Broiler farming is the fastest-growing animal production sector and broiler meat is the second most-consumed meat in the world. The intensification of broiler production often has a negative impact on the meat quality and carcass characteristics. Consumers, however, expect a quality product from animals reared extensively on farms providing good animal welfare, often intuitively associated with extensive farming practices. Therefore, this literature review investigates how the critical factors contributing to the degree of extensiveness of broiler production affect the quality of meat. We used the data from scientific articles published in the years 2012–2021 to analyze the effect of diet (n = 409), genetics (n = 86), enrichment (n = 25), and stocking density (n = 20) on meat quality and carcass characteristics. Minerals and microelements supplementation in the diet improved all the meat quality aspects: sensory, physical, and chemical in most studies. Minerals and enzymes in the diet had beneficial effects on carcass characteristics, unlike feed restriction and ingredient substitutions. The impact of outdoor access on meat quality and carcass characteristics was most frequently examined, in contrast to the use of perches or effects of litter quality. Overall, enrichment did not affect the meat's sensory or physical parameters, but outdoor access improved its lipid composition. Lower stocking density deteriorated intramuscular fat content, decreased tenderness and juiciness, yet lowered cooking and drip loss, and increased carcass and breast muscle yields. When it comes to genetics, in general, slow growing broiler strains have better meat quality parameters, especially regarding yellowness (b*), redness (a*), cooking and drip loss. Our review shows that the factors which contribute to extensiveness of broiler production systems and birds’ welfare also affect meat quality and the carcass characteristics.

In this study, the effects of environmental enrichment, stocking density, and microclimate on feather condition, skin injuries, and other health para

To process and evaluate the data from broiler fattening and slaughtering, we investigated the production data of 107 straight run flocks of the commercial meat-type breed Ross 308 (Aviagen, EU). All flocks were raised and slaughtered in Germany and the average slaughter age was 37 days. The health outcomes of interest were mortality, average weight, and the slaughter results. First-week mortality, cumulative mortality, stocking density, flock size, season, production week of the parental flock, farm, antibiotic treatment, and the interaction between antibiotic treatment and season were considered as possible influencing factors. The average first-week mortality (FWM) and cumulative mortality percentages were 0.66 and 2.74%, respectively. First-week mortality was influenced by flock size, production week of the parental flock, and the interaction between antibiotic treatment and season, whereas cumulative mortality was influenced by antibiotic treatment, farm, and first-week mortality. The average weight (mean 2.30 kg) was influenced by season, stocking density, flock size, farm, and the interaction between antibiotic treatment and season. The condemnation rate was on average 1.48%, with the most common causes being deep dermatitis (mean 0.63%), ascites (mean 0.53%), and not suitable for production/general disease (mean 0.25%). Several factors influenced the causes of condemnation, with season being the most predominant one, followed by the interaction between antibiotic treatment and season, the antibiotic treatment alone, and stocking density.