Weekly US Broiler Hatchery Report
US - Compared to a year earlier, broiler-type eggs set were down 7 per cent, and broiler chicks placed were down 6 per cent, reports the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).
Broiler-Type Eggs Set Down 7 Percent
Commercial hatcheries in the 19-state weekly program set 203 million eggs in incubators during the week ending December 27, 2008. This was down 7 percent from the eggs set the corresponding week a year earlier. Average hatchability for chicks hatched during the week was 84 percent. Average hatchability is calculated by dividing chicks hatched during the week by eggs set three weeks earlier.
Broiler Chicks Placed Down 6 Per Cent
Broiler growers in the 19-state weekly program placed 166 million chicks for meat production during the week ending December 27, 2008. Placements were down 6 percent from the comparable week a year earlier. Cumulative placements from December 30, 2007 through December 27, 2008 were 8.96 billion, down 2 percent from the same period a year earlier.
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