By some estimates, as many as 8 billion chickens are consumed in the US on an annual basis – or, to put it another way, the average American tucks into more than 100 pounds of chicken every year.

While fried chicken and buffalo wings have become a national institution, this was not always the case. In the early twentieth century, chickens were predominantly appreciated for their egg-laying abilities . Indeed, it was only when a bird hit retirement that they found their way to the dining room table. This changed with the appearance of broiler chickens (produced solely for their meat) and revolutions in farming techniques that enabled the mass production of poultry. According to the US Department of Agriculture , the popularity of chicken meat started to grow in the 1940s, eventua

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