I've been trying to understand how the feathers are harvested for shuttles but there is a lot of conflicting information. Unfortunately, I've not came across anything that I would consider to be a "reliable source". I was wondering if anyone had anything concrete that they could share or, even better, share models of shuttles that declare how they source their feathers? There are claims online that range from the majority of feathers being a) "picked up from the floor" to b) "being a byproduct of the meat industry and are plucked once the bird has been killed" (i.e. it's morally similar to leather products) to c) "plucked from a live bird". I'm okay using shuttles that fall under categories "a)" and "b)" but I personally can't justify playing with "c)". From what I've read, it seems most sensible to me (due to economics) that the birds are raised for their meat ("b)" above) but I can't find anything to definitively back this up from either Google or from the website of a major manufacturer. If possible, I'd appreciate it if we could focus any replies on the production methods rather than debating the ethics of it (since each of us will have very different views on it)! The relative merits of feathers vs synthetics vs plastics have also been debated at length in other places too so I'd appreciate it if we left this out of the discussion too! Some quotes and sources from my research: https://www.thepadelemporium.com/ba...nsition-from-feathers-to-synthetic-materials/ (note: this blog does not declare its sources) https://viterbischool.usc.edu/news/...to-make-ethical-and-sustainable-shuttlecocks/ (note: although this is from the website of an educational establishment, this is a direct quote from a student rather than a reviewed paper or an article with sources) https://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/index.php?threads/feather-shuttles.154194/#post-2349275 (note: this seems sensible but I've not been able to confirm this person's identity. He claimed that he worked for a small company so it's also unclear if this scales to larger manufacturers as well) https://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/index.php?threads/feather-shuttles.154194/#post-2349367 (note: this is from the same user as the previous quote) https://www.firstpost.com/living/ba...ese-causing-much-pain-to-animals-3964761.html (note: this article doesn't declare its sources) https://idfl.com/info/harvesting-and-live-plucking-truth/ (note: this is the closest that I've found to what I would consider a "reputable source" but it is in reference to down feathers rather than shuttle feathers) https://www.badmintoncentral.com/fo...-what-happens-to-the-goose.18049/#post-179305 (note: it is unclear what company this post was referring to) https://www.badmintoncentral.com/fo...happens-to-the-goose.18049/page-2#post-181449 (note: sosan.com no longer exists so I can't check it)
