Poultry Slaughter National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released May 4, 1998, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Poultry Slaughter" call Jim Brewster (202) 720-8784, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Ready-to-Cook Weight Up 7 Percent Poultry Certified Wholesome during March (ready-to-cook weight), totaled 2.82 billion pounds, up 7 percent from the amount certified in March 1997. Updated totals for February 1998 show that 2.60 billion pounds were certified. The preliminary total Live Weight of Poultry Inspected during March 1998 was 3.83 billion pounds. Inspections included 3.18 billion pounds of young chickens, 66.0 million pounds of mature chickens, 568 million pounds of turkeys, and 12.6 million pounds of ducks. Young chickens slaughtered during March 1998 averaged 4.89 pounds per bird, up 1 percent from a year ago. The average live weight of mature chickens was 5.09 pounds per bird, up 6 percent from last year. Turkeys slaughtered during March 1998 averaged 25.2 pounds per bird, up six percent from March 1997. Ante-mortem condemnations during March 1998 totaled 15.9 million pounds. Condemnations were 0.42 percent of the live weight inspected, compared with 0.34 percent a year earlier. Post-mortem condemnations, at 70.6 million pounds (N.Y. dressed weight), were 2.05 percent of quantities inspected, compared with 1.90 percent a year earlier. March 1998 contained 22 weekdays and four Saturdays, while March 1997 contained 21 weekdays and five Saturdays. Each weekday represents approximately 5 percent of the month's total. Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, March 1998 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature 2/ : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Feb 1998 : 606,538 12,692 619,230 1,718 ----- Mar 1997 : 615,572 14,044 629,615 1,715 ----- Mar 1998 : 650,016 12,967 662,983 1,887 ----- : Jan-Mar 1997 : 1,876,536 41,456 1,917,992 5,192 ----- Jan-Mar 1998 : 1,925,318 40,429 1,965,747 5,631 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Feb 1998 : 2,926,376 64,655 2,991,030 11,466 954 Mar 1997 : 2,972,577 67,324 3,039,901 11,561 1,158 Mar 1998 : 3,179,155 66,020 3,245,176 12,575 1,012 : Jan-Mar 1997 : 9,099,718 204,844 9,304,562 34,695 3,405 Jan-Mar 1998 : 9,338,686 204,882 9,543,568 37,602 3,122 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Feb 1998 : 4.82 5.09 4.83 6.67 ----- Mar 1997 : 4.83 4.79 4.83 6.74 ----- Mar 1998 : 4.89 5.09 4.89 6.66 ----- : Jan-Mar 1997 : 4.85 4.94 4.85 6.68 ----- Jan-Mar 1998 : 4.85 5.07 4.85 6.68 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, March 1998 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young 3/ : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Feb 1998 : --- 20,668 166 20,834 ----- Mar 1997 : --- 21,352 114 21,466 ----- Mar 1998 : --- 22,381 136 22,517 ----- : Jan-Mar 1997 : 16 64,689 324 65,028 ----- Jan-Mar 1998 : --- 64,656 460 65,116 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Feb 1998 : --- 518,165 4,340 522,505 3,525,955 Mar 1997 : 4 508,420 2,934 511,358 3,563,978 Mar 1998 : --- 563,658 4,009 567,667 3,826,429 : Jan-Mar 1997 : 188 1,565,536 8,746 1,574,469 10,917,132 Jan-Mar 1998 : --- 1,629,608 12,615 1,642,224 11,226,515 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Feb 1998 : --- 25.07 26.12 25.08 ----- Mar 1997 : 8.87 23.81 25.70 23.82 ----- Mar 1998 : --- 25.19 29.40 25.21 ----- : Jan-Mar 1997 : 11.91 24.20 27.02 24.21 ----- Jan-Mar 1998 : --- 25.20 27.40 25.22 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Federally inspected only. Totals may not add due to rounding. 2/ Of the Mature Chickens inspected, the number reported in thousands as heavy fowl (broiler breeding stock) was: March 1997: 4,639, March 1998: 5,028. 3/ Of the Young Turkeys inspected, the number reported in thousands as young breeders was: March 1997: 92, March 1998: 116. Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, March 1998 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Feb 1998 : Chilled : 1,945,376 36,386 1,981,762 2,761 339 Frozen : 197,874 2,589 200,463 5,319 203 : Total : 2,143,250 38,975 2,182,225 8,081 542 : Mar 1997 : Chilled : 1,982,231 39,311 2,021,541 3,063 393 Frozen : 188,324 1,337 189,661 5,121 250 : Total : 2,170,554 40,648 2,211,202 8,184 643 : Mar 1998 : Chilled : 2,107,796 37,231 2,145,027 3,051 332 Frozen : 212,910 2,790 215,700 5,870 211 : Total : 2,320,707 40,021 2,360,727 8,921 544 : : Jan-Mar 1997 : Chilled : 6,078,972 118,190 6,197,162 9,427 1,179 Frozen : 559,564 4,676 564,239 15,401 679 : Total : 6,638,535 122,866 6,761,401 24,828 1,858 : Jan-Mar 1998 : Chilled : 6,209,774 113,750 6,323,524 9,234 1,110 Frozen : 622,300 9,510 631,810 17,421 659 : Total : 6,832,074 123,260 6,955,334 26,656 1,769 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, March 1998 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Feb 1998 : Chilled : --- 195,371 2,167 197,538 2,182,400 Frozen : --- 212,332 1,009 213,341 419,327 : Total : --- 407,703 3,176 410,879 2,601,727 : Mar 1997 : Chilled : 3 199,524 1,584 201,111 2,226,109 Frozen : --- 200,084 674 200,758 395,789 : Total : 3 399,608 2,257 401,868 2,621,898 : Mar 1998 : Chilled : --- 213,666 2,357 216,023 2,364,434 Frozen : --- 228,312 801 229,113 450,895 : Total : --- 441,979 3,158 445,136 2,815,328 : : Jan-Mar 1997 : Chilled : 70 611,462 5,370 616,902 6,824,670 Frozen : 69 617,364 1,340 618,774 1,199,094 : Total : 139 1,228,827 6,711 1,235,676 8,023,763 : Jan-Mar 1998 : Chilled : --- 617,431 6,395 623,826 6,957,694 Frozen : --- 662,794 3,128 665,922 1,315,813 : Total : --- 1,280,225 9,524 1,289,748 8,273,507 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. Totals may not add due to rounding. Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, March 1998 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Feb 1998 : 10,983 1,011 11,994 10 1 Mar 1997 : 9,471 902 10,372 9 7 Mar 1998 : 13,357 782 14,139 11 1 : Jan-Mar 1997 : 32,501 3,545 36,046 27 16 Jan-Mar 1998 : 37,974 3,017 40,991 34 5 : Percent 2/ : : Mar 1997 : 0.32 1.34 0.34 0.08 0.58 Mar 1998 : 0.42 1.18 0.44 0.08 0.07 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Feb 1998 : 49,057 4,001 53,058 234 9 Mar 1997 : 46,475 4,239 50,714 233 10 Mar 1998 : 53,790 4,361 58,151 266 8 : Jan-Mar 1997 : 148,382 12,476 160,858 739 33 Jan-Mar 1998 : 153,268 12,600 165,868 784 26 : Percent 3/ : : Mar 1997 : 1.74 7.00 1.85 2.24 0.99 Mar 1998 : 1.88 7.34 1.99 2.35 0.89 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, March 1998 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Feb 1998 : --- 1,373 38 1,411 13,416 Mar 1997 : --- 1,812 18 1,829 12,218 Mar 1998 : --- 1,765 31 1,795 15,945 : Jan-Mar 1997 : --- 6,627 97 6,725 42,813 Jan-Mar 1998 : --- 4,727 99 4,826 45,856 : Percent 2/ : : Mar 1997 : 0.49 0.36 0.60 0.36 0.34 Mar 1998 : --- 0.31 0.77 0.32 0.42 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Feb 1998 : --- 11,321 337 11,658 64,959 Mar 1997 : --- 9,934 162 10,097 61,054 Mar 1998 : --- 11,922 243 12,165 70,590 : Jan-Mar 1997 : 7 33,552 456 34,014 195,645 Jan-Mar 1998 : --- 34,632 900 35,532 202,210 : Percent 3/ : : Mar 1997 : 2.18 2.17 6.14 2.19 1.90 Mar 1998 : --- 2.35 6.73 2.38 2.05 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Federally inspected only. Totals may not add due to rounding. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of pounds (live weight) inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. 3/ Pounds condemned as percent of pounds N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1997-98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : AL : 70,387 70,003 337,463 353,193 4.79 5.05 AR : 93,332 100,432 445,851 483,591 4.78 4.82 CA : 19,800 20,217 100,074 103,725 5.05 5.13 DE : 22,102 22,751 121,068 126,746 5.48 5.57 FL : 10,467 11,032 47,250 53,029 4.51 4.81 GA : 88,516 94,219 454,501 467,487 5.13 4.96 LA : 11,510 11,712 49,461 53,859 4.30 4.60 MD : 16,387 17,517 78,687 82,242 4.80 4.70 MS : 55,343 57,099 253,728 274,500 4.58 4.81 MO : 28,579 28,291 124,041 119,167 4.34 4.21 NC : 50,879 50,974 275,596 281,351 5.42 5.52 PA : 8,648 9,505 43,325 48,628 5.01 5.12 SC : 17,841 18,746 81,717 87,369 4.58 4.66 TN : 13,264 15,105 60,291 68,115 4.55 4.51 TX : 37,817 41,830 171,197 196,550 4.53 4.70 VA : 27,789 28,897 133,993 139,251 4.82 4.82 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 615,572 650,016 2,972,577 3,179,155 4.83 4.89 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1997-98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : AL : 247,989 256,928 7,439 7,970 2.45 2.51 AR : 322,794 344,746 5,780 6,313 1.44 1.45 CA : 72,722 73,347 1,325 1,669 1.47 1.79 DE : 86,815 92,033 2,452 2,630 2.25 2.31 FL : 33,819 37,962 784 1,151 1.84 2.41 GA : 329,079 347,919 6,562 8,035 1.60 1.91 LA : 35,524 37,585 849 971 1.91 2.00 MD : 56,264 59,784 1,408 1,289 1.99 1.74 MS : 194,197 210,205 2,537 5,034 1.11 2.04 MO : 89,756 87,147 1,872 1,468 1.68 1.37 NC : 206,355 208,396 4,743 4,997 1.91 1.97 PA : 30,273 32,988 1,165 1,363 2.99 3.11 SC : 59,990 64,233 1,607 2,049 2.18 2.61 TN : 43,563 49,257 728 716 1.34 1.17 TX : 129,721 148,625 2,378 2,669 1.54 1.51 VA : 92,336 96,882 1,973 1,862 1.64 1.49 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 2,170,554 2,320,707 46,475 53,790 1.74 1.88 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of equivalent N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, March 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : --- 1,451 213,357 256,220 2,134 14,855 AR : --- 9,571 373,596 156,799 12,381 9,591 CA : --- --- 124,246 --- 740 6,667 DE : --- --- 116,729 83,535 156 --- FL : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- 14,048 179,828 289,317 1,403 14,343 LA : --- --- 42,690 24,282 --- 1,719 MD : --- 17,231 97,408 60,500 89 8,085 MS : --- --- 125,253 107,466 2,373 8,755 MO : --- 8,745 102,769 26,973 1,848 2,198 NC : --- 8,972 159,364 115,786 154 58,881 PA : --- --- 38,273 42,330 259 --- SC : --- 1,882 38,880 130,080 83 4,159 TN : --- 232 50,084 13,702 --- --- TX : --- --- 151,099 66,438 948 3,704 VA : --- --- 82,062 43,155 129 --- WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 998 255,760 2,150,718 1,513,966 36,206 195,425 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : 13,061 41,734 53,297 10,194 356,014 962,317 AR : 12,652 36,800 55,546 5,276 127,517 799,729 CA : 933 5,261 3,315 1,017 33,881 176,060 DE : 3,184 10,278 15,755 1,181 63,950 294,768 FL : 1,605 2,673 8,780 715 --- 13,773 GA : 13,881 37,018 46,400 12,515 293,564 902,317 LA : 2,159 --- --- --- --- 70,850 MD : 1,901 9,527 --- 1,351 23,681 219,773 MS : 5,299 19,820 24,597 2,317 182,617 478,497 MO : 2,330 10,610 20,708 --- 27,481 203,662 NC : 7,340 30,400 --- 3,705 227,637 612,239 PA : 1,996 4,767 --- 238 --- 87,863 SC : 4,137 18,691 16,575 --- 118,890 333,377 TN : 2,938 7,258 12,004 578 28,028 114,824 TX : 2,062 17,208 19,524 1,248 33,513 295,744 VA : 3,085 8,703 15,971 3,123 --- 156,228 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 84,546 291,997 445,891 54,023 1,937,433 6,966,963 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1997-98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 14,044 12,967 67,324 66,020 4.79 5.09 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1997-98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 40,648 40,021 4,239 4,361 7.00 7.34 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of equivalent N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, March 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : --- 5,771 233,961 26,319 1,623 131,796 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- 17 271 --- --- 288 GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 31,179 28,494 132,863 1,292 45,629 638,927 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1997-98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : AR : 2,131 2,318 36,516 42,008 17.14 18.12 CA : 1,537 1,590 34,554 36,228 22.48 22.78 IA : 752 1,073 20,651 28,691 27.46 26.73 MN : 3,111 3,251 69,792 78,595 22.43 24.17 MO : 1,990 2,046 53,278 55,925 26.77 27.33 NC : 3,442 3,659 86,237 95,266 25.06 26.04 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 2,699 2,734 52,831 57,340 19.57 20.97 : US : 21,352 22,381 508,420 563,658 23.81 25.19 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1997-98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 : 1997 : 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : AR : 30,275 34,741 466 689 1.42 1.82 CA : 28,093 28,372 404 476 1.30 1.46 IA : 16,266 22,221 507 706 2.73 2.74 MN : 54,832 61,221 2,033 2,246 3.24 3.18 MO : 41,789 43,888 1,258 1,275 2.62 2.53 NC : 67,593 76,323 1,483 1,748 1.91 2.04 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 40,361 43,466 853 909 1.79 1.76 : US : 399,608 441,978 9,934 11,922 2.17 2.35 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of equivalent N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, March 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- --- 5,291 410 --- --- CA : --- --- 7,400 63 --- --- IA : --- --- --- 3,473 --- 9 MN : --- --- 15,538 3,185 --- --- MO : --- --- 23,432 --- --- 7 NC : --- --- 6,170 --- --- --- PA : --- --- --- --- 108 --- VA : --- --- 5,174 --- --- --- : US : --- 199 102,747 18,697 6,783 116 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- 395 801 --- 2,664 9,561 CA : --- --- --- --- --- 7,463 IA : 75 46 536 --- --- 4,139 MN : --- 937 907 --- 1,333 21,900 MO : 121 --- 414 --- --- 23,974 NC : 92 1,258 1,985 --- 1,501 11,006 PA : 110 --- --- --- --- 218 VA : --- --- 140 --- 944 6,258 : US : 1,146 6,673 7,633 1,677 12,979 158,650 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Old Turkeys (Breeders) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, United States, March 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : --- --- 2,043 522 --- 17 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : 39 214 298 --- 1,435 4,568 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Poultry Slaughter Estimates Data Sources: Primary data for commercial poultry slaughter estimates are obtained from the Poultry Inspection Form (FSIS 6000-21) completed by inspectors of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), USDA. This form provides actual counts of birds slaughtered in Federally Inspected (FI) plants. Over 99 percent of the total U.S. slaughter for any species is under FI. The FSIS 6000-21 forms collect number of head slaughtered daily under FI by species and class as well as condemnations and total live and dressed weights. Approximately 350 plants in the U.S. are operated under Federal Inspection. Annual totals of poultry slaughtered under State-administered Non-Federal Inspection (NFI) are published in the April release. Revision Policy: Revisions are generally the result of late reports received by FSIS from plants and are usually less than one-half of 1 percent of the preliminary totals. Revisions for the previous month and year-to-date totals are published in each monthly release. Final data are published in the annual summary released in April and reflect any late reports or corrections which occurred after the monthly revision were published. Procedures and Reliability: Plant inspectors submit forms (FSIS 6000-21) weekly summarizing the plant's activity. When inconsistencies in the data are detected, the reports are returned to the inspectors for correction. Inspectors correct or validate the report and resubmit it. The reports cover weekly activities through Saturday night and reported data are allocated to the appropriate month as it enters the database. A NASS computer program provides a review of current data with historical data for each plant. An edit provides checks for the detection of errors such as invalid plant information, duplication, and erroneous data. The program also generates a missing reports listing for a telephone follow-up. Data are summarized weekly and accumulated to a monthly total for this release. Major slaughter plants with missing reports are adjusted prior to publication to assure that all plants slaughtering a significant portion of a specific class are accounted for each week. Estimates for missing weeks are made only after verifying that the plant was in operation. Adjustments are based on either the previous week's information or a week determined to be similar to the one missing. Late reports replace imputed data as they become available. While there will continue to be a varying degree of incompleteness from month to month, it is expected to have only a minimal impact on the final totals. Poultry slaughter estimates are based on a census of operating plants and, therefore, have no sampling error. However, they may be subject to errors such as omissions, duplications, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. These errors are minimized through strict quality controls in the edit and summarization process, and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. Generally, no State data are published if less than three plants operate for a species in a State, or if one plant has 60 percent or more of the total head for that species. These data are included in the U.S. totals. Definitions Used To Report Federally Inspected Slaughter Ante-Mortem Condemnations - Birds condemned prior to their entry into the slaughter plant. Certified Ready-to-Cook - The weight of poultry certified wholesome by inspection after post-mortem condemnation pounds are removed. Ready-to-cook represents poultry meat ready for the marketing channel. Ducks - Includes all ducks regardless of age and weight. Fryer-Roaster Turkeys - Young immature birds, usually under 16 weeks of age. Mature Chickens - Fowl from breeder and market egg flocks and stags and cocks. New York Dressed Weight - Carcass weight after only feathers and blood are removed. This weight is approximately 90% of live weight. Old Turkeys (Breeders) - Fully matured birds held for egg production, usually over 15 months of age. Other Poultry - Includes all other ready-to-cook products which bear the U.S.D.A. Inspected for Wholesomeness legend. Post-Mortem Condemnations - Carcasses or parts condemned by the inspector because of disease or mishandling and removed from the slaughter line and destroyed. Young Chickens - Commercially grown broilers-fryers and other young immature birds such as roasters and capons. Young Turkeys (Mature) - Young birds grown to a matured market age, about 5 months. Index Page Definitions............................................................. 16 Mature Chickens Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, U.S., March 1997-1998.................................................. 11 Mature Chickens Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998.............................. 11 Mature Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, U.S., March 1997-1998.................................................. 11 Old Turkeys (Breeders) Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, U.S., March 1997-1998.................................................. 14 Poultry Chilled and Frozen Pounds Certified (RTC) by Type, U.S., March 1997....................................................... 4 Poultry Slaughter Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, U.S., March 1997.............................................. 6 Poultry Slaughter Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, U.S., March 1997.................................. 2 Reliability Statement................................................... 15 Young Chickens Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998.............................. 8 Young Chickens Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998.............................. 10 Young Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998.............................. 9 Young Turkeys (Mature) Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998................. 12 Young Turkeys (Mature) Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998.............................. 13 Young Turkeys (Mature) Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and U.S., March 1997-1998.............................. 12 The next "Poultry Slaughter" report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on June 4, 1998. 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