The Major Fast Food Chicken Scandal We're Still Not Over Years Later

Fast food chains are often hated as much as they are loved. While they provide cheap and often deliciously greasy meals on the go, many fast food chains have also found themselves at the center of controversy, ranging from health concerns to animal welfare issues. Back in 2019, humane organizations uncovered serious chicken scandals at various fast food restaurants around the world. 

The World Animal Protection (WAP) organization found that KFC, Nandos, Domino's, Pizza Hut, McDonald's, Starbucks, and Burger King all sourced their chicken from industrialized farms with deplorable conditions. These included cramped, dark indoor caging and genetic selection for rapid growth, which can lead to painful side effects. Chickens suffered lameness, skin lesions, and heart failure. The overcrowding also resulted in squalid and very dirty conditions. The chains were often secretive about conditions on their chicken farms, and many declined to respond to WAP's findings.

Three years later, in 2021, WAP released a more formal assessment called "The Peking Order," which scored each chain on criteria such as living conditions, adherence to the Better Chicken Commitment, ambition in adopting improved welfare practices, and transparency. KFC, Nando's, and Domino's were among the biggest offenders, receiving the lowest scores and failing grades across all categories. Starbucks, Subway, and McDonald's showed some improvement, scoring in the mid-range and landing in the "making progress" category.

The Peking Order scoring report forced many chains to sign the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) pledge in 2021. There have been few recent progress reports in the United States, but the BBC has reported that several fast food chains previously committed to improved animal welfare practices have since backed away from those pledges. While other chicken chains weren't included in the report, many still have scandals of their own. For example, Chick-fil-A has faced scrutiny after an undercover investigation at a supplier documented alleged animal abuse, including chickens being kicked, thrown, and improperly handled during processing.

 Still, not all fast food chicken chains have been named in major welfare reports. Some of our favorite chicken tenders come from Bojangles, which has not been reported for animal welfare violations against chickens and claims to uphold the National Chicken Council Animal Welfare Guidelines. Raising Cane's also has incredibly craveable chicken, and a spokesperson told us the chain ensures it uses only high-quality chicken. Whether it's animal welfare or not, it appears that very few fast food chains have managed to steer clear of scandals.