Farmer Dan Coaster-Garton, from Rathdowney in Southern Queensland, is a 4th generation poultry farmer for Ingham’s - Australia’s largest integrated poultry producer. Dan's family has been farming for Ingham's since 1964, and he has invited Australians to have a behind the scenes look into how meat-chickens are farmed.

Next year, Farmer Dan will mark 60 years of poultry farming, working with Ingham’s to deliver Australian-farmed chicken to help to get quality protein products on tables around Australia. This farm is one of many poultry-farms working with Ingham’s around Australia, and the company is proud that 100 per cent of its poultry sheds have RSPCA Approved certification, which means more space for chickens to roam and perform natural behaviours.

Meat chickens are housed in climate controlled poultry sheds that protect them against hot summers, cold winters, predators and disease, and where they have free access to automatic food systems and water lines. The RSPCA’s standard for meat-chickens has over 300 requirements for the inside of a poultry shed, and in 2021 alone, more than 340 assessments were conducted at Ingham’s farms and abattoirs.

Meat-chickens are fed grain fed goodness, with no hormones or steroids used at all – in fact, these was banned from chicken production in Australia more than 60 years ago. Selective breeding, optimal nutrition and husbandry  have seen the growth rate of meat chickens increase over time. Poultry are also highly efficient in converting feed, and numerous studies have shown that chicken has the lowest carbon footprint of any land-based meat.

The Australian Chicken Meat Federation and industry players such as Ingham’s are committed to Australia’s Long Term Emissions Reduction Plan to deliver net zero emissions by 2050. Ingham’s has set its 2030 targets to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 43 per cent (compared with a 2019 baseline), plus 20 per cent reductions in water intensity and waste to landfill. By 2025, Ingham’s is committed to 100 per cent of packaging being recyclable or compostable.

For more information visit https://inghams.com.au/