HDR1012000150060514971500Turkey Hatchery                                        
                                                                                
Released May 14, 1997, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS),  
Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture.  For             
information on "Turkey Hatchery" call Jim Brewster at (202) 720-8784, office    
hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET.                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
             Eggs in Incubators on May 1 Down 5 Percent                         
                                                                                
Turkey eggs in incubators on May 1, 1997, in the United States totaled          
36.2 million, down 5 percent from May 1 a year ago.  Eggs in incubators were    
down 3 percent from the revised April 1 total of 37.2 million.  Regional        
percent changes from the previous year were:  E N Central, up 2; W N Central,   
unchanged; N & S Atlantic, down 11; S Central, down 2; and West, down 8.        
                                                                                
                                                                                
             Poults Placed During April Down 5 Percent                          
                                                                                
The 28.2 million poults placed during April 1997 in the United States were      
down 5 percent from the placements during the same month a year ago.            
Placements were up 2 percent from the March 1997 total of 27.6 million.         
Regional percent changes from the previous year were:  E N Central, down 1; W   
N Central, down 5; N & S Atlantic, down 8; S Central, up 3; and West, down 10.  
                                                                                
                                                                                
Pou 3 (5-97)                                                                    
             Turkey Hatchery Production:  Monthly Poult Placements,             
                            United States, 1995-97 1/                           
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        :      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     :  23,371     24,154      103       23,371      24,154         103      
Oct     :  25,158     25,354      101       48,529      49,508         102      
Nov     :  24,619     23,830       97       73,148      73,338         100      
Dec     :  25,269     27,119      107       98,417     100,457         102      
Jan     :  27,391     27,130       99      125,808     127,587         101      
Feb     :  27,596     27,152       98      153,404     154,739         101      
Mar     :  27,932     27,607       99      181,336     182,346         101      
Apr     :  29,725     28,180       95      211,061     210,526         100      
May     :  29,668                          240,729                              
Jun     :  27,987                          268,716                              
Jul     :  28,913                          297,629                              
Aug     :  27,496                          325,125                              
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1/  Excludes exported poults.                                                   
                                                                                
                  Eggs in Incubators:  First of Month by Region                 
                  and United States, May 1997 with Comparisons                  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :          :          :          :  Percent of  :   Percent of   
   Geographic  :  May 1   :  Apr 1   :  May 1   :   Previous   :    Previous    
    Division   :   1996   :   1997   :   1997   :     Year     :     Month      
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :                                                                
               :  ----------- 1,000 ----------        ----- Percent -----       
               :                                                                
E N Central    :   5,235      5,099      5,319        102             104       
W N Central    :  11,015     11,588     11,040        100              95       
N & S Atlantic :  13,332    *12,544     11,898         89              95       
S Central      :   4,208      3,928      4,130         98             105       
West           :   4,125      4,073      3,799         92              93       
               :                                                                
US             :  37,915    *37,232     36,186         95              97       
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Revised.                                                                      
                                                                                
                                                                                
          Poults Placements:  Entire Month by Region and United States,         
                         April 1997 with Comparisons 1/                         
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :          :          :          :  Percent of  :   Percent of   
   Geographic  :   Apr    :   Mar    :   Apr    :   Previous   :    Previous    
    Division   :   1996   :   1997   :   1997   :     Year     :     Month      
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               :  ----------- 1,000 ----------        ----- Percent -----       
               :                                                                
E N Central    :   3,869      3,707      3,822         99             103       
W N Central    :   8,800      8,139      8,352         95             103       
N & S Atlantic :  10,506      9,633      9,691         92             101       
S Central      :   3,228      3,222      3,324        103             103       
West           :   3,322      2,906      2,991         90             103       
               :                                                                
US             :  29,725     27,607     28,180         95             102       
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*   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 22 States.  An attempt is made to collect hatchery information    
from all known hatcheries in these 22 monthly States.  Approximately            
65 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, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New        
Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South    
Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.                  
                                                                                
The next "Turkey Hatchery" report will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET on           
June 13, 1997.                                                                  
                                                                                
                                                                                
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's   
TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).                                  
                                                                                
To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture, USDA, Washington,      
D.C., 20250, or call 1-800-245-6340 (voice) or (202) 720-1127 (TDD).  USDA's    
is an equal employment opportunity employer.                                    
                                                                                
                                                                                
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