August 4, 2011

US broiler eggs in hatcheries slides 6%

US commercial hatcheries in the 19-state weekly programme set 195 million eggs in incubators during the week ending July 30, down 6% from the eggs set the same week a year earlier, USDA reported.

Average hatchability for chicks hatched during the week was 85%.

Broiler growers in the programme placed 163 million chicks for meat production during the week ending July 30, down 4% from the comparable week a year earlier.

Cumulative placements from January 2 through July 30 were 5.10 billion, down slightly from the same period a year earlier.