More Chicken Wings, Anyone?
New meat cutting processes promise a 50% increase in wing parts per bird.

Mmm … chicken wings, fried and dipped in hot sauce. The tasty morsels are so popular with wing lovers that chicken producers have difficulty keeping up with demand. After all, chickens have only two wings each -- with two edible parts per wing.
So-called boneless wings -- small bits of breast meat fried and served with sauce à la wings -- are acceptable substitutes for some folks, but true wing aficionados say they’re no replacement for the real thing.
Now comes perhaps a more promising solution to the wing shortage -- meat cuts that include the two scapula bones and their surrounding meat and skin. A protruding bone joint makes each piece easy to pick up. Add the two scapula parts to the four wing parts and presto -- a 50% increase in edible “wing” parts per bird.
From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance
Be a smarter, better informed investor.

Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Third Wing LLC, a Dacula, Ga.-based firm, manages the licensing of a patent covering the scapula cut. The company’s Web site notes that its product features whole white meat and less bone, gristle and cartilage.
Meanwhile, a robotics process that aims to automate the process of producing more pieces per bird is in the works at Georgia Institute of Technology.
Gary McMurray, project director, says, “We are verifying the core technology. Next year, we are going to develop a stage 1 functional prototype that will be able to run a couple of hundred birds easily.”
Will the scapula meat win over wing lovers? Jeff Brown, aka Lord of the Wings, is taking a wait and see … er, taste … attitude. But clearly, he’s intrigued: “What do these new wings look like? Do they have the same meat-to-skin ratio? Is the flavor the same? If it is similar to the traditional wingette/drummette, then this could be great for everyone. Otherwise, it might lead to the ‘watering down’ of an order of chicken wings.
“It sounds exciting, though,” says his lordship, who reviews and blogs about chicken wings from his base in Ottawa, Canada.
A large new supply of “wing” parts promises to be good for chicken producers, too. Wholesale wing prices are up nearly 40% since 2008, pushing up retail prices as well, but wing lovers aren’t about to go cold turkey, so to speak.
Brown notes that while Canada isn’t experiencing the shortage felt in the U.S. -- at least not yet -- “the cost of chicken wings has definitely been on the rise. What was served more as a cheap appetizer is frequently priced as a full priced entrée,” he says.
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.

-
S&P 500 Hits New High on Jobs Friday Eve: Stock Market Today
The S&P 500 hit a new all-time closing high and most of the stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up the day before a critical jobs report.
-
New $6,000 'Senior Bonus' Deduction: What It Means for Taxpayers Over Age 65
Tax Changes If you’re an older adult, a new bonus tax deduction could provide a valuable tax benefit. Here's how it works.
-
AI Start-ups Are Rolling in Cash
The Kiplinger Letter Investors are plowing record sums of money into artificial intelligence start-ups. Even as sales grow swiftly, losses are piling up for AI firms.
-
What is AI Worth to the Economy?
The Letter Spending on AI is already boosting GDP, but will the massive outlays being poured into the technology deliver faster economic growth in the long run?
-
Kiplinger Special Report: Business Costs for 2026
Economic Forecasts Fresh forecasts for 2026, to help you plan ahead and prepare a budget on a range of business costs, from Kiplinger's Letters team.
-
Trump-Era Regulations Will Broaden Access to Crypto
The Kiplinger Letter The president wants to make the U.S. the leader in digital assets.
-
How to Adopt AI and Keep Employees Happy
The Kiplinger Letter As business adoption of AI picks up, employee morale could take a hit. But there are ways to avoid an AI backlash.
-
The Rise of AI: A Kiplinger Special Report
The Kiplinger Letter Our special report looks at the opportunities and challenges of generative AI and how its rapid move into the mainstream is impacting every aspect of our lives.
-
Big Changes Are Ahead for Higher Ed
The Kiplinger Letter A major reform of higher ed is underway. Colleges are bracing for abrupt change, financial headwinds and uncertainty.
-
AI-Powered Smart Glasses Set to Make a Bigger Splash
The Kiplinger Letter Meta leads the way with its sleek, fashionable smart glasses, but Apple reportedly plans to join the fray by late 2026. Improved AI will lure more customers.