Most Americans prefer white meat chicken. What we do with all of the dark meat is fascinating!

A large percentage of people in America prefer to eat the white meat of chicken. What people don't know is that some actually do prefer the darker meat. Of course, it isn't that different from its counterpart, and certainly has no relation to the dark side of the force, but it does have its value. In fact, the most of Russia prefers dark meat, and America ships whatever it has left of its chicken after the white meat is separated all the way there.

In 2007, Russia dished out $800 million to purchase 1.6 billion pounds of dark meat chicken. Unfortunate for both countries is the fact that the imports have been slowing down. Not long ago, Russia banned American chicken altogether. The ban was lifted shortly, only to be replaced by another slightly less intense ban prohibiting the use of frozen chicken in processed foods. This took away a large portion of American meats from the Russian market since it was all shipped cold.

According to research, the reasons that most Americans prefer white meat is because they believe it to be more tender. This used to be true; however, because chicken began to be factory raised instead of free ranged, the darker meat of the legs have become more tender over time, no less so than the white meat of the chicken breasts.

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