PoultryTalk.com

What breed do you use for meat ?

Hi Papa Smurf, we use our own surplus cockerels for meat, they have a good free-ranging life for around 6 - 9 months first. They are then killed humanely and with respect.
Supermarket meatbirds are designed to live only a few weeks and are killed at around 38 days. They grow so huge that they rarely live much beyond that anyway due to physical and physiological complications. Have a look at cheap chicken at the supermarket, and you will see the awful "hock burns" where being unable to support their weight, they sit in their own droppings, typically you will see dark markings on legs on packaged chickens, I am always saddened by this sight.
Free range supermarket chicken has a better life, more room to behave naturally and are killed later at 12 weeks old.

Thank you Foxy