Sanderson Expects Chicken Output to Rise
US - Chicken processor, Sanderson Farms, has announced it will expand its own production next year while the industry continues to face a glut of meat and low prices.Sanderson Farms Inc. expects to produce more chicken meat in 2012 than it will in 2011, the company said last week.
Sanderson told investors during a presentation it expects to turn out 2.849 billion pounds of chicken in 2012, or 3.3 per cent more than it expects to produce in 2011.
Sanderson Chief Executive, Joe Sanderson Jr., also said he expects data to show the US chicken industry produced heavy amounts of meat in September and October, despite the fact it is facing an historic glut of inventory.
The growth in production was mostly accidental and due largely to mild weather. These temperatures allow the birds to gain weight more quickly, which in turn leads to larger average size at slaughter.
Production levels are a key reason for the chicken industry's year-long slump, characterised by higher costs and historically low chicken prices.