COPENHAGEN: Denmark’s animal welfare minister said on Wednesday that he wants to introduce a ban on the farming of fast-growing “turbo chickens”, first nationally but ultimately, across Europe.

“I want to work towards a national ban, but it’s clear that this is something that has to be examined both from a legal standpoint and, of course, an economic one before we can move forward,” Christian Rabjerg Madsen told broadcaster TV2. “We are also working towards a ban at EU level,” he added.

In neighbouring Norway there are also currently no restrictions, but under pressure from retailers, the country committed to phasing out turbo chicken breeds by the end of 2027. One of the popular commercial breeds of broiler chickens for meat consumption takes only five weeks to raise a chick to its full weight, compared to 12 weeks for popular breeds of chickens that are allowed to roam pastures.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2026