Chick-fil-A
(Photo : Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Popular fast food chain Chick-fil-A is ending its policy of using only antibiotic-free chicken.

Chick-fil-A is ending its "No Antibiotics Ever" policy in an effort to "maintain supply," the popular chicken joint recently announced.

"To maintain supply of the high-quality chicken you expect from us, Chick-fil-A will shift from No Antibiotics Ever (NAE) to No Antibiotics Important To Human Medicine (NAIHM) starting in the Spring of 2024," the chain wrote on its website and in a notification to users of its app.

Where the NAE policy meant that "no antibiotics of any kind were used in raising the animal," the NAIHM approach "restricts the use of those antibiotics that are important to human medicine and commonly used to treat people, and allows use of animal antibiotics only if the animal and those around it were to become sick," the announcement said.

The Georgia-based chicken chain first made its NAE commitment in 2014, according to Reuters.

"As we looked to the future, the availability of high-quality chicken that meets our rigid standards became a concern," a Chick-fil-A spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "This change enables us to not only ensure we can continue to serve high-quality chicken, but also chicken that still meets the expectations our customers count on us to deliver."

The announcement did not include an exact date for the shift's start.