USDA reported this week in its monthly slaughter report that the May 2024 ready-to-cook weight (poultry-certified wholesome) totaled 4.50 billion pounds, down two percent from the amount certified in May 2023.
The April 2024 revised certified total at 4.43 billion pounds, was up 10 percent from April 2023. The April revision represented an increase of 1.59 million pounds from last month’s preliminary pounds certified.
The preliminary total live weight of all federally inspected poultry during May 2024 was 5.92 billion pounds, down two percent from 6.05 billion pounds a year ago. Young chickens inspected totaled 5.28 billion pounds, down one percent from May 2023. Mature chickens, at 69.8 million pounds, were down seven percent from the previous year.
Young chickens slaughtered during May 2024 averaged 6.51 pounds per bird, down slightly from May 2023. The average live weight of mature chickens was 6.98 pounds per bird, up slightly from a year ago.
Ante-mortem condemnations during May 2024 totaled 12.1 million pounds. Condemnations were 0.21 percent of the live weight inspected, as compared with 0.20 percent a year earlier. Post-mortem condemnations, at 27.3 million pounds, were 0.60 percent of quantities inspected, as compared with 0.59 percent a year earlier.
The full report from which this information was derived can be found here.
