US chicken companies pioneered restricting sleep to keep birds eating around the clock.
A new study (Li et al., 2026) recommends giving chickens just 2 hours of darkness nightly to maximize the time they spend eating. The study and photo are Chinese.
We know chickens have far better hapiness with 7–8 hours of darkness to sleep.
But they eat more and grow faster when they are sleep deprived.
cage-free and free range, doesnt mean they arnt all packed into together, where disease spreads. the key to look for is pasture raised, with sunshine free-range outside. bougie eggs have regeenrative, garden raised.