 and have helped the fowl supplant beef as the country's most popular meat. The sheds, holding up to 40,000 birds each, produce plump 1.5kg chickens on contract for processors such as Ingham, Bartter-Steggles and Baiada for between 50c and 60c a head. With no natural ventilation, the sheds rely on electronic systems to maintain the temperature at between 15 to 20 degrees Celsius. But break downs are common. If the systems and back-up generators fail, the birds die from the rise in temperature and a lack of oxygen. According to NSW growers, mechanical failure has shut sheds down six times in the past year, killing between 10,000 and 30,000 on each occasion.
The Australian, 20/09/04, p4
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