Fewer broiler eggs set in the US

Broiler eggs set in incubators have dropped by three percent for mid-November compared to the same period last year, as chicken companies continue to tighten supplies.

The US National Agriculture Statistics Service, part of the US Department of Agriculture, has reported that commercial hatcheries in the 19 largest chicken-producing states set 208 million broiler eggs in incubators during the week ending 18 November 2006.

Average hatchability for chicks hatched during the week was 83 percent.

NASS added that US broiler growers in the 19-state area placed 156 million chicks for meat production during the same week, down four percent from the comparable week one year earlier.

Cumulative placements from 1 January 2006 through 18 November 2006 were 7.94 billion broiler chicks - down one percent from the same period in 2005.

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Editor WorldPoultry