Broiler Hatchery ISSN: 1949-1840 Released March 21, 2012, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Broiler-Type Eggs Set Down 6 Percent Commercial hatcheries in the 19 State weekly program set 196 million eggs in incubators during the week ending March 17, 2012. This was down 6 percent from the eggs set the corresponding week a year earlier. Average hatchability for chicks hatched during the week was 85 percent. Average hatchability is calculated by dividing chicks hatched during the week by eggs set three weeks earlier. Broiler-Type Chicks Placed Down 5 Percent Broiler growers in the 19 State weekly program placed 163 million chicks for meat production during the week ending March 17, 2012. Placements were down 5 percent from the comparable week a year earlier. Cumulative placements from January 1, 2012 through March 17, 2012 were 1.78 billion, down 4 percent from the same period a year earlier. Broiler-Type Eggs Set - 19 Selected States: 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Week ending State :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- :February 11, :February 18, :February 25, : March 3, : March 10, : March 17, : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 eggs : Alabama ......................: 27,085 27,624 27,970 27,581 27,476 28,260 Arkansas .....................: 20,091 19,499 20,142 20,493 20,665 19,658 Delaware .....................: 3,188 3,191 3,190 3,191 3,303 3,415 Florida ......................: 1,352 1,243 1,353 1,350 1,350 1,351 Georgia ......................: 31,983 32,222 32,143 32,150 32,374 32,236 Kentucky .....................: 7,751 7,571 6,399 7,855 7,841 7,805 Louisiana ....................: 3,470 3,424 3,379 3,470 3,440 3,470 Maryland .....................: 7,484 7,067 7,204 7,212 7,674 7,678 Mississippi ..................: 17,832 17,663 17,814 17,799 17,682 17,784 Missouri .....................: 7,817 7,807 7,654 7,840 7,648 7,482 : North Carolina ...............: 20,310 20,336 20,313 20,397 20,342 19,957 Oklahoma .....................: 6,923 6,768 6,688 6,930 6,930 6,365 Pennsylvania .................: 3,539 3,497 3,714 3,763 3,838 3,692 South Carolina ...............: 5,282 5,404 5,296 5,291 5,472 5,118 Texas ........................: 15,035 15,011 14,868 14,732 14,994 15,084 Virginia .....................: 6,199 5,963 6,168 6,118 6,207 6,273 California, Tennessee, : and West Virginia ............: 10,140 10,373 10,998 10,909 11,010 11,299 : 19 State total ...............: 195,481 194,663 195,293 197,081 198,246 196,927 : Previous year total ..........: 204,337 207,150 206,633 208,530 207,787 208,563 : Percent of previous year .....: 96 94 95 95 95 94 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Broiler-Type Chicks Placed - 19 Selected States: 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Week ending State :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- :February 11, :February 18, :February 25, : March 3, : March 10, : March 17, : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 : 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 chicks : Alabama ......................: 19,365 21,845 18,833 18,749 19,382 20,062 Arkansas .....................: 18,219 19,111 19,144 19,498 18,611 19,004 Delaware .....................: 4,433 4,404 3,440 4,117 3,910 3,901 Florida ......................: 1,048 1,062 1,073 1,454 1,174 1,407 Georgia ......................: 27,384 25,271 27,877 27,520 28,332 27,769 Kentucky .....................: 6,544 6,008 5,662 6,562 6,595 5,014 Louisiana ....................: 3,062 3,068 3,092 3,091 3,022 2,983 Maryland .....................: 6,490 5,959 6,751 5,778 6,441 6,110 Mississippi ..................: 15,172 15,227 15,317 15,599 15,328 15,440 Missouri .....................: 5,755 5,674 4,612 5,566 6,020 5,325 : North Carolina ...............: 15,648 15,418 15,820 15,856 15,816 16,753 Oklahoma .....................: 4,755 4,003 5,026 4,125 4,014 4,605 Pennsylvania .................: 3,107 3,159 3,045 2,894 2,870 2,970 South Carolina ...............: 4,798 4,971 4,197 4,523 4,230 3,646 Texas ........................: 12,119 11,949 11,972 12,466 12,321 12,205 Virginia .....................: 4,607 4,096 4,547 5,368 4,739 4,784 California, Tennessee, : and West Virginia ............: 9,442 10,057 10,137 10,181 9,900 10,824 : 19 State total ...............: 161,948 161,282 160,545 163,347 162,705 162,802 : Previous year total ..........: 167,953 167,473 168,805 167,792 170,434 170,587 : Percent of previous year .....: 96 96 95 97 95 95 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Statistical Methodology Survey Procedures: Data for broiler hatchery estimates are collected weekly from all chicken hatcheries within the 19 States that hatch at least one million chicks a year. The 19 States account for approximately 97 percent of the broilers produced on an annual basis. Individual NASS field offices maintain a list of all known hatcheries and update their lists on a continual basis. All hatcheries within the 19 States that meet the minimum size criteria are given adequate time to respond to the weekly survey. Those that do not respond are contacted by telephone. Estimating Procedures: All data are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own past operating profile and to trends from similar operations. Data for missing operations are estimated based on similar operations or historical data. NASS field offices prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and historic trends. Individual State estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness. Individual hatchery data are summed to State and 19 State totals. Revision Policy: Revisions are generally the result of late or corrected data. Revisions made to the previous five-week's data during the current week are published in this report. Final estimates are published in the annual Hatchery Production Summary released in April. Reliability: Estimates are subject to errors such as omission, duplication, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. While these errors cannot be measured directly, they are minimized through strict quality controls in the data collection process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to nass@nass.usda.gov Dan Kerestes, Chief, Livestock Branch ................................... (202) 720-3570 Bruce Boess, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section ............ (202) 720-4447 Cody Brokmeyer - Poultry Slaughter, Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised .. (202) 690-3237 David Colwell - Cold Storage ......................................... (202) 720-8784 LaKeya Jones - Catfish Processing, Catfish Production, Trout Production, Census of Aquaculture, Honey, Egg Products, Mink ............ (202) 720-0585 Kim Linonis - Layers, Eggs ........................................... (202) 690-8632 Miste Salmon - Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery .................... (202) 720-3244 Access to NASS Reports For your convenience, you may access NASS reports and products the following ways: All reports are available electronically, at no cost, on the NASS web site: http://www.nass.usda.gov Both national and state specific reports are available via a free e- mail subscription. To set-up this free subscription, visit http://www.nass.usda.gov and in the "Follow NASS" box under "Receive reports by Email," click on "National" or "State" to select the reports you would like to receive. Printed reports may be purchased from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) by calling toll-free (800) 999-6779, or (703) 605-6220 if calling from outside the United States or Canada. Accepted methods of payment are Visa, MasterCard, check, or money order. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Agricultural Statistics Hotline at (800) 727-9540, 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, or e-mail: nass@nass.usda.gov. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, political beliefs, genetic information, reprisal, or because all or a part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377- 8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.