FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is a slow growth breed?

Is there a difference between free range production and industrial production, in term of breeding density?

YES. In free-range production, a low density is applied, maximum 10 chickens/m2, whereas in industrial one, there can be up to 22 chickens/ m2. Moreover, in free-range production, chickens can go outside, in grassy areas, since 42 days old. At that moment, the density is 5 chickens/ m2. Industrial breeding is always inside, with any access to these grassy areas.

Finally, free range breeding takes more into account animal welfare.

Is it possible to find out the farm the chicken comes from?

YES. Traceability is one of the main points that our STOP AI team is working on for its products. All the farmers participated in the project are provided with Batch Monitoring Books (BMB), which contains all the information to ensure a high level of traceability, such as origin of the chicks, technical performance, vaccine & medications used, slaughtering date, etc.

Moreover, farmers comply with Good Animal Husbandry Practices (standards for chicken breed, density, food, medicine, etc) and Good Slaughtering Practices (standards for hygiene during slaughtering). Finally, inspection visits for quality control are carried out by veterinarians at farm level or at slaughterhouses.

That’s why we are able to tell you not only where the chicken you buy comes from, but also what it was fed with, the treatments it received, etc. It is also a way to guarantee food safety of our products.

Is a free range chicken also organic?

NO. Actually, organic chickens have to be fed with vegetable alimentation, containing at least 90% of organic raw material coming from organic farming (no use of synthetic chemical products, use of green manure and  limited list of fertilization products) according to EU legislation. Our free-range chickens are not fed with organic vegetables, even if food is controlled and obviously safe.

However, there are common points between these two kinds of production such as the use of slow-growth breed, access to grassy areas, low density, animal welfare, and food safety.