December 8, 2006

US lowers chicken production as fewer broiler eggs set in incubators

US chicken companies are setting two percent fewer eggs in incubators and two percent fewer chicks on farms, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) reported.

Poultry companies in the 19 largest broiler-producing states set 211 million eggs in incubators during the week ending December 2, 2006, two percent fewer than the number of eggs set the corresponding week one year earlier.

This decline extends the trend in decreasing numbers of broiler eggs being set since late October this year, when several major broiler companies announced cuts in output to reduce oversupply and boost chicken prices in the midst of high losses.

NASS also reported that broiler growers in the 19-states placed 168 million chicks for meat production during the week ending December 2, 2006, down two percent from the comparable week a year earlier.

Cumulative placements from January 1, 2006 through December 2, 2006 were 8.27 billion - down one percent from the same period in 2005.