Free Range Chicken Eggs Less Bacteria Than Regular Eggs
The Soil Association can reveal that a recent government survey shows that organic laying hen farms have a significantly lower level of Salmonella. Salmonella is a bacterium that causes one of the commonest forms of food poisoning worldwide.
The study showed that 23.4 per cent of farms with caged hens tested positive for salmonella compared to 4.4 per cent in organic flocks and 6.5 per cent in free-range flocks.
The research also showed that the highest prevalence of salmonella occurred in the largest holding size category (30,000 birds or more). This was over four times the average level of salmonella found in flocks closer to the maximum size allowed under Soil Association organic standards.
Intensively farmed chickens reared for meat can be housed in flocks 30 – 40,000 strong. Even the RSPCA’s Freedom Food standards allow 16,000 egg-laying birds per house, and there is no limit on flock size for free-range meat birds…. read entire story
Ummm what can be the role of “organic farming” in low bacteria load in chickens then?
Plus
February 20, 2008
Nice post about Eggs
Allene Rock
February 21, 2008
Interesting post and quite disturbing at the same time. I really think the public need to be made aware of such facts as 1 in 4 caged chickens contain traces of salmonella. The conditions they live in are bad for their health and consequently bad for ours.
laurablood
February 27, 2008