A Texas mom recently shared a shocking experience while cooking dinner for her family—a seemingly ordinary chicken breast she was preparing for her kids turned into stringy, spaghetti-like strands. Alesia Cooper, from Irving, Texas, posted a photo on Facebook showing the raw chicken shredding into long, thin pieces as she was cleaning it. “I think it’s that fake meat,” Cooper wrote, speculating that this bizarre transformation might be due to a new trend in food production.
Her viral post quickly sparked a flurry of online reactions. Some commenters speculated that the chicken might be lab-grown or 3D-printed, while others debated whether it was genetically modified (GMO) meat. But food experts are offering a different explanation—one linked to the growing methods used by poultry producers.
According to experts, this “spaghetti meat” is likely a result of the breeding practices used to grow larger, faster-growing chickens. These chickens are bred to have bigger breasts to yield more meat, but the rapid growth can lead to abnormal, stringy muscle fibers. This issue is often referred to as “woody breast,” where the chicken’s meat becomes tough and fibrous due to hormones and selective breeding.
Dr. Massimiliano Petracci, a professor of agriculture and food science at the University of Bologna, explains that these abnormalities are a direct consequence of breeding chickens to grow quickly, which affects their muscle development. While the texture might be unsettling to some, food safety experts assure consumers that these abnormalities don’t pose any health risks. However, there are concerns about animal welfare, as the chickens’ rapid growth can put immense strain on their bodies, with legs too weak to support their oversized frames.
Despite the unsettling nature of “spaghetti meat,” Cooper’s post highlights a growing trend in the food industry where genetic modification and selective breeding raise concerns about food quality and animal well-being. Whether it’s lab-grown meat or rapidly grown chicken, consumers are left questioning what’s really in their food—and whether it’s worth making the switch to alternatives like vegan options.