Turkey Hatchery

Turkey
Hatchery
Washington, D.C.

Released May 15, 2009, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For
information on Turkey Hatchery call Troy Marshall at (202) 690-3237, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET.

Eggs in Incubators on May 1 Down 13 Percent from Last Year
Turkey eggs in incubators on May 1, 2009, in the United States totaled 28.9 million, down 13 percent from
May 1, 2008. Eggs in incubators were down 2 percent from the April 1, 2009 total of 29.7 million eggs. Regional
changes from the previous year were: East North Central down 9 percent, West North Central down 11 percent, North
and South Atlantic down 13 percent, and South Central and West down 22 percent.
Poults Hatched During April Down 7 Percent from Last Year
Turkey poults hatched during April 2009, in the United States totaled 24.8 million, down 7 percent from April 2008.
Poults hatched were up 1 percent from March 2009 total of 24.5 million poults. Regional changes from the previous
year were: East North Central down 3 percent, West North Central up slightly, North and South Atlantic down
10 percent, and South Central and West down 18 percent.
Net Poults Placed During April Down 6 Percent from Last Year
The 24.3 million net poults placed during April 2009 in the United States were down 6 percent from the number placed
during the same month a year earlier. Net placements were up 2 percent from the March 2009 total of 23.8 million.

U.S. Turkey Net Poult Placements
Million Poults
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
2008

21
20
Jan

Pou 3 (5-09)

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

2009

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Eggs in Incubators: First of Month by Region and United States, May 2009
Percent of
May 1
May 1
Apr 1
Previous
1
2009
2008
2009
Year

Region

1,000

1,000

1,000

Percent of
Previous
Month

Percent

Percent

E N Central
W N Central
N & S Atlantic 2
S Central & West 2

4,694
12,401
11,626
4,428

4,527
11,257
10,346
3,529

4,288
11,057
10,136
3,465

91
89
87
78

95
98
98
98

US

33,149

29,659

28,946

87

98

1
2

Revised.
Regions combined to avoid disclosure of individual operations.
Poults Hatched: Entire Month by Region and United States, April 2009
Percent of
Mar
Apr
Apr
Previous
1
2009
2009
2008
Year

Region

1,000

E N Central
W N Central
N & S Atlantic 2
S Central & West 2
US
1
2

2007-08

Percent

Percent

3,848
9,503
9,602
3,569

3,872
9,800
8,539
2,300

3,736
9,508
8,606
2,933

97
100
90
82

96
97
101
128

26,522

24,511

24,783

93

101

Net Poult Placements: By Month, United States, 2007-2009 1 2
Percent
Total All
Cumulative
of
Breeds
Total
Previous
2008-09
2007-08
2008-09
Year

1,000

Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
2

1,000

Revised.
Regions combined to avoid disclosure of individual operations.

Month

1

1,000

Percent of
Previous
Month

1,000

24,073
25,222
24,755
24,091
26,183
25,011
26,394
25,880
27,084
25,557
26,551
24,363

Percent

22,515
22,165
20,702
23,179
24,131
22,079
23,817
24,253

1,000

94
88
84
96
92
88
90
94

24,073
49,295
74,050
98,141
124,324
149,335
175,729
201,609
228,693
254,250
280,801
305,164

1,000

22,515
44,680
65,382
88,561
112,692
134,771
158,588
182,841

Percent
of
Previous
Year
Percent

94
91
88
90
91
90
90
91

Includes imports and excludes exports.
Revised.

Regional Listing:
North Atlantic: CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT.
East North Central: IL, IN, MI, OH, WI.
West North Central: IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD.
South Atlantic: DE, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV.
South Central: AL, AR, KY, LA, MS, OK, TN, TX.
West: AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY.

Turkey Hatchery
May 2009

2

Agricultural Statistics Board
NASS, USDA

Reliability of Turkey Hatchery Estimates
Survey Procedures: Data for turkey hatchery estimates are collected from all known turkey hatcheries. Individual
NASS field offices maintain a list of all known turkey hatcheries and use known sources of hatcheries to update their
lists. Approximately 40 hatcheries are contacted each month. All known turkey hatcheries are mailed a questionnaire
as close to the first of the month as possible and given adequate time to respond via mail, fax, or electronic data
reporting (EDR). Those that do not respond are contacted by phone. Care is exercised to ensure that all hatcheries are
accounted for in the estimate.
Estimating Procedures: Sound statistical methodology is employed to derive the estimates from reported data. All
data are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own past operating profile and to
trends from similar operations. Data for missing operations were estimated based on similar operations or historical
data. NASS field offices prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and historic trends.
Individual State estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness. Individual hatchery
data are summed to State, regional, and U.S. totals. Only regional and U.S. level estimates are published due to the
limited number of hatcheries involved. The Net Poult Placement data includes imported poults and excludes exported
poults.
Cumulative net poult placements beginning on September 1 and ending on August 31 are shown in the monthly
"Turkey Hatchery" report. This time period corresponds with the placements of poults which will reach maturity and
be available for slaughter during the calendar year.
States reporting turkey hatcheries are: Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Revision Policy: Revisions are generally the result of late or corrected data. Revisions to the previous month are
published in the monthly "Turkey Hatchery" report, while annual revisions are published in the "Hatchery
Production - Annual Summary" report in May.
Reliability: Turkey hatchery estimates are based on a census of all known operating hatcheries and therefore, have no
sampling error. However, estimates are subject to errors such as omission, duplication, and mistakes in reporting,
recording, and processing the data. While these errors cannot be measured directly, they are minimized through strict
quality controls in the data collection process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and
reasonableness.
To assist in evaluating the reliability of the estimates in this report, the “Root Mean Square Error” is shown for selected
items in the following table. The “Root Mean Square Error” is a statistical measure based on past performance and is
computed using the differences between first and final estimates. The “Root Mean Square Error” for turkey eggs in
incubators on the first day of the month over the past 24 months is 0.7 percent. This means that chances are 2 out of 3
that the final estimate will not be above or below the current estimate of 28.9 million eggs by more than 0.7 percent.
Chances are 9 out of 10 that the difference will not exceed 1.2 percent.

Item

Root
Mean
Square
Error
Percent

Reliability of U.S. May Turkey Hatchery Estimates 1
Difference Between
90 Percent
First and Latest
Confidence
Estimates
Level
Average
Smallest
Largest
Percent

1,000

1,000

1,000

1,000

Number of Months
First
Above
Latest

First
Below
Latest

Number

Number

Eggs In
Incubators

0.7

1.2

342

127

0

696

8

12

Poults Hatched

0.3

0.5

119

40

0

228

9

8

Net Poult
Placements

0.9

1.6

376

170

5

570

16

8

1

Based on data for the past 24 months.

Turkey Hatchery
May 2009

3

Agricultural Statistics Board
NASS, USDA

Information Contacts
Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to
contact for additional information.
Dan Kerestes, Chief, Livestock Branch.................................................................................................. (202) 720-3570
Bruce Boess, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section .......................................................... (202) 720-4447
David Colwell - Cold Storage ........................................................................................................... (202) 720-8784
Chris Hawthorn - Catfish Processing, Catfish Production, Trout Production,
Census of Aquaculture, Egg Products, Mink........................................................ (202) 720-0585
Sharyn Lavender - Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery, Honey ...................................................... (202) 720-3244
Kim Linonis - Layers, Eggs............................................................................................................... (202) 690-8632
Troy Marshall - Poultry Slaughter, Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised ............................................. (202) 690-3237

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