HDR1012000150061016961500Turkey Hatchery

Released October 15, 1996, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service
(NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture.  For
information on "Turkey Hatchery" call James E. Brewster at (202) 720-8784,
office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET.  For assistance with general
agricultural statistics, information about NASS, its products or services,
contact the Agricultural Statistics Hotline at 1-800-727-9540 or E-mail:
NASS@NASS.USDA.GOV.



             Eggs in Incubators on October 1 Unchanged

Turkey eggs in incubators on October 1, 1996, in the United States totaled
32.1 million, unchanged from October 1 a year ago.  Eggs in incubators were up
1 percent from the revised September 1 total of 31.9 million.  Regional
percent changes from the previous year were:  E N Central, up 17; W N Central,
down 11, N & S Atlantic, up 2; S Central, up 9; and West, down 7.



            Poults Placed During September Up 5 Percent

The 24.2 million poults placed during September 1996 in the United States were
up 5 percent from the placements during the same month a year ago.  Placements
were down 13 percent from the revised August 1996 total of 27.7 million.
Regional percent changes from the previous year were:  E N Central, up 14; W N
Central, down 2; N & S Atlantic, up 8; S Central, up 7; and West, unchanged.





Pou 3 (10-96)


      Turkey Hatchery Production:  Monthly Poult Placements,
                    United States, 1995-97 1/ 2/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        :      Total All      : Percent :       Cumulative      :    Percent
        :        Breeds       :   of    :         Total         :       of
  Month :---------------------: Previous:-----------------------:    Previous
        :  1995-96  : 1996-97 :  Year   :  1995-96  :  1996-97  :      Year
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        :      -- 1,000 --      Percent       --- 1,000 ---          Percent
        :
Sep     :   23,070     24,231     105       23,070      24,231         105
Oct     :   24,868                          47,938
Nov     :   24,438                          72,376
Dec     :   25,144                          97,520
Jan     :   27,550                         125,070
Feb     :   27,549                         152,619
Mar     :   27,949                         180,568
Apr     :   29,722                         210,290
May     :   29,712                         240,002
Jun     :   27,943                         267,945
Jul     :   28,881                         296,826
Aug     :   27,733                         324,559
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1/  1995 data include revisions published in "Hatchery Production 1995 Summary".
2/  Excludes exported poults.


           Eggs in Incubators:  First of Month by Region
            and United States, Oct 1996 with Comparisons
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :          :          :          :  Percent of  :   Percent of
   Geographic  :   Oct 1  :   Sep 1  :   Oct 1  :   Previous   :    Previous
    Division   :   1995   :   1996   :   1996   :     Year     :      Month
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :     -------- 1,000 -------             ---- Percent ----
               :
E N Central    :   4,293     *4,920      5,008          117            102
W N Central    :   9,330      8,421      8,326           89             99
N & S Atlantic :  11,973     11,865     12,236          102            103
S Central      :   3,526      3,708      3,858          109            104
West           :   2,913      3,015      2,717           93             90
               :
US             :  32,035    *31,929     32,145          100            101
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------







             Poult Placements:  Entire Month by Region
          and United States, Sep 1996 with Comparisons 1/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :          :          :          :  Percent of :   Percent of
  Geographic   :   Sep    :   Aug    :   Sep    :   Previous  :    Previous
   Division    :   1995   :   1996   :   1996   :     Year    :      Month
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :     -------- 1,000 -------             ---- Percent ----
               :
E N Central    :   2,932      3,893      3,348         114            86
W N Central    :   6,244      7,375      6,128          98            83
N & S Atlantic :   8,914    *10,075      9,596         108            95
S Central      :   2,605      3,281      2,786         107            85
West           :   2,375      3,109      2,373         100            76
               :
US             :  23,070    *27,333     24,231         105            87
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*   Revised
1/  Regional placements refer to poults placed from hatcheries located in that
    region, and not the actual location of the birds after placement.





    Regional Listing:
     North Atlantic  = CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT.
     E North Central = IL, IN, MI, OH, WI.
     W 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 Estimates

Data Sources:  Primary data for the "Turkey Hatchery" report are collected
               from weekly and/or monthly questionnaires sent to turkey
hatcheries in 19 States.  An attempt is made to collect hatchery information
from all known hatcheries in these 19 monthly States.  Approximately 64
hatcheries are contacted each month.


Revisions:  Revisions are generally the result of late or corrected data and
            are usually less than 1 percent at the U.S. level.  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 at the end of the marketing year.  The annual report also
includes data for six States which report on an annual basis only.


Procedures and Reliability:  Hatcheries are mailed a questionnaire and given
                             adequate time to respond by mail.  Those that do
not respond by mail are called by phone.  Diligent effort is made to ensure
that all hatcheries are accounted for in the estimate.  An allowance is made
for all non-reporting hatcheries.

Accumulated 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.  Only regional and U.S.
level estimates are published due to the limited number of hatcheries
involved.  Regional placement data in the report refer to placement of poults
from hatcheries located in that region, not the actual location of the birds
after placement.  Poults exported out of the U.S. and poults imported from
outside of the U.S. are not included in the report.

Turkey hatchery estimates are based on a census of operating hatcheries and,
therefore, have no sampling error.  However, they may be subject to errors
such as omission, duplication, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and
processing the data.  These errors are minimized through strict quality
controls in the edit and summarization process, and a careful review of all
reported data for consistency and reasonableness.

States in the monthly estimating program are:  Arkansas, California, Colorado,
Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio,
Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia,
and Wisconsin.


The next "Turkey Hatchery" report will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET on
November 15, 1996.


The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in
its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age,
disability, political beliefs, and marital or familial status.  Persons with
disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program
information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA
Office of Communications at (202) 720-5881 (voice) or (202) 720-7808 (TDD).

To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture, USDA, Washington,
D.C., 20250, or call (202) 720-7327 (voice) or (202) 720-1127 (TDD).  USDA is
an equal employment opportunity employer.


                         SUBSCRIBE TODAY!!

For your convenience, there are several ways to obtain NASS reports, data
products, and services:


                          INTERNET ACCESS

All NASS reports are now available free of charge on the worldwide Internet.
For access, connect to the Internet and select:

   1.  Worldwide Web:  http://www.usda.gov/nass/       OR

   2.  For Gopher/Telenet/FTP access:
       HOST=usda.mannlib.cornell.edu        OR

   3.  For a subscription direct to your e-mail address,
       send an e-mail message to:  usda-reports@usda.mannlib.cornell.edu
       and in the body of the message type the word:  list


                          AUTOFAX ACCESS

   NASSFax service is available for some reports from your fax machine.
   Please call 202-720-2000, using the handset attached to your fax.
   Respond to the voice prompts.

                 PRINTED REPORTS OR DATA PRODUCTS
CALL OUR TOLL-FREE ORDER DESK:   1-800-999-6779 (U.S. and Canada)
Other areas, please call l-703-834-0125       FAX:  1-703-834-0110
(Visa, MasterCard, check, or money order acceptable for payment.)

                            ASSISTANCE

For assistance with general agricultural statistics or further information
about NASS or its products or services, contact the Agricultural Statistics
HOTLINE at 1-800-727-9540, 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, or e-mail:
NASS@NASS.USDA.GOV.