A Texas woman was surprised when the chicken she was preparing for dinner crumbled into stringy spaghetti pieces.
On social media, the mother shared a photo of the raw chicken she was cleaning, stating that pasta was not an option that night. The chicken was crumbling in her grasp.
In her now-viral Facebook post, she encourages people to switch to a vegan diet by saying, “I think it’s that fake meat.” Read on to learn more about the stringy chicken!
On March 21, Alesia Cooper, who lives in Irving, Texas, shared a disturbing picture of a chicken breast protesting its potential placement on a dinner plate.
“I was unsure whether to post this, but I had to see it, so do you all,” the mother of two writes. The post goes on to say, “I was cooking my kids dinner a couple of weeks ago and was cleaning my meat like I normally do and when I went back to start cooking it turned into this (SIC).” It also includes a picture of chicken pieces that resemble spaghetti.
Cooper goes on to say that she bought the chicken breast from the low-cost store Aldi, saying: “I guess it’s that fake meat, but I’m not sure anyway.Ever since, I haven’t made chicken from the bone.
Online users quickly shared their opinions in the comments section; some said that the chicken was 3D printed or produced in a petri dish.
“That’s lab grown chicken, it’s a new way they make chicken because, over the past few years, with the bird flu and resource shortages, they didn’t have produce. So last year they announced that they found a way to make chicken in a lab and that’s what’s in stores now,” someone responds.
“GMO lab meat” is written by another person.
After a third concludes it’s “fake,” they no longer believe it.
A more rational explanation for the shredded chicken breast is provided by another user: “It’s not lab-grown or 3D printed meat.” The source is actual chickens. The issue arises from avaricious chicken farmers forcing their birds to expand too quickly by giving them growth hormones.
Larger breasts
The Wall Street Journal claims that in addition to the hard, chewy meat known as “woody breast,” using big-breasted chickens to grow more quickly has also produced “spaghetti meat.”
As a result, each bird may generate more meat, increasing profit.
The World Scientific Journal reports that “there is proof that these abnormalities are associated with fast-growing birds,” according to Dr. Massimiliano Petracci, a professor of agricultural and food science at the University of Bologna in Italy.
Though their names may be unsettling, industry experts insist that consuming “spaghetti meat” and “wooly breast” won’t hurt you.
It will harm the hens, though, because their massive bodies are too big for their small legs to bear.
Cubby chickens
Data released by the National Chicken Council shows that broiler hens, or chicks grown for meat, are growing significantly faster than they used to. When the average chicken was 47 days old and sold in 2000, it weighed 5.03 pounds. Even though chickens are still typically sold at 47 days old in 2023, the plump birds now weigh 6.54 pounds.
In 1925, broilers required 112 days to attain a market weight of 2.5 pounds, which is more than a century ago.
Due to the increased demand for white meat in the previous century, the industry changed its practices to provide chickens “proportionally larger breasts.”
According to the Washington Post, Dr. Michael Lilburn, a professor at Ohio State University’s Poultry Research Center, “Chickens will likely need to get considerably larger if people continue to eat more and more of them. The percentage of breast meat in each bird will also need to be increased.
Regarding people’s preference for inexpensive chicken products like sandwiches, wings, and nuggets, Lilburn stated, “What people don’t realize is that it’s consumer demand that’s forcing the industry to adjust.” The minority is vocal and deceptively small, but they are posing many valid questions. For the most part, Americans still don’t care where their food comes from as long as it’s inexpensive.
Some businesses are requesting meat from slow-growing chickens, “arguing that giving birds more time to grow before slaughter will give them a healthier, happier life and produce better-tasting meat,” according to The New York Times, even though fast food chains and some grocery stores have partially backed the demand for larger breast meat.
“I’m adopting a vegan diet.”
Yet, internet users are expressing their disapproval and condemning the noodled chicken.
Asks a cyberfan: “It appears to be worms! “What are they giving us?”
“A time back, I got some similar to that. That’s how the bottom looked. Since our early years, things haven’t seemed right. A lot more recent,” a second says.
Other online users advised going to a different store: “A local butcher or cooperative will provide you with better quality and humanely raised chicken.” I suggest getting your beef there instead.
A handful were also inspired to become vegetarians.
“I’ll switch to veganism! “We are considering a pescatarian diet because there is too much lab food around,” one writes.
The idea that these unfortunate animals are enduring so much pain during their short lives due to factory farming is quite sad.
