Bigger does not automatically mean better.

[MASTERBAKER]

Eating Well​

a day ago ·

That photo comparing a massive “American chicken” breast with smaller “European chicken” gets at a frustration many U.S. shoppers recognize—but the real story isn’t America versus Europe. It’s what decades of breeding for faster growth and more breast meat have done to the chicken on our plates.

Bigger does not automatically mean better.

Industry data compiled by the National Chicken Council show that the average U.S. broiler went from about 2.5 pounds at 112 days old in 1925 to 6.63 pounds at just 47.5 days in 2025. Research comparing broiler genetics across decades also found dramatic increases in breast yield.

That efficiency is impressive. But shoppers still have to eat the result.

Researchers have linked fast growth, heavier birds, and high breast yield with muscle problems such as “woody breast”—the unusually hard, fibrous texture that can turn an ordinary chicken dinner into a disappointment. USDA researchers continue studying the condition and its effects on meat quality.

And no, hormones aren’t the explanation: they aren’t permitted in U.S. poultry production.

We’ve gotten remarkably good at growing bigger chickens faster. That doesn’t mean consumers have to call every result an improvement.

 

[Temujin]

Eating Well​

a day ago ·

That photo comparing a massive “American chicken” breast with smaller “European chicken” gets at a frustration many U.S. shoppers recognize—but the real story isn’t America versus Europe. It’s what decades of breeding for faster growth and more breast meat have done to the chicken on our plates.

Bigger does not automatically mean better.

Industry data compiled by the National Chicken Council show that the average U.S. broiler went from about 2.5 pounds at 112 days old in 1925 to 6.63 pounds at just 47.5 days in 2025. Research comparing broiler genetics across decades also found dramatic increases in breast yield.

That efficiency is impressive. But shoppers still have to eat the result.

Researchers have linked fast growth, heavier birds, and high breast yield with muscle problems such as “woody breast”—the unusually hard, fibrous texture that can turn an ordinary chicken dinner into a disappointment. USDA researchers continue studying the condition and its effects on meat quality.

And no, hormones aren’t the explanation: they aren’t permitted in U.S. poultry production.

We’ve gotten remarkably good at growing bigger chickens faster. That doesn’t mean consumers have to call every result an improvement.

When capitalism causes the prioritization of weight and days grown as the important factors as opposed to nutritional value we get less efficient food. When you have to eat more food to get the same nutrition the food producers make more money. When you cut the days it takes to grow a chicken in half you double the amount of chickens you can grow in a year. So you can sell twice as much chicken because it's not as nutritious. You can make twice as many chickens due to genetic inbreeding and you can breed chickens to have bigger wings and breasts to maximize the profit per chicken. None of that shit is the point of food. The chickens don't taste better and they aren't healthier for us but yet we spend more money. Our system works against us.

 

[MASTERBAKER]

That's why we can't compare our grandparents' diet with ours.
When technology and industrialization arrived in the USA, we started losing our nutrition with it.
Everything is faster so that it generates money almost instantly. It's not about whether there's a large population or not, that's a story they want us to believe.
There are places like Italy, Europe, Scotland, Australia, and a few others that still sell real quality products, and the health and well-being index is different from ours.
Although to be honest, industrialization has reached everywhere, and the changes and control over what we consume have placed us in a very vulnerable position where we don't even know what we're eating. We even less know who to trust.
Where many times the labels are manipulated and don't tell the truth, among other things.
It's up to you to take care of yourself, observe carefully what you buy. Sometimes you buy more for less, but that has consequences on your health in the short and long term. The sad thing is that it's not just you, it's your whole family.
It's not about buying organic, that's another story. It's about buying what you see, what you touch, and what you can smell. Your gaze doesn't lie, your touch and sense of smell don't either.
If something seems strange, smells strange, or looks strange, don't buy it, don't consume it.
I love you all!!

 

[MASTERBAKER]