Cooks Venture's Broiler Breed Scores High In The Global Animal Partnership's Better Chicken Study

DECATUR, Ark., Dec. 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cooks Venture, an independent poultry genetics and pasture-raised meat company rooted in regenerative agriculture, is proud to announce the results from the Global Animal Partnership (G.A.P.) multidisciplinary study on broiler chicken. This independent research study, conducted by the University of Guelph, is the largest, most comprehensive study to date, including more than 7,500 broiler chickens from 16 different genetic strains. Cooks Venture's Pioneer broiler line and parent stock are included on a short list of breeds that meet G.A.P.'s new standards for animal welfare and was the only broiler line approved in commercial scaled production today. This list will be used to qualify for the Better Chicken Commitment breed requirements that over 216 major companies have committed to, comprising over 11% of the US market. Notably, Cooks Venture's breeds were the only ones approved with no affiliation to the two consolidated genetics conglomerates, Cobb and Aviagen, which dominate over 99% of the US market.

Cooks Venture's breed, the Pioneer, a three-way cross between a Heritage Transylvanian Naked Neck, a Delaware, and a proprietary Peterson family line from the 1930s, scored high for animal welfare, high activity, high bone density, excellent mobility, low to no rates of muscle myopathies (e.g. woody breast syndrome, white striping disease), and strong immune development. Cooks Venture's Pioneer parent stock also passed as the company plans future sales of breeder genetics to improve the diversity of chickens both nationally, and throughout the world.

"Our breed, the Pioneer, is selectively bred from heritage line chickens, growing slower than conventional birds, resulting in a robust chicken with efficient feed conversion through better gut health," states Matthew Wadiak, Cooks Venture CEO and founder. "This is the culmination of over 12 years of research with heritage lines, to start from the ground up, to breed a better chicken without the disorders associated with 99% of chicken in America. Our largest asset is our genetics which we've developed prioritizing both health and flavor."    

The two-year study definitively found the breed of chicken to be the most critical component for animal welfare. This research was the first step in defining a new animal welfare protocol and breeds acceptable for use in G.A.P. 's program and the Better Chicken Commitment moving forward.

"We're proof that scaled and independent breeding companies can immediately make an impact - improving the animal's health and welfare, while producing more flavorful and nutritious chicken," states Wadiak. 

In 2016, G.A.P. announced that by 2024, it would replace 100 percent of chicken breeds that result in poor welfare outcomes with breeds required to meet specified welfare outcomes within its animal welfare certification program.

"The purpose of the Better Chicken project is to bring a better broiler—considering both animal welfare and food quality—to the marketplace. We believe breed is the foundation to ensuring good welfare, and once again turned to science to look deeper into breeds and inform the next version of our protocols. The breeds on this initial list, including Cooks Venture, passed the criteria set in the Guelph study," states Anne Malleau, Executive Director of G.A.P.

The University of Guelph study demonstrates the strength of Cooks Venture's Pioneer breed at a time when Americans are increasingly interested in animal welfare and are more than ever willing to pay for food with ethical claims that also taste better and are more nutritious.

Learn more at www.cooksventure.com 

For more information, the initial breed list, and more on the Guelph Study and Better Chicken Project visit - www.globalanimalpartnership.org.

About Cooks Venture: Founded in 2019, Cooks Venture is a vertically integrated heritage breeding and animal agriculture company committed to regenerative agriculture and a truly transparent supply chain for the future. Founded by Matthew Wadiak, Cooks Venture aims to reimagine animal agriculture and chicken breeding, while promoting regenerative agriculture at all levels, providing families with healthy food choices that are exceptional in quality and taste and grown in regenerative systems. Cooks Venture is a Global Animal Partnership certified company, Certified Humane and verified Non-GMO. Cooks Venture works with Food ID to verify their no-antibiotics claim through science, not affidavits.

Media Contact:
Elizabeth Matthews
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SOURCE Cooks Venture

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