A Texas woman was surprised when the chicken she was cooking for supper dissolved into stringy spaghetti strands.
The mother shared a photo of the raw chicken she was washing on social media, stating that pasta was not an option that evening. The bird was tearing apart in her hands.
In her now-viral Facebook post, she states, “I think it’s that fake meat,” urging people to follow a vegan diet. Read on to learn more about the stringy chicken!
Alesia Cooper, an Irving, Texas homeowner, posted a disturbing image of a chicken breast on March 21, objecting to its potential placement on a dinner plate.
The mother of two says, “I was debating posting this, but since I needed to see it, so do yall.” The post, which also includes an image of chicken shredding into spaghetti-like strands, continues: “I was cooking my kids dinner a couple of weeks ago and was cleaning my meat as I normally do, and when I went back to start cooking, it turned into this (SIC).”
Cooper purchased the chicken breast from Aldi, but is unsure if it is fake meat.”I haven’t made chicken off the bone since.”
Online users instantly provided comments with their ideas on the matter; some speculated that the chicken was created in a petri dish or 3D printed.
“That’s lab grown chicken, it’s a new way they make chicken because, of the last 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.” A single worker works the counter.
Someone else wrote, “GMO lab meat.”
A third decides it’s “fake; I don’t buy it anymore.”
Another user provides a more plausible explanation for the shredded chicken breast: “It is not lab-grown or 3D printed meat.” It comes from live chickens. The problem arises when greedy chicken producers force-feed their birds growth hormones, causing them to develop far too quickly.
Bigger breasts
According to the Wall Street Journal, growing big-breasted chickens to grow quicker resulted in “spaghetti meat” as well as the hard, chewy flesh known as “woody breast.”
As a result, more meat may be produced per bird, increasing profitability.
Dr. Massimiliano Petracci, a professor of agriculture and food science at the University of Bologna in Italy, tells the Wall Street Journal that “there is proof that these abnormalities are associated with fast-growing birds.”
Despite their frightening titles, “spaghetti meat” and “woolly breast” are safe to consume, according to industry experts.
However, it will harm the hens since their massive bodies are too big for their short legs to bear.
Chubby chickens
According to data released by the National Chicken Council, grill chickens—chickens grown for meat—are growing far faster than they were in the past. In 2000, the average chicken weighed 5.03 pounds when it was 47 days old and ready for market. The average chicken is still 47 days old when it reaches the market in 2023, but the plump birds weigh 6.54 pounds.
When compared to the numbers from nearly a century ago, broilers took 112 days to attain a market weight of 2.5 pounds in 1925.
The previous century’s increased demand for white meat pushed the industry to make adjustments such that hens had “proportionally larger breasts.”
According to Dr. Michael Lilburn, a professor at Ohio State University’s Poultry Research Centre, if people continue to consume more chicken, the size of chickens would likely increase. “We’ll also have to increase the proportion of breast meat in each bird.”
“What people don’t realise is that it’s consumer demand that’s forcing the industry to adjust,” Lilburn said of the public’s preference for chicken nuggets, wings, sandwiches, and other low-cost chicken items. “A deceptively small but loud minority is raising many relevant questions. The majority of the US populace still doesn’t care where their food comes from, as long as it’s inexpensive.
While fast food chains and some grocery stores have contributed to the demand for larger breast meat, The New York Times reports that some companies are demanding meat from slow-growth chickens, “contending that giving birds more time to grow before slaughter will give them a healthier, happier life and produce better-tasting meat.”
“I’m going vegan.”
However, online users have criticised and expressed their displeasure with the noodled chicken.
A cyberfan asks: “It looks like worms! “What do they feed us?”
“I acquired several of those a while back. It looked like that at the bottom. Things haven’t looked right since we were young. “A lot fresher,” adds a second.
Other internet users suggested purchasing elsewhere: “You’ll get humanely raised and higher-quality chicken from a local butcher or co-op.” I urge that you go there instead for beef.”
Several people were inspired to become vegetarians.
“I’ll become vegan!! “Too much lab food around,” comments one, while another adds: “This is why we are thinking about going pescatarian.”
It’s terribly unfortunate that these poor animals are suffering so much in their short lives as a result of factory farming.
