You may have seen on ITV last week a programme entitled Fowl Play. It investigated suppliers of organic chickens to Asda supermarkets. Unfortunately, I missed most of the show, but managed to see sections where they highlighted chicken farms that were supposed to be organic free range, yet the chickens were never let out of their pens and living in the most terrible conditions.
It was also questioned whether eating these so called organic chickens was healthier than the much cheaper battery chickens. The doctor on the show seemed to suggest there was little difference.
Here is where it is tricky for us the consumer. We have to have a certain amount of faith in the authorities clamping down on these criminals. If you wish for farm animals to be well treated and you wish to eat healthily, always look for soil association approval.
You may also wish to buy straight from local farms and go and check them out for yourself. Ensure the chickens are free to roam around and get plenty of exercise and eat a natural diet, not a grain fed diet. Chickens get sick when they eat grains such as corn. Chickens normally feed on plants and insects. Grains just fatten them up so the supermarkets can charge you more as it is sold by weight.
There is no question that a naturally fed organic free range chicken is the best type of chicken for your health. They have the highest levels of nutrients and lowest levels of toxins, no matter what any scientist may tell you.
Bon appetite!