The KFC Double Down burger has been widely hailed as the new super-villain of fast food but its lack of nutritional value isn’t the burger’s worst attribute, according to New Zealand animal rights group SAFE.
3 News has received a number of comments expressing concern not just for the burger’s health benefits, but for how humanely the chickens that become the Double Down are reared and killed.
SAFE director Hans Kriek believes the concerns are valid, and says he doesn’t think the chickens used by KFC New Zealand are raised or killed humanely
Mr Kriek said the chickens KFC buys are from the same companies that produce supermarket chickens - "probably Tegel and Ingham" - and are reared in the same way, saying that in New Zealand the way chickens are farmed is “all standard”.
He says the chickens – which are alive for six weeks before being killed and sold – are kept in hugely overcrowded sheds, with up to 19 birds per square metre
In order to grow the birds to slaughter weight in a short time, Mr Kriek says they are fed antibiotics which promote growth and also keep the birds from dying.
“If you didn’t feed them the antibiotics, they probably wouldn’t live. As a side effect, it makes the birds grow faster and bigger.”
Mr Kriek points to footage taken inside New Zealand chicken factories where “birds are starving to death next to their food trough with their legs bowed… they can’t reach the food troughs because their bodies are so heavy”.
“We have an industry where 3 million animals die every year because of health-related illness. It’s a major problem.”
A KFC spokesperson denied the claims, saying that animal welfare is an issue the fast food company feels strongly about.
"All the chicken we use in New Zealand comes from Inghams and Tegel – two companies committed to following all the right animal welfare codes and guidelines and ensuring the humane treatment of all their birds," KFC said in a statement this afternoon.
"There are lots of negative stories out there about the living conditions of animals raised for food, so we’re proud that International Animal Welfare Practice expert Doctor Temple Grandin has audited both Inghams and Tegel and says their New Zealand operations reach a Gold standard in the treatment of broiler chickens."
Both Inghams and Tegel's websites state that the companies ensure their chickens are as healthy and comfortable as possible.
Inghams had no comment.
3 News has left a message with Tegel but at time of publication have not heard back.
3 News