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99.9 Percent of Chickens in US Are Factory Farmed 

New data—which shows that most food animals are bred in factory farms—goes against consumer beliefs that animals they eat are raised “humanely.” 


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The vast majority (99.9 percent) of chickens in the United States that are raised for meat live on factory farms, according to a report released this month by animal advocacy think tank Sentience Institute (SI). The report also found that, despite consumers’ beliefs that animal products they consume come from “humane” sources, 99 percent of all US meat comes from factory farms. By species, SI found that 70.4 percent of cows, 98.3 percent of pigs, 99.8 percent of turkeys, and 98.2 percent of egg-laying hens are raised on factory farms. “Based on the confinement and living conditions of farmed fish, we estimate that virtually all US fish farms are suitably described as factory farms, though there is limited data on fish farm conditions and no standardized definition,” Sentience Institute co-founder and author Jacy Reese wrote in the analysis. SI arrived at its figures using data from 2017 released by the United States Department of Agriculture earlier this month.

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#145 2026 The Wellness Issue
#145 2026 The Wellness Issue
#145 2026 The Wellness Issue

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