Petition To Increase Poultry Processing Line Speeds Rejected By USDA

Georgia’s Poultry Federation said it was disappointed in the decision by the USDA
to reject s petition to let poultry plants speed up their processing line.

Alexander Zemlianichenko / Associated Press

The U.S. Department of Agriculture rejected the National Chicken Council’s petition to let poultry plants speed up their processing lines. Unless they are given a waiver by the department.

Right now, companies can run their chicken evisceration lines at 140 chickens per minute. The council wants that increased to 175.

Evisceration is an automated process that cleans out a chicken’s internal organs.