Tastier Dark-Meat Chicken Grows In Popularity Nationally

Well, once again Las Vegas bucks a national trend – this time, toward higher consumption of dark-meat chicken.

Higher demand for dark meat has been reported nationally, even to the point of shortages in some cases.

And while many have attributed the shift to TV chefs touting the deeper flavor and softer texture of dark meat, Bill Mattos of the California Poultry Federation said some of it has been by design.

"The industry made a concerted effort over the past five years to promote dark meat," Mattos said, mainly through national recipe contests and other promotions, and to chefs as well as consumers.

Mattos, who said he didn't have statistics on the increase, noted that dark meat has always been more popular with Latinos.

To read the rest of the story, please go to: Las Vegas Review-Journal