October 10, 2006

Poultry prices rising in US state of Mississippi as production drops

Poultry growers in the US state of Mississippi have cut production due to low broiler prices during the first quarter of 2006, according to Mississippi State University.

The cut in production has improved prices slightly but has yet to recover to previous year's levels. said Tim Chamblee, poultry specialist with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.

While whole birds in August fetched a 15 percent higher price than April, it was still 4.5 percent below the same period in 2005. August leg quarter prices were 39 cents per pound, which is up more than 100 percent from April, but 15 percent below 2005, Chamblee added.

Egg production has also slipped from last year's levels, Ed Scott, general manager of Cal-Maine in Edwards said. Cal Maine, in a new programme has elected to cut down layer numbers to increase space in cages, which caused a drop in egg supplies.

Doing so has enabled to company to reach break-even prices, rather than the low prices seen last year because of overproduction, Scott said.