Some may try and tell you that electric immobilization is humane and the best way to kill poultry. Let's review exactly what electric immobilization does. The birds are dumped out of their crates and then shackled. After that they have their heads run through electrically charged water, thereby immobilizing them. Then a machine slits their throats, and a scalding tank defeathers them. Sound humane to you? Don't think that a species that can walk on the moon can not come up with a more humane way to kill chickens?

The sad part is that this electric immobilization process is not even very good and has many drawbacks. Birds suffer from broken bones, and bruising during the shackling and dumping process. This reduces the quality and the total number of usable birds in the end. During the dumping process the birds panic and try to scramble. This results in claws piercing the skin of other birds. Think about that for a minute, these birds are born and raised in their own feces and now that feces is under the skin of chickens that are being prepared for you.

Now lets think about the face that in the US the voltage is not set too high so many birds are still aware and as they roll down the machine due to all their flapping they miss getting their throats slit and get dumped into the scalding tanks alive. Still think this is the most humane way to kill a bird?

Now lets look at the cost of this particular method of torture. Lights are kept at a minimum in order to maintain some level of calm in the birds. This leads to many worker accidents on the job. With all the moving and flapping of wings that occurs in these slaughterhouses much dust and debris is tossed around. This leads to respiratory problems in the workers; they are inhaling fecal dust after all. Not to mention the obvious that birds will peck and scratch the workers and when scared will go to the bathroom on them which can lead to bacterial infections. With all this going on its no wonder that the job has a high turnover rate.

PETA promotes a new method that is significantly more humane, more cost effective, and less dangerous to workers. They call it Controlled-Atmosphere Killing. Mixes of inert gases are released that puts the birds to sleep. Then they are shackled. This gets rid of damage done when dumping, and the risk of spreading infections because the birds do not panic and claw other birds as they try to flee.

By being asleep also they do not miss the part of the machine that slits their throats so the chances of them being alive when they hit the scalding tank is incredible small. Also the gas used causes something to happen in the muscles and increases the shelf life of the meat. The meat is also supposedly more tender. Not to mention that since birds are knocked out there are less injuries to workers which reduces walkouts and paying out to insurance companies.

It would seem to me that anyone who thinks electric immobilization is cost effective and humane needs to do some research. I truly hope that this new process promoted by PETA, Controlled-Atmosphere killing goes into effect. It is significantly more cost effective, less traumatic on the birds, and most importantly a more humane way to do things.

References
peta.org

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