Chicken farming is making a comeback in some major cities — but it introduces potentially dangerous health concerns

Whitney Curtis/Reuters

• Over 13 million Americans are flocking to backyard chicken farming.
• A 2015 review of 150 of the most populated US cities found that nearly all allowed backyard poultry. 
• However, contact with backyard poultry has been associated with salmonella and Newcastle disease — and more frameworks need to be created to prevent the spread of potentially harmful bacteria. 

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Colorado has received a lot of attention recently as one of the first states to allow recreational marijuana, but it’s also legalizing other things. Denver, one of the nation’s hottest urban real estate markets, is surrounded by municipalities that allow backyard chicken flocks.

This isn’t just happening in Colorado. Backyard chickens are cropping up everywhere. Nearly 1 percent of all U.S. households surveyed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported owning backyard fowl in 2013, and 4 percent more planned to start in the next five years. That’s over 13 million Americans flocking to the backyard poultry scene. Ownership is spread evenly between rural, urban and suburban households and is similar across racial and ethnic groups. A 2015 review of 150 of the most-populated U.S. cities found that nearly all (93 percent) allowed backyard poultry flocks.See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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