Broiler industry
Eggs are hatched in a special pedigree hatchery and their progeny then goes on to the great-grandparent (GGP) and grandparent (GP) generations.
These eggs would then go to a special GP hatchery to produce Parent Stock (PS) which passes to the production sector.
[5] A single pedigree-level hen might have 25000 parent stock bird descendants, which in turn might produce 3 million broilers.
[7] The need for high levels of Research and development spending prompted consolidation within the primary breeder industry.
[8] Due to the high levels of variation in the chicken genome, the industry has not yet reached biological limits to improved performance.
[10] In Canada, the average producer houses 15,000 birds that begin laying hatching eggs at 26 weeks of age.
)[12] Generally, parent flocks are either owned by integrated broiler companies or hatcheries or are contracted to them on a long-term basis.
A vaccination program is carried out, which ensures the longevity of the parent stock, and the immunity may be passed to the broiler progeny.
Production percentage (daily eggs per hen) climbs rapidly to a peak of 80–85% at 29–32 weeks, and then gradually declines with age.
The eggs might be disinfected by fumigation, are packed in 'flats' or trays, placed in wheeled trolleys, and stored in a cool (15-18C) climate-controlled area.
Blowers or fans circulate air to ensure uniform temperature, and heating or cooling is applied as needed by automated controls.
These machines are similar to setters, but have larger flat-bottom trays, so the eggs can rest on their sides, and newly hatched chicks can walk.
[25] Some incubators are single-stage (combining setter and hatcher functions), and entire trolleys of eggs can be rolled in at one time.
The single-stage environment can be adjusted for eggs from different producing flocks, and for each step of the hatch cycle.
[27][28] Stacks of chick boxes are loaded into trucks for transport, and arrive at the broiler farm on the same day.
[33] When the birds are full-grown, they are caught (perhaps with a chicken harvester) placed in crates, and transported by truck to a processing plant.
Once the dead birds arrive in the evisceration room (usually dropped down a chute after the feet are removed), they are hung again on shackles much the same way as they were when they were alive.
The integrators provide the chicks, feed, medication, part of the fuel for brooding, and technical advisers to supervise farm production.
Mrs. Wilmer Steele of Sussex County, Delaware, is often cited as the pioneer of the commercial broiler industry.
Broilers were judged on several factors, including growth rate, feed conversion efficiency, and the amount of meat on breasts and drumsticks.
Though held only three times, the contests enabled breeders such as Peterson, Vantress, Cobb, Hubbard, Pilch and Arbor Acres to become established market brands.
Eventually entrepreneurs consolidated feed mill, hatchery and processing operations, resulting in the beginnings of the integrated industry.
[citation needed] By the mid-1960s, ninety percent of broilers produced came from vertical integrated operations, which combined production, processing and marketing.
[citation needed] In the late 1960s and early 1970s, major companies used television and print media to market chickens under brand names.
Today, 95 percent of broilers sold at retail grocery stores carry a brand name.
[citation needed] By the early 1980s, consumers preferred cut-up and further-processed chickens to the traditional whole bird.
[39] Feed conversion ratio Cobb claims to be world's oldest poultry breeding company.
Compared to other livestock sectors (i.e. beef, dairy, and pork), the poultry and egg industry was the healthiest with regards to total income for the average operator.
The CFIA also verifies the humane transportation of animals, conducts food investigations and recalls, and performs laboratory testing and environmental feeds.
Several key industries have science-based, credible programs consistent with the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP, "hass ap") standards.
