Kırnı chickens take 42 days until they are ready to be brought to the slaughterhouse.

Slaughter process of broiler chickens varies according to the market conditions. Broiler chickens are special animals with an optimized growth process which is formed by selective breeding that has been going on for almost a century. Studies are still being carried out on this diversified species which is created with the coupling of the most ideal and carefully selected animals. The chickens are completely natural and their genetic structures are improved without being exposed to any external genetic intervention.  Additionally, today, due to the animal feed improvement in quality and rations with R&D studies carried out in animal feed sector, these chickens can reach a live weight of 2-2.5 kg in 42 days while 20 and 10 years ago, they only weighted 1.8-2 kg in 50-55 days and 2 kg in 40-45 days, respectively. Thus, they play a great role in meeting the demand for animal protein in our country. Kırnı procures its broiler chicks from Ross Aviagen which has a leading market volume across the world, and the chickens take 42 days until they are ready to be brought to the slaughterhouse.

In 2017, 2018 and 2019, Kırnı facilities, inspected by experts from Ross Aviagen, were granted the awards of ROSS145 and ROSS400, which are two of the world’s most prestigious awards setting the standards for chicken quality.

One of the issues arousing concern among the public is whether growth-enhancing substances are used in broilers or not. The use of hormones and other growth-enhancing substances in chicken production is prohibited in EU countries, including Turkey. While the use of hormones poses a great threat to human health, there are also other reasons against its usage:

• The use of hormones is not only prohibited, but also not economically rational.

• There is no hormone production or import in North Cyprus.

• It is not practical and applicable to give hormones to chickens.

• It is known that hormone use by means of feed supplement does not yield any results.

• It is not possible to examine and inject almost 800,000 chickens one by one.

• There have been no cases reporting the use of hormones in poultry in North Cyprus.

Our facilities have the certificates of ISO 22000:2005, ISO 9001:2015 and TSI and the production is carried out in accordance with the determined quality standards.

As the Kırnı Chickens family, our biggest responsibility within the production process is to ensure animal welfare and put forward a sustainable production process while producing reliable and high quality food. The basic principles applied during the production process of chicks and broilers are as follows:

• Regulating the temperature by their age

• Regular supply of fresh air, water and feed

• Cooling of the poultry houses in hot weather
• Kaliteli ve kuru altlık sağlanması
• Maintaining quality and clean ground
• Providing a comfortable living space free from fear and distress
• Ensuring the hygiene and disinfection of the poultry houses
• Taking biosecurity measures between the poultry houses

For more information about the production process of Kırnı and animal welfare:

https://kirnipilicleri.com/en/production-process/

The use of antibiotics for enhancing the growth and development in poultry farming is neither practiced in our country nor in the European Union (EU). Antibiotics are only used for medical purposes when necessary and the chickens which are treated with antibiotics are not brought to the slaughterhouse until the drug is cleared from their system, thus, their meats are not consumed in such cases.  What is important in the use of antibiotics for medical purposes is the international maximum residue limit and the clearance time which may vary according to the type, use and dose of antibiotics and the cleansing period of the drug in edible tissues. Thus, official authorities perform regular inspections on our facilities for precautionary purposes.

The antibiotics used are licensed for chickens and are administered by the technical personnel in accordance with the prospectuses by filling in the veterinary doctor’s prescription and prescription application form. The licenses are issued by the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock.

Chickens are fed with high-quality plant-based feeds produced in our own feed factory. Optimal feed rations determined as a result of intensive R&D studies consist of corn, wheat, soybean, plant extracts, essential oils, enzymes, probiotics and prebiotics. While the correct use of these plant-based feeds meets the nutritional needs of chickens, it also improves digestion, performance and animal welfare. There is no use of any animal or chemical substances in our chicken feed.

Fresh products have a shelf life of 8-12 days if stored in the refrigerator (0-4 ºC). Frozen products, on the other hand, have a shelf life of 12 months if stored in a deep freezer (-18 ºC). This does not apply for the products that are frozen at home after being purchased fresh; products frozen at home should be consumed within a maximum of 1 month.

Fresh chicken meat has a color ranging from bluish white to yellow. While this color range is considered normal, factors such as nutrition, movement, age and/or diet play a major role in determining the color of fresh chicken meat. Young chickens will be bluish white in color as there is less fat under their skin, while chickens fed marigolds are expected to have a yellow skin color.

Organic production is a sustainable form of production only within the framework of certain rules. Organic agriculture and food production is a demanding and costly form of production that rejects modern agricultural practices, takes place in rural areas with minimal carbon emissions and requires animals to be fed with only organic feeds.

Considering the economic factors and “time”, which is the most valuable asset, making organic production is not possible for mass-producers of chicken, eggs and agricultural products.

Today, expressions such as “natural, additive-free, pure, village quality product and homemade” are confused with the word “organic” which causes marketing to be done using a false perception. In our country, chicken and egg breeding in open fields or pastures is also perceived as “organic production”. Additionally, while hygiene and growing conditions of such products are not controlled, studies on the subject have also determined that such products carry serious microbiological risks.