Toronto city council is considering a pilot project that would allow residents to raise chickens in their backyards.
The proposal comes as part of a motion to review the city’s list of prohibited animals.
At the moment, it’s illegal for Toronto residents to own chickens.
A survey included a city staff report filed last May suggests lifting the ban on chickens could be a popular move.
Ward 5 councillor Justin Di Ciano says chickens provide many benefits beyond fresh eggs, including supplying fertilizer and even cutting down on backyard bugs and household food waste.
“It’s all about self-sustainability, and you’re going to fight factory farming, if you know, you’re conscious about that, which I certainly am.”
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Toronto previously debated allowing backyard chickens in January 2012, but opted against it in the end.
Several Canadian cities, including nearby Brampton, Ont., Vancouver, and Niagara Falls, Ont., currently permit residents to own chickens.
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With a file from AM640