Intended U.S. placements of broiler pullet chicks for the hatchery supply flock for May 2012 were 7,476,000, a 3-percent decrease from the 7,721,000 pullet chicks placed in May 2011, according to the “Chickens and Eggs” report issued recently by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. The May pullet chicks combined with the previous eight months will give a 7-to-15-month cumulative total of 60,725,000 hens by December 2012. The 60,725,000 cumulative potential pullet placements represent a 5-percent decrease when compared with the number for December 2011.
| U.S. Broiler-Type Hatchery Supply Flock Pullet Chicks Hatched and Cumulative Potential Placements | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pullet Chicks Hatched | Potential Placements, Cumulative 7-15 months earlier | |||||||||||||
| 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | ||||||||
| –000– | -%-* | –000– | -%-* | –000– | -%-* | –000– | -%-* | –000– | -%-* | –000– | -%-* | –000– | -%-* | |
| January | 7,142 | 102 | 6,637 | 93 | 6,557 | 99 | 6,673 | 102 | 62,833 | 95 | 62,996 | 100 | 64,111 | 102 |
| February | 7,215 | 96 | 7,021 | 97 | 7,284 | 104 | 7,025 | 96 | 62,005 | 95 | 63,283 | 102 | 63,679 | 101 |
| March | 6,773 | 96 | 6,673 | 99 | 7,058 | 106 | 6,753 | 96 | 62,142 | 95 | 63,250 | 102 | 63,323 | 100 |
| April | 6,240 | 88 | 6,825 | 109 | 7,044 | 103 | 6,524 | 93 | 62,672 | 96 | 63,751 | 102 | 63,209 | 99 |
| May | 7,658 | 93 | 8,351 | 109 | 7,721 | 92 | 7,476 | 97 | 61,918 | 95 | 63,990 | 103 | 62,941 | 98 |
| June | 7,157 | 100 | 7,128 | 100 | 7,211 | 101 | 62,049 | 96 | 64,558 | 104 | 62,547 | 97 | ||
| July | 6,214 | 96 | 6,675 | 107 | 6,444 | 97 | 61,903 | 96 | 64,656 | 104 | 61,927 | 96 | ||
| August | 7,163 | 93 | 7,313 | 102 | 7,233 | 99 | 62,300 | 97 | 64,388 | 104 | 61,556 | 96 | ||
| September | 7,110 | 103 | 7,128 | 100 | 6,657 | 93 | 61,663 | 98 | 63,321 | 103 | 60,860 | 96 | ||
| October | 6,388 | 91 | 6,876 | 108 | 6,289 | 91 | 61,179 | 98 | 63,251 | 103 | 60,402 | 95 | ||
| November | 7,346 | 105 | 7,589 | 103 | 6,890 | 91 | 61,790 | 99 | 63,620 | 103 | 60,482 | 95 | ||
| December | 6,627 | 101 | 6,771 | 102 | 6,438 | 95 | 62,978 | 101 | 64,028 | 102 | 60,725 | 95 | ||
| Annual Total | 83,033 | 97 | 84,987 | 102 | 82,826 | 98 | **62,119 | 97 | **63,757 | 103 | 62,147 | 97 | ||
| Source: Chickens and Eggs NASS/USDA * Comparison with one year earlier. ** Annual Average | ||||||||||||||
Note: All generations of layers that would lay eggs to supply a hatchery are included: parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, pedigree, foundation, and similar. Any pullet chicks used for research purposes, vaccine production, and specific-pathogen-free layers that are in broiler-type hatchery supply flocks are also included in the data.
Also, in the current issue of “Chickens and Eggs,” NASS reported that the actual number of layers in the broiler-type hatching egg flock on June 1, 2012 was 52,869,000 hens, a 5-percent decrease from 55,571,000 hens on June 1, 2011.
