Cannabis Fed Chickens are Healthier

Researchers have found fewer cases of avian bronchitis after chickens were fed cannabis. Ong-ard Panyachatiraksa, a farm owner in north Thailand, was wondering what to do with the many excess leaves he had amassed from his cannabis cultivation. Could his chickens benefit from the trim leftovers? Ong-ard is licensed to grow medicinal cannabis.

Academics from Chiang Mai University's animal and aquatic sciences department also wondered. So beginning Since last January, they studied 1,000 chickens at the organic farm in Lampang to observe how the animals responded to cannabis being mixed in with their water or feed.

The outcome of this experiment has been promising and indicates that cannabis may have the potential to lower farmers' dependence on antibiotics, says Chompunut Lumsangkul, an assistant professor at Chiang Mai University, who led the study.

The researchers fed the animals the plant in differing intensities and forms. Some chickens were given water that had been boiled with cannabis leaves. Others ate feed that had been mixed with crushed leaves. Chompunut and his team observed the chickens see the impact cannabis had on their growth and vulnerability to disease. They also looked to assess whether their meat and eggs were different or contained traces of cannabinoids.

Chompunut reassured that the cannabis would not get the chickens stoned as the intensity of the THC was not strong enough.The levels of THC and CBD in the leaves ranged from 0.2 to 0.4%. The idea is to improve immunity and performance without harmful effects, not get them high!

The results are currently unpublished, but there have been positive indications. The Cannabis-supplemented chickens have seemed to encounter fewer cases of avian bronchitis. 

Not only this, but the quality of their meat, as judged by the composition of protein, fat, moisture, and tenderness, has also been superior.The medicinal and culinary benefits of cannabis have been recognised in Thai tradition for many years. It is common to put it in chicken noodle soup to make it taste better, said Chompunut. However, she was keen to investigate the science behind such practices thoroughly.

Thailand has recently relaxed its laws on cannabis over the years. Most recently removing, cannabis and hemp plants from the narcotics list. However, the public is still prohibited from smoking in public and consuming extracts containing more than 0.2% of THC.

It is not fully understood why cannabis has positively affected the study chickens. It may be that the bioactive compounds in the cannabis have stimulated the chickens' gut health and immunity.

The same team plans a second study. Here they plan on using higher-intensity cannabis extracts to observe the effects it has on disease rates and fatalities amongst the test chickens. Further investigation is required before we can say whether cannabis could be a reliable antibiotic for chickens. 

"The trend of chicken farming these days is toward cleaner, more organic growing with less antibiotic usage. There is also a desire to use byproducts and reduce waste. Using cannabis could help to achieve such goals", said Chompunut. Currently, the price of cannabis in Thailand is too high for all farms to incorporate it into chicken feed. However, as legal reform continues apace, this may change.

Chickens fed with cannabis will also sell for a higher price which should help encourage more farmers to try it out. Chicken generally sells for 60 baht per kg. Still, there is every chance that chicken fed with cannabis would double the price due to the meat quality. What's more, it is safe as, according to the studies, results show that there are no traces of cannabinoids to be found in the chicken meat or its eggs.