Poultry Slaughter National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released May 5, 2000, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Poultry Slaughter" call John Lange (202) 720-0585 or Mike Barker (202)720-3243, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Ready-to-Cook Weight Up 3 Percent Poultry certified wholesome during March (ready-to-cook weight), totaled 3.21 billion pounds, up 3 percent from the amount certified in March 1999. Updated totals for February 2000 show that 2.95 billion pounds were certified. The preliminary total live weight of poultry inspected during March 2000 was 4.33 billion pounds, up 3 percent from a year ago. Inspections included 3.63 billion pounds of young chickens, 2 percent above last year; 81.7 million pounds of mature chickens, up slightly; 597 million pounds of turkeys, up 9 percent; and 13.4 million pounds of ducks, up 1 percent from March 1999. Young chickens slaughtered during March 2000 averaged 4.99 pounds per bird, down 1 percent from 5.03 pounds per bird in March 1999. The average live weight of mature chickens was 5.20 pounds per bird, up 3 percent from a year ago. Turkeys slaughtered during March 2000 averaged 26.4 pounds per bird, up 4 percent from March 1999. Ante-mortem condemnations during March 2000 totaled 15.3 million pounds. Condemnations were 0.35 percent of the live weight inspected, compared with 0.40 percent a year earlier. Post-mortem condemnations, at 74.9 million pounds (N.Y. dressed weight), were 1.92 percent of quantities inspected, compared with 1.97 percent a year earlier. March 2000 contained 23 weekdays and four Saturdays, the same as March 1999. Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, March 2000 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature 2/ : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Feb 2000 : 672,862 13,595 686,457 1,873 ----- Mar 1999 : 706,124 16,160 722,284 1,995 ----- Mar 2000 : 728,175 15,709 743,885 2,011 ----- : Jan-Mar 1999 : 1,988,214 44,820 2,033,034 5,763 ----- Jan-Mar 2000 : 2,056,659 43,060 2,099,719 5,986 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Feb 2000 : 3,380,693 69,443 3,450,137 12,441 931 Mar 1999 : 3,554,707 81,487 3,636,193 13,368 924 Mar 2000 : 3,634,585 81,749 3,716,334 13,442 1,087 : Jan-Mar 1999 : 9,961,212 226,247 10,187,459 38,630 2,376 Jan-Mar 2000 : 10,320,441 221,327 10,541,768 39,903 2,923 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Feb 2000 : 5.02 5.11 5.03 6.64 ----- Mar 1999 : 5.03 5.04 5.03 6.70 ----- Mar 2000 : 4.99 5.20 5.00 6.69 ----- : Jan-Mar 1999 : 5.01 5.05 5.01 6.70 ----- Jan-Mar 2000 : 5.02 5.14 5.02 6.67 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, March 2000 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young 3/ : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Feb 2000 : --- 20,148 123 20,272 ----- Mar 1999 : --- 21,552 141 21,692 ----- Mar 2000 : 10 22,443 170 22,623 ----- : Jan-Mar 1999 : --- 59,248 378 59,627 ----- Jan-Mar 2000 : 34 61,606 438 62,079 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Feb 2000 : --- 523,407 3,232 526,639 3,990,148 Mar 1999 : --- 545,901 3,801 549,701 4,200,187 Mar 2000 : 76 592,797 4,567 597,440 4,328,303 : Jan-Mar 1999 : --- 1,521,194 10,200 1,531,394 11,759,858 Jan-Mar 2000 : 271 1,621,855 11,649 1,633,775 12,218,369 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Feb 2000 : --- 25.98 26.26 25.98 ----- Mar 1999 : --- 25.33 27.04 25.34 ----- Mar 2000 : 7.81 26.41 26.93 26.41 ----- : Jan-Mar 1999 : --- 25.67 26.97 25.68 ----- Jan-Mar 2000 : 8.01 26.33 26.58 26.32 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 1999: 6,050, March 2000: 6,338. 3/ Of the Young Turkeys inspected, the number reported in thousands as young breeders was: March 1999: 89, March 2000: 129. Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, March 2000 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Feb 2000 : Chilled : 2,268,966 39,416 2,308,382 3,655 272 Frozen : 218,534 2,628 221,162 5,246 297 : Total : 2,487,500 42,045 2,529,544 8,900 569 : Mar 1999 : Chilled : 2,376,829 46,460 2,423,289 3,703 333 Frozen : 230,532 3,130 233,662 5,662 201 : Total : 2,607,361 49,591 2,656,951 9,365 534 : Mar 2000 : Chilled : 2,441,865 45,137 2,487,002 3,610 344 Frozen : 236,721 3,181 239,902 6,051 340 : Total : 2,678,586 48,318 2,726,903 9,661 684 : : Jan-Mar 1999 : Chilled : 6,663,421 126,644 6,790,065 10,679 906 Frozen : 633,457 10,074 643,531 16,316 446 : Total : 7,296,878 136,718 7,433,596 26,995 1,352 : Jan-Mar 2000 : Chilled : 6,928,507 123,187 7,051,694 11,015 895 Frozen : 663,732 9,210 672,943 17,497 918 : Total : 7,592,239 132,398 7,724,637 28,512 1,813 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, March 2000 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Feb 2000 : Chilled : --- 200,113 2,077 202,190 2,514,498 Frozen : --- 212,319 355 212,674 439,379 : Total : --- 412,432 2,431 414,863 2,953,877 : Mar 1999 : Chilled : --- 204,514 2,091 206,605 2,633,930 Frozen : --- 224,287 779 225,065 464,591 : Total : --- 428,801 2,869 431,670 3,098,521 : Mar 2000 : Chilled : 56 231,998 1,989 234,043 2,724,999 Frozen : 5 234,048 1,479 235,532 481,824 : Total : 61 466,046 3,468 469,575 3,206,823 : : Jan-Mar 1999 : Chilled : --- 568,893 5,559 574,453 7,376,103 Frozen : --- 629,790 2,064 631,854 1,292,147 : Total : --- 1,198,683 7,624 1,206,306 8,668,250 : Jan-Mar 2000 : Chilled : 199 627,886 6,222 634,308 7,697,912 Frozen : 17 647,478 2,513 650,008 1,341,365 : Total : 217 1,275,364 8,735 1,284,315 9,039,277 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 2000 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Feb 2000 : 12,779 998 13,777 21 3 Mar 1999 : 14,360 995 15,355 18 6 Mar 2000 : 12,818 965 13,783 20 3 : Jan-Mar 1999 : 43,311 3,067 46,378 49 14 Jan-Mar 2000 : 41,072 2,985 44,057 60 8 : Percent 2/ : : Mar 1999 : 0.40 1.22 0.42 0.13 0.68 Mar 2000 : 0.35 1.18 0.37 0.15 0.31 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Feb 2000 : 54,354 4,713 59,067 285 10 Mar 1999 : 58,179 4,919 63,098 313 7 Mar 2000 : 55,641 5,618 61,259 282 12 : Jan-Mar 1999 : 161,995 13,880 175,875 897 16 Jan-Mar 2000 : 158,738 14,659 173,397 890 30 : Percent 3/ : : Mar 1999 : 1.82 6.71 1.93 2.60 0.79 Mar 2000 : 1.70 7.64 1.83 2.33 1.21 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, March 2000 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Feb 2000 : --- 1,450 25 1,475 15,276 Mar 1999 : --- 1,307 38 1,345 16,723 Mar 2000 : --- 1,491 34 1,525 15,332 : Jan-Mar 1999 : --- 4,179 102 4,281 50,723 Jan-Mar 2000 : 16 4,341 123 4,480 48,605 : Percent 2/ : : Mar 1999 : --- 0.24 1.00 0.24 0.40 Mar 2000 : 0.14 0.25 0.74 0.26 0.35 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Feb 2000 : --- 11,803 202 12,005 71,367 Mar 1999 : --- 10,995 236 11,231 74,648 Mar 2000 : 1 13,006 301 13,308 74,861 : Jan-Mar 1999 : --- 30,897 698 31,596 208,383 Jan-Mar 2000 : 5 35,392 731 36,128 210,446 : Percent 3/ : : Mar 1999 : --- 2.24 6.89 2.27 1.97 Mar 2000 : 1.51 2.44 7.31 2.48 1.92 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : AL : 79,877 84,878 405,464 429,758 5.08 5.06 AR : 105,663 103,487 516,553 499,372 4.89 4.83 DE : 23,190 25,100 135,489 142,077 5.84 5.66 FL : 11,271 11,248 60,504 61,279 5.37 5.45 GA : 102,421 101,120 508,574 507,679 4.97 5.02 LA : 14,857 17,311 65,607 75,371 4.42 4.35 MD : 17,639 18,081 84,578 86,942 4.80 4.81 MS : 62,141 61,390 319,616 312,214 5.14 5.09 MO : 31,239 31,758 141,250 143,392 4.52 4.52 NC : 56,719 57,203 328,361 331,027 5.79 5.79 PA : 9,659 9,754 51,244 51,644 5.31 5.29 SC : 20,032 19,831 95,312 101,197 4.76 5.10 TN : 17,429 19,649 87,295 92,032 5.01 4.68 TX : 45,932 50,095 219,111 238,785 4.77 4.77 VA : 30,363 30,916 147,935 150,252 4.87 4.86 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 706,124 728,175 3,554,707 3,634,585 5.03 4.99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : AL : 303,904 312,643 8,782 10,361 2.41 2.68 AR : 375,021 362,569 7,356 6,845 1.58 1.52 DE : 98,989 102,979 3,112 2,731 2.55 2.14 FL : 43,228 43,182 1,114 1,123 2.05 2.04 GA : 375,339 374,485 8,748 8,779 1.91 1.92 LA : 45,686 53,625 1,593 770 2.70 1.14 MD : 60,502 60,696 1,370 1,248 1.80 1.60 MS : 236,014 243,274 4,380 3,176 1.52 1.13 MO : 103,731 105,765 1,636 1,965 1.29 1.52 NC : 245,788 250,773 6,153 5,015 2.08 1.68 PA : 35,506 36,237 1,365 1,342 2.96 2.89 SC : 70,342 73,607 1,752 1,993 2.04 2.19 TN : 63,848 67,151 947 754 1.21 0.91 TX : 163,873 182,281 2,605 2,797 1.32 1.30 VA : 103,144 104,926 1,878 1,574 1.41 1.16 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 2,607,361 2,678,586 58,179 55,641 1.82 1.70 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : --- 3,198 217,669 531,777 3,541 16,370 AR : --- 4,563 360,423 171,519 --- 6,276 DE : --- 6,401 134,095 92,459 69 --- FL : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- 1,971 151,035 602,886 838 11,596 LA : --- --- 27,039 19,753 117 508 MD : --- 11,711 85,927 43,489 56 11,799 MS : --- 930 92,059 53,949 --- 2,361 MO : --- 3,868 118,368 71,019 3,286 1,942 NC : --- 4,841 159,137 109,096 175 --- PA : --- 3,598 45,806 50,303 --- --- SC : --- --- 41,741 121,535 165 --- TN : --- 503 44,575 23,483 489 1,303 TX : --- --- 173,940 57,235 755 2,564 VA : --- --- 76,206 61,033 --- --- WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : --- 97,620 2,115,410 2,103,397 32,586 167,164 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : 10,756 44,566 54,180 27,266 244,396 1,153,719 AR : 11,008 39,625 46,426 2,794 148,002 790,636 DE : 2,438 9,315 11,624 --- 55,773 312,174 FL : 1,821 --- 7,518 --- --- 9,339 GA : 11,531 42,204 38,687 11,837 250,960 1,123,545 LA : 965 5,005 6,420 --- 9,736 69,543 MD : 1,954 16,344 --- 1,331 21,957 194,568 MS : 4,464 17,466 15,336 1,768 93,935 282,268 MO : 2,312 12,134 15,171 760 76,650 305,510 NC : 7,736 49,035 40,118 6,224 132,749 509,111 PA : 1,982 4,667 --- 156 35,295 141,807 SC : 4,559 11,977 --- 4,369 69,750 254,096 TN : 2,545 9,773 --- 1,063 23,601 107,335 TX : 1,755 15,275 16,968 --- 22,227 290,719 VA : 1,812 9,245 --- 2,592 21,034 171,922 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 73,509 326,143 398,972 78,043 1,343,331 6,736,175 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 16,160 15,709 81,487 81,749 5.04 5.20 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 49,590 48,318 4,919 5,618 6.71 7.64 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- --- --- 14 --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 7 7,851 394,476 21,174 1,351 145,060 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- 35 --- --- --- 49 GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 64,717 47,221 256,936 1,360 83,675 1,023,828 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : AR : 2,300 2,297 43,172 41,859 18.77 18.22 CA : 1,365 1,549 30,826 39,933 22.59 25.78 IA : 1,369 1,298 41,563 42,326 30.35 32.61 MN : 2,971 3,449 73,436 88,038 24.72 25.53 MO : 1,973 2,276 55,617 63,336 28.19 27.83 NC : 2,719 2,888 66,011 75,167 24.28 26.02 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 3,307 3,166 72,276 70,421 21.86 22.25 : US : 21,552 22,443 545,901 592,797 25.33 26.41 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : AR : 35,382 34,651 627 771 1.61 2.05 CA : 25,046 31,771 420 603 1.51 1.68 IA : 32,293 32,772 1,160 1,211 3.10 3.18 MN : 58,132 68,959 1,819 2,865 2.75 3.62 MO : 44,382 49,430 1,238 1,269 2.47 2.23 NC : 50,833 59,492 1,064 1,621 1.79 2.40 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 56,810 55,040 1,057 1,101 1.63 1.74 : US : 428,801 466,046 10,995 13,006 2.24 2.44 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- --- 5,288 671 --- --- CA : --- --- 8,578 --- --- --- IA : --- --- --- 3,493 --- --- MN : --- 18 22,381 16,801 2,076 14 MO : --- --- 18,067 5,494 --- --- NC : --- --- 5,929 --- --- --- PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : --- --- 4,515 246 --- --- : US : --- 352 100,319 36,928 7,030 91 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : 27 244 1,110 --- --- 7,340 CA : --- --- --- 185 --- 8,763 IA : 91 --- 724 --- --- 4,308 MN : --- 1,016 1,136 --- 1,404 44,846 MO : 91 285 923 --- --- 24,860 NC : 180 1,071 --- --- 1,423 8,603 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 85 --- 287 --- 1,933 7,066 : US : 1,801 7,865 10,580 2,895 13,379 181,240 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Old Turkeys (Breeders) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, United States, March 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : --- --- 4,220 442 --- 32 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : 11 157 283 17 540 5,702 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. 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.............................................................. 17 Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, March 2000........................... 12 Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000...................... 11 Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000....... 11 Old Turkeys (Breeders) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, United States, March 2000.............................................. 15 Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, March 2000 with comparisons.............................. 6 Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, March 2000 with comparisons.............................. 4 Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, March 2000 with comparisons.............................. 2 Reliability Statement.................................................... 16 Young Chickens Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, March 2000........................... 10 Young Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000...................... 8 Young Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000...................... 9 Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, March 2000........................... 14 Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000......... 13 Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, March 1999-2000...... 13 The next "Poultry Slaughter" report will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET on June 2, 2000. 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