In what could be the most relatable news of 2017, chickens are getting too lazy to mate and we are going to have to pay more because of it.
Consumerist reports that a chicken shortage might be around the corner, as the world's insatiable appetite for the bird has forced breeders to produce meat faster. In the past, larger roosters were made to mate with large hens so that their chicks would yield meat faster. That natural selection has gotten so out of hand that now chickens are too top heavy to even be interested in reproducing.
Now The Wall Street Journal estimates that the the U.S. needs about 750 million birds every month to sustain the constant demand. Analysts at WSJ found that a measly 1 percent decrease in viable chick births leads to a loss of $120 million across the industry.
But what does all of this even mean? Essentially, your Chicken Fries could be in danger again just a year after the internet rescued them from oblivion using petitions and Twitter tantrums.
Seriously though, chicken is one of the leanest, most protein-right, and cheapest meatsoffered on the market. So a shortage is bad news for disadvantaged places in the world trying to eat healthy.
Even worse is the fact that a solution is not within reach. Scientists aren't even sure what's causing the fall in chicken fertility. Some evidence suggests that overfeeding or underfeeding is affecting their health and therefore their libido.
Or, you know, maybe they're just having an existential crisis.