Chicken farms’ waste crises caused illness and suffering for 20 million birds

• Documents we obtained reveal food safety officials found millions of chickens afflicted by conditions associated with poor-quality litter

• Mismanaged litter is a growing issue on the UK’s huge ‘megafarms’, which are proliferating as the country ramps up its poultry production

• Campaigners told us our finding are “an indictment of an industry that must take responsibility for the suffering it causes”

The UK is facing a crisis of chicken waste, with the country’s ever-growing number of poultry “megafarms” producing more of it than they know what to do with. The environmental effects of this have already been well documented and these vast farms are increasingly coming under fire for their links to contaminated rivers, polluted air and poisoned land.

Now we can reveal that poorly managed litter is also harming the welfare of millions of chickens. The often dirty, overcrowded conditions on these farms enable diseases to flourish, with birds often kept indoors for their entire lives before being sent for slaughter. Chickens can be left sitting in their own waste for weeks at a time, often leading to lesions, sores and infections.

Internal government records we’ve obtained reveal that almost 20 million chickens, turkeys, ducks, hens and other birds have been found to be afflicted by illnesses associated with poor-quality litter (a mixture of birds’ faeces, urine and bedding materials).

The data details cases identified by Food Standards Agency (FSA) officials including dermatitis, breast blisters and cellulitis.

The data covers England, Wales and Scotland from 2021-2025 and comes from veterinary inspections of birds and carcasses arriving from farms at slaughterhouses. The figures are incomplete owing to gaps in the reporting for some months and because data was not available for Northern Ireland, a major poultry producer.

“Footpad dermatitis”, which comes up repeatedly in the data, is a condition that causes lesions on the underside of a bird’s feet. These can develop into deep, painful ulcers that can impair movement and act as entry points for infections.

Its spread is often driven by wet poultry litter, which can in turn arise from overcrowded, poorly ventilated or overly humid sheds. The illness is widely seen by farming health experts as an indicator of poor welfare standards on farms, with producers expected to take steps to avoid it.

Similarly, general dermatitis, which can appear as so-called “hock burns” on birds bodies, can be caused by moisture and chemical irritants such as ammonia in chicken litter.

Cellulitis, a type of skin infection, is caused by bacteria such as E. coli entering the skin through lesions and scratches. Again the problem is exacerbated by dirty litter as well as congested conditions that lead to birds scratching each other to compete for food or in response to stress, say campaigners.

Separate welfare enforcement records we’ve obtained highlight specific instances of cruelty and suffering linked to dermatitis uncovered at abattoirs, including:

• Almost 2,000 broiler chickens from a single consignment found to be suffering from footpad dermatitis, with “nearly all of the birds exhibiting level 2 lesions [the worst kind]. These lesions were deeply ulcerated and varied in size … indicating prolonged and unnecessary pain for the animals.” The official noted wet litter at the farm may be “exacerbating the condition,” and said “action must be taken to address the issues and ensure that the animals are treated with proper care and consideration”.

• In another case, nearly 4,500 broiler chickens were reported during post-mortem, “to have deep ulcerative skin lesions … consistent with severe footpad dermatitis”. An FSA official wrote that “the severity and distribution of these lesions indicate that the affected birds were exposed to prolonged pain and suffering.” They said the presence of birds from two farms belonging to the same corporate group suggests the issue may be endemic in the operation.

• In a third incident involving more than 5,000 chickens, a vet reported a “high prevalence” of severe foot pad dermatitis and the “notable incidence” of hock burns indicating unnecessary pain and suffering due to poor husbandry and litter management conditions. The vet recommended “a thorough assessment of litter quality [and] ventilation”.

Lorraine Platt, co-founder of the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation, told us: “These findings are an indictment of an industry that must take responsibility for the suffering its production systems cause.”

Alex Mayers, managing director of the Humane League, an animal welfare campaign group, told us: “We [have] investigated multiple farms where chickens were living with wet litter and bad burns. We know that fast-growing chicken breeds are more prone to hock burns. For them, suffering is unavoidable.”

This week, his organisation released undercover footage of conditions at half a dozen UK chicken farms, including some rearing birds for poultry companies that supply supermarkets. Investigators found “bad [hock] burns, acute lameness and deformities linked to overbreeding”.

“You see birds who can’t stand up, corpses rotting in corners and the suffering eyes of thousands of feeling beings,” said Mayers. “More space is only good when your legs work.”

The Humane League investigated activities in the UK’s chicken megafarms

The Humane League UK

… and found chickens kept in filthy conditions

The Humane League UK

And also this week, the Animal Justice Project published shocking footage of abuse from more than a dozen farms supplying the dairy giant Arla Foods, leading to more criticism of the UK’s industrial farming sector from welfare campaigner.

Richard Griffiths, chief executive of the British Poultry Council, told us: “Poor health and welfare benefits nobody.

“Livestock farming can face varied challenges … As ever we must balance the birds’ needs with environmental impact, food security, and affordability.”

The FSA told us the breaches found by its officers “are fully investigated and appropriate action is taken to reduce and address risks to human health, animal health, animal welfare, and consumers’ interests”.