Poultry Slaughter National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released June 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 Unchanged Poultry Certified Wholesome during April (ready-to-cook weight), totaled 2.87 billion pounds, unchanged from the amount certified in April 1997. Updated totals for March 1998 show that 2.82 billion pounds were certified. The preliminary total Live Weight of Poultry Inspected during April 1998 was 3.88 billion pounds. Inspections included 3.22 billion pounds of young chickens, 78.0 million pounds of mature chickens, 567 million pounds of turkeys, and 12.7 million pounds of ducks. Young chickens slaughtered during April 1998 averaged 4.92 pounds per bird, one percent above a year ago. The live weight of mature chickens was 4.82 pounds per bird, 3 percent above last year. Turkeys slaughtered during April 1998 averaged 25.5 pounds per bird, up five percent from April 1997. Ante-mortem condemnations during April 1998 totaled 13.6 million pounds. Condemnations were 0.35 percent of the live weight inspected, compared with 0.33 percent a year earlier. Post-mortem condemnations, at 68.7 million pounds (N.Y. dressed weight), were 1.97 percent of quantities inspected, compared with 1.91 percent a year earlier. April 1998 contained 22 weekdays and four Saturdays, the same as April 1997. Each weekday represents approximately 5 percent of the month's total. Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, April 1998 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature 2/ : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Mar 1998 : 652,071 13,014 665,085 1,887 ----- Apr 1997 : 663,266 15,945 679,211 1,834 ----- Apr 1998 : 654,215 16,196 670,410 1,894 ----- : Jan-Apr 1997 : 2,539,802 57,401 2,597,203 7,026 ----- Jan-Apr 1998 : 2,582,439 56,672 2,639,111 7,525 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Mar 1998 : 3,190,246 66,330 3,256,576 12,575 1,023 Apr 1997 : 3,224,981 74,545 3,299,526 12,455 1,077 Apr 1998 : 3,220,771 77,986 3,298,757 12,653 998 : Jan-Apr 1997 : 12,324,698 279,390 12,604,088 47,150 4,482 Jan-Apr 1998 : 12,574,001 283,178 12,857,178 50,255 4,131 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Mar 1998 : 4.89 5.10 4.90 6.66 ----- Apr 1997 : 4.86 4.68 4.86 6.79 ----- Apr 1998 : 4.92 4.82 4.92 6.68 ----- : Jan-Apr 1997 : 4.85 4.87 4.85 6.71 ----- Jan-Apr 1998 : 4.87 5.00 4.87 6.68 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, April 1998 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young 3/ : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Mar 1998 : --- 22,419 136 22,555 ----- Apr 1997 : 35 23,396 148 23,580 ----- Apr 1998 : --- 22,087 147 22,234 ----- : Jan-Apr 1997 : 51 88,085 472 88,608 ----- Jan-Apr 1998 : --- 86,781 607 87,388 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Mar 1998 : --- 564,678 4,009 568,686 3,838,861 Apr 1997 : 318 568,537 4,095 572,950 3,886,008 Apr 1998 : --- 562,645 3,865 566,509 3,878,918 : Jan-Apr 1997 : 506 2,134,073 12,841 2,147,420 14,803,140 Jan-Apr 1998 : --- 2,193,273 16,480 2,209,753 15,121,317 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Mar 1998 : --- 25.19 29.40 25.21 ----- Apr 1997 : 9.01 24.30 27.62 24.30 ----- Apr 1998 : --- 25.47 26.34 25.48 ----- : Jan-Apr 1997 : 9.90 24.23 27.21 24.24 ----- Jan-Apr 1998 : --- 25.27 27.14 25.29 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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: April 1997: 4,919, April 1998: 5,302. 3/ Of the Young Turkeys inspected, the number reported in thousands as young breeders was: April 1997: 111, April 1998: 55. Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, April 1998 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Mar 1998 : Chilled : 2,111,235 37,317 2,148,552 3,051 339 Frozen : 216,287 2,894 219,182 5,870 211 : Total : 2,327,523 40,211 2,367,734 8,921 550 : Apr 1997 : Chilled : 2,151,288 42,978 2,194,266 3,201 361 Frozen : 202,611 1,686 204,297 5,662 247 : Total : 2,353,899 44,664 2,398,563 8,863 608 : Apr 1998 : Chilled : 2,149,200 42,574 2,191,774 3,165 335 Frozen : 214,437 4,034 218,471 5,941 203 : Total : 2,363,637 46,608 2,410,245 9,106 539 : : Jan-Apr 1997 : Chilled : 8,230,259 161,168 8,391,428 12,628 1,540 Frozen : 762,175 6,362 768,537 21,063 926 : Total : 8,992,434 167,531 9,159,964 33,691 2,465 : Jan-Apr 1998 : Chilled : 8,362,543 156,410 8,518,953 12,399 1,452 Frozen : 841,613 13,648 855,262 23,363 863 : Total : 9,204,156 170,058 9,374,214 35,762 2,314 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, April 1998 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Mar 1998 : Chilled : --- 214,063 2,357 216,420 2,368,363 Frozen : --- 228,715 801 229,515 454,778 : Total : --- 442,777 3,158 445,935 2,823,141 : Apr 1997 : Chilled : --- 213,033 2,407 215,441 2,413,268 Frozen : 232 235,788 712 236,732 446,938 : Total : 233 448,821 3,119 452,172 2,860,206 : Apr 1998 : Chilled : --- 212,227 1,973 214,200 2,409,474 Frozen : --- 232,503 938 233,441 458,056 : Total : --- 444,729 2,911 447,641 2,867,530 : : Jan-Apr 1997 : Chilled : 70 824,495 7,777 832,343 9,237,938 Frozen : 302 853,152 2,052 855,506 1,646,032 : Total : 372 1,677,648 9,829 1,687,849 10,883,969 : Jan-Apr 1998 : Chilled : --- 830,054 8,368 838,422 9,371,226 Frozen : --- 895,699 4,067 899,765 1,779,252 : Total : --- 1,725,753 12,435 1,738,187 11,150,478 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. Totals may not add due to rounding. Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, April 1998 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Mar 1998 : 13,376 774 14,150 11 1 Apr 1997 : 10,391 1,057 11,448 12 3 Apr 1998 : 11,080 1,096 12,177 11 3 : Jan-Apr 1997 : 42,892 4,602 47,494 39 19 Jan-Apr 1998 : 49,130 4,104 53,235 45 8 : Percent 2/ : : Apr 1997 : 0.32 1.42 0.35 0.10 0.32 Apr 1998 : 0.34 1.41 0.37 0.08 0.28 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Mar 1998 : 53,818 4,389 58,207 266 8 Apr 1997 : 50,611 4,681 55,293 242 10 Apr 1998 : 52,866 4,395 57,262 249 9 : Jan-Apr 1997 : 198,994 17,157 216,151 980 43 Jan-Apr 1998 : 206,231 17,023 223,254 1,033 35 : Percent 3/ : : Apr 1997 : 1.74 6.98 1.86 2.16 1.00 Apr 1998 : 1.82 6.26 1.93 2.19 0.99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, April 1998 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Mar 1998 : --- 1,765 31 1,796 15,957 Apr 1997 : 1 1,251 20 1,272 12,736 Apr 1998 : --- 1,339 25 1,364 13,554 : Jan-Apr 1997 : 1 7,879 117 7,997 55,549 Jan-Apr 1998 : --- 6,067 124 6,191 59,478 : Percent 2/ : : Apr 1997 : 0.21 0.22 0.49 0.22 0.33 Apr 1998 : --- 0.24 0.64 0.24 0.35 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Mar 1998 : --- 11,957 243 12,200 70,680 Apr 1997 : 8 11,084 250 11,342 66,886 Apr 1998 : --- 10,893 262 11,155 68,674 : Jan-Apr 1997 : 15 44,636 705 45,357 262,531 Jan-Apr 1998 : --- 45,560 1,162 46,722 271,044 : Percent 3/ : : Apr 1997 : 2.83 2.17 6.77 2.20 1.91 Apr 1998 : --- 2.15 7.54 2.19 1.97 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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, April 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 : 75,027 70,573 361,557 358,450 4.82 5.08 AR : 99,768 98,842 483,190 485,890 4.84 4.92 CA : 20,345 19,547 104,272 107,821 5.13 5.52 DE : 24,321 22,658 133,428 126,295 5.49 5.57 FL : 11,674 11,426 53,654 54,440 4.60 4.76 GA : 96,133 95,298 488,551 473,908 5.08 4.97 LA : 11,930 12,407 52,009 56,742 4.36 4.57 MD : 18,167 17,706 84,026 84,800 4.63 4.79 MS : 61,100 59,495 282,794 281,241 4.63 4.73 MO : 29,799 30,436 129,853 134,097 4.36 4.41 NC : 53,750 50,793 299,680 281,165 5.58 5.54 PA : 9,568 9,127 49,803 46,322 5.21 5.08 SC : 19,835 17,026 91,231 81,259 4.60 4.77 TN : 15,022 14,303 68,175 67,548 4.54 4.72 TX : 41,309 43,280 189,570 198,118 4.59 4.58 VA : 30,176 29,556 143,800 143,523 4.77 4.86 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 663,266 654,215 3,224,981 3,220,771 4.86 4.92 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, April 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 : 267,257 264,815 7,783 7,241 2.39 2.24 AR : 347,667 349,385 6,423 6,014 1.48 1.38 CA : 76,458 78,353 1,533 1,563 1.63 1.61 DE : 95,103 91,466 2,849 2,467 2.37 2.17 FL : 38,191 39,110 1,002 1,060 2.08 2.16 GA : 359,460 355,475 7,374 10,469 1.68 2.45 LA : 37,324 40,404 949 989 2.03 1.94 MD : 59,232 60,038 1,601 1,169 2.12 1.53 MS : 213,919 211,923 2,704 3,941 1.06 1.56 MO : 94,052 97,895 1,795 1,749 1.54 1.45 NC : 221,184 210,391 5,436 4,849 2.02 1.92 PA : 34,946 31,829 1,347 1,400 3.00 3.36 SC : 67,058 59,049 1,489 1,524 1.81 2.08 TN : 49,280 49,759 804 771 1.31 1.27 TX : 142,135 149,467 2,477 2,597 1.45 1.46 VA : 100,029 100,322 1,914 1,746 1.48 1.35 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 2,353,899 2,363,637 50,611 52,866 1.74 1.82 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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, April 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : --- --- 193,945 198,000 2,885 13,647 AR : --- 7,976 356,574 133,547 13,496 6,982 CA : --- --- 109,579 5,790 1,108 6,359 DE : --- --- 109,623 72,233 174 --- FL : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- 166,026 249,617 1,143 13,877 LA : --- 223 39,908 23,101 --- 2,069 MD : --- 19,318 86,216 33,434 61 9,860 MS : --- --- 121,416 105,424 2,501 9,826 MO : --- 6,337 107,474 19,889 2,027 1,902 NC : --- 16,677 157,656 91,186 --- 66,235 PA : --- 3,016 34,658 29,348 244 --- SC : --- 1,744 34,817 69,866 --- 3,868 TN : --- 273 56,453 10,182 --- --- TX : --- --- 133,981 53,103 909 2,981 VA : --- --- 75,310 32,893 108 --- WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 3,097 331,788 2,022,118 1,202,198 38,688 204,507 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : 12,659 34,199 53,843 6,288 297,121 812,587 AR : 11,423 31,935 53,789 7,513 107,211 730,446 CA : 669 6,241 2,618 --- 30,942 163,306 DE : 2,864 9,194 14,179 3,406 68,452 280,125 FL : 1,398 3,160 9,037 --- --- 13,595 GA : 13,167 35,800 44,452 12,387 269,227 805,696 LA : 2,223 --- --- --- --- 67,524 MD : 1,832 8,469 --- 3,607 25,032 187,829 MS : 5,939 23,387 24,736 1,272 206,498 500,999 MO : 2,996 10,784 21,805 739 29,539 203,492 NC : 6,672 24,595 50,030 2,564 197,712 613,327 PA : 2,015 5,670 --- 207 31,729 106,887 SC : 4,080 18,757 13,405 --- 82,599 229,136 TN : 3,325 7,293 15,361 1,219 29,033 123,139 TX : 1,844 16,610 19,400 1,229 30,500 260,557 VA : 2,910 8,545 17,309 2,864 126,329 266,268 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 81,501 273,511 424,412 57,745 1,764,072 6,403,637 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, April 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 : 15,945 16,196 74,545 77,986 4.68 4.82 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, April 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 : 44,664 46,608 4,681 4,395 6.98 6.26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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, April 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : --- 5,344 294,149 25,827 1,299 141,956 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- 31 --- --- --- 31 GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 34,197 29,187 174,404 2,852 45,522 754,737 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, April 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 : 2,199 2,156 38,787 37,869 17.64 17.56 CA : 1,471 1,373 33,415 32,149 22.72 23.41 IA : 1,040 1,110 29,259 31,373 28.13 28.27 MN : 3,346 3,374 76,973 78,207 23.01 23.18 MO : 2,089 2,047 57,158 55,757 27.36 27.23 NC : 3,796 3,386 99,009 93,801 26.09 27.70 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 3,180 2,732 64,386 54,950 20.24 20.11 : US : 23,396 22,087 568,537 562,645 24.30 25.47 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, April 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 : 32,019 31,462 587 582 1.68 1.71 CA : 27,373 25,833 456 497 1.51 1.72 IA : 22,853 24,377 661 809 2.51 2.87 MN : 60,196 62,169 2,245 2,012 3.24 2.86 MO : 45,521 44,032 1,183 1,353 2.30 2.70 NC : 78,382 74,634 1,589 1,517 1.78 1.80 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 50,259 42,665 1,087 753 1.88 1.52 : US : 448,821 444,729 11,084 10,893 2.17 2.15 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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, April 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- --- 3,863 339 --- --- CA : --- --- 8,491 --- --- --- IA : --- --- --- 3,014 --- 5 MN : --- --- 15,185 2,668 --- --- MO : --- --- 24,965 --- 264 5 NC : --- --- 4,858 --- --- --- PA : --- --- --- 926 --- --- VA : --- --- 3,491 161 --- --- : US : --- 371 100,855 15,125 6,899 93 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- 456 --- --- 1,091 5,749 CA : --- --- --- --- --- 8,491 IA : 70 --- 449 --- --- 3,538 MN : --- 930 1,189 --- 1,233 21,205 MO : 77 --- --- --- 2,002 27,313 NC : 99 1,220 2,168 --- 1,274 9,619 PA : 77 --- --- --- --- 1,003 VA : --- 671 --- --- 826 5,149 : US : 986 8,827 7,660 2,361 12,526 155,703 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Old Turkeys (Breeders) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, United States, April 1998 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : --- --- 3,790 679 11 39 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : 15 161 207 --- 939 5,841 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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., April 1997-1998................................................. 11 Mature Chickens Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998............................. 11 Mature Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, U.S., April 1997-1998................................................. 11 Old Turkeys (Breeders) Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, U.S., April 1997-1998................................................. 14 Poultry Chilled and Frozen Pounds Certified (RTC) by Type, U.S., April 1997...................................................... 4 Poultry Slaughter Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, U.S., April 1997............................................. 6 Poultry Slaughter Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, U.S., April 1997................................. 2 Reliability Statement.................................................. 15 Young Chickens Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998............................. 8 Young Chickens Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998............................. 10 Young Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998............................. 9 Young Turkeys (Mature) Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998................ 12 Young Turkeys (Mature) Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998............................. 13 Young Turkeys (Mature) Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and U.S., April 1997-1998............................. 12 The next "Poultry Slaughter" report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on July 6, 1998. 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