Etiology of chick edema disease.

Chick edema disease first came to the attention of the Food and Drug Administration in December, 1957, when it was learned that millions of broilers died in the eastern and midwestern parts of the United States. Several groups in industry and government quickly determined that the disease was due to toxic components in certain feed fats (1-3), and that toxicity was associated with the unsaponiflable portion of the fat.