08/24/2026
Did you know that there is only 5 major chicken producers in the US? Not only do they supply 90% of ALL the chicken meat in the stores, but ALSO, 90% of what's left of those same lines are sold to farmers who sell them to you as farm raised, pastured chicken.
Cornish Cross genetics are controlled through a global duopoly of primary breeding companies: Aviagen & Cobb-Vantress ( subsidiary of Tyson). Safe-guarded proprietary parent lines are tightly controlled by these parent corporations.Breeding two Cornish Cross chickens together does not reliably yield offspring with the same fast-growing meat traits.
Smaller local hatcheries can sell Cornish Cross chicks if they buy the parent breeding stock or hatching eggs from major global primary breeders (like Cobb or Ross), but they cannot breed the actual Cornish Cross themselves to create more. They allow this as a more "wholesome" way to sell their birds under the veil of supporting smaller farm businesses. You are still supporting the large corporations & Concentrated food operations that many homesteaders are trying to break free of.
These birds can be fed a better quality of grasses & grain, get more time in the sun, but they still could never survive & thrive as natural, heritage breeds can. They could not breed or hatch true. There will be a race to the processor before their legs buckle under their weight & their organs fail. Their death rate is higher as well as their body temperature, their immune systems sacrificed in genetic selection over lighter weight bone structure & more meat for higher profit gain in a short 6-8 week timeframe. Farmers willingly repurchase them year after year, themselves, dependent on the major producers who keep them the small percent. You've seen these birds. They're lazy, they don't roost (they can't roost) they most times have a schedule of feed times as they'll eat themselves to death or die because they can't get enough via pasture because they're too lethargic to walk, run or forage much, not care to. They lay in their own filth, stand much less & can gain burns or sores from feather loss rubbed off in the process.
Som small farms clearly raise these poor birds at a better level of care than the ones on a shelf but we are still contributing to a massive problem each time they are purchased & padding the pockets of those top producers, who yes, own the rights to distribute the Cornish Cross meat birds.
If we as farmers are truly striving to be sustainable , regenerative systems, to raise our birds in a way that is best for them & the land, then choosing sustainable, regenerative, heritage breeds is the first & most necessary step. Investing in healthy nourishing foods, slow foods with real flavor from time spent on pasture eating bugs, grasses, fertilizing soil, growing with nature. Blind testing proves quality over quickness even with top chefs around the world.
Even us farmers are so addicted to the bigger, faster, more mentality that the very first question one asks is "What is the average grow out times & weights?" When we should be asking "Is this the best that I can do for my farms overall health, for the health of the livestock I raise & the health of the food I raise for my family?" The first question doesn't matter unless you're putting profit over quality, over care. Fast food will always be around when people choose to use their dollars to pay for it, consumer & farmers alike.
The chicken is the most populated bird on the planet. It's survived & thrived all over the world without our help. The healthiest birds I have are in the woods, hatching feral chicks who have never touched a grain of feed from my hands.
Let's stop comparing Tyson Cobb VanTress birds to a heritage breed. Chickens were never meant to be that size. But instead, compare those poor CX birds to a heritage breed, not in size but abilities & honestly ask yourself could they survive & thrive as real chickens do?
What are we willing to sacrifice to super size meals & fast profits? When will we admit our role in the problem?
Educate consumers. Own your role as farmers or homesteaders & become part of the shift to the slow food movement. Wouldn't you like to be a part of the push instead of part of the fallout of a very broken & unsustainable system? We can't just keep hiding our heads in the sand, pretending to not know what we know.
If you want change, be brave enough to be it & stop being brainwashed to believe that the way it's being done is good for anyone or anything involved. 💲
