Can chickens eat kitchen and vegetable scraps?

Better not: chickens shouldn’t eat kitchen and vegetable scraps. In the UK, the ban on feeding kitchen scraps to chickens also covers scraps from vegan households (British Hen Welfare Trust). In the EU, Germany’s agriculture ministry (BMLEH) says kitchen and food waste must not be fed to laying hens. US extension services, by contrast, allow small amounts of table scraps: no more than 10 percent of the daily diet (Oklahoma State) or what your hens can clean up in about 20 minutes (Oregon State).

Good to know: In the UK, fruit and vegetables that have never entered the kitchen are still allowed, such as produce from your garden or bought for your hens and taken straight outside (DEFRA, British Hen Welfare Trust). In the US, UF/IFAS Extension says to avoid fatty, salty, sugary or rotten scraps.