kje383
New member
How big of a operation do you have to have to make a living? Are turkeys any better or worse than chickens? kje
Poultry Farming
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JerryG
Super Member
I grow for George’s Farms. They are the 8 largest integrator in the U.S. with Tyson being the largest. Both companies have their headquarters about 35-40 miles for my place. I have what is call tunnel houses. They are climate controlled both summer and winter. It is hard to make a living growing broilers right now. The hen farmers fair much better. In this area the turkey people are the ones that are making the most money.
kje383
New member
What is the differance between broilers, pullets and hens? I saw a lot of chicken house's between talahina and mountain home.kje
CDsdad
Platinum Member
Now this is in south MS and different places may runs different schedules.
Broilers go in houses as bitties and get eaten 7-10 weeks later.
Pullets go in as bitties and are raised to be "pulled" from the pullet houses and go on to be roosters and hens.
Hens and roosters go from pullet houses to laying houses where eggs are collected. Hens are swapped out once a year on average from laying house. Roosters come and go more regularly as breeding brings out the meanness in them and they tend to thin each other out.
Down here there are separate processing facilities for hens and broilers. Most broilers make breast, legs, wings, thighs,.. whole chickens. Hens are processed into soup products and other things.
I've worked at egg hatcheries, feed mill and grain elevator facility, and briefly as a service man on broiler and pullet houses. Growing would be better than working for the chicken company.
Broilers go in houses as bitties and get eaten 7-10 weeks later.
Pullets go in as bitties and are raised to be "pulled" from the pullet houses and go on to be roosters and hens.
Hens and roosters go from pullet houses to laying houses where eggs are collected. Hens are swapped out once a year on average from laying house. Roosters come and go more regularly as breeding brings out the meanness in them and they tend to thin each other out.
Down here there are separate processing facilities for hens and broilers. Most broilers make breast, legs, wings, thighs,.. whole chickens. Hens are processed into soup products and other things.
I've worked at egg hatcheries, feed mill and grain elevator facility, and briefly as a service man on broiler and pullet houses. Growing would be better than working for the chicken company.
40Kchicks
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I guess you already know it takes big money to start a chicken operation. I'm amazed that Cobb will help with the financing. That was one of our biggest hurdles was getting financing.
We have had two small barns for six years now growing for Foster Farms. This summer I built 4 60X500 barns and we are going to place broiler chicks in them in November. Something we learned was that a farm should be sized big enough to be able to hire some help. After years of being stuck close to the farm my wife had had enough. That’s the main reason we expanded our operation. We really do enjoy the lifestyle but a person really needs to be informed before getting into this business.
Eric
We have had two small barns for six years now growing for Foster Farms. This summer I built 4 60X500 barns and we are going to place broiler chicks in them in November. Something we learned was that a farm should be sized big enough to be able to hire some help. After years of being stuck close to the farm my wife had had enough. That’s the main reason we expanded our operation. We really do enjoy the lifestyle but a person really needs to be informed before getting into this business.
Eric
JerryG
Super Member
10 weeks! None of the companies around here go over 8 weeks. Either they want a bird for roasting or they aren't putting the weight on very fast. I would sell my farm in heart beat if I had to keep them for 10 weeks.CDsdad said:
CDsdad
Platinum Member
That's 7-10 weeks from hatchery to table JerryG. They do average 6 weeks on the farm. Another week or two processing, in store, in home and spoils off the shelf.
JerryG
Super Member
I didn't catch the to table part. I have my flocks for 8 weeks, but others around here also have 4 week Cornish hens and 6 week birds. I don't think that I have ever heard of anyone stating the placement to table before. I know that a lot of birds are put in cold storage for some time and that would greatly effect the placement to table times.CDsdad said:
billbill1
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I used to work with a guy that came from a family that ran an egg farm. What a mess that was!! I think the building was provided for them and the chickens were completely changed out every 6 to 8 weeks. I'm sure improvements have been made since then but it was noisy and smelly. Not something I'd want to do. There were 4 hens in each cage and some of them didn't have a feather left on their body. It was kept lit 24/7 so the chickens laid around the clock. I would think that there would be a demand for the fertilizer.
mundamanu
Silver Member
There is a very active Yahoo group dedicated to commercial broiler growers. The url is http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/broilers/
Most of the discussion is off topic, but the most active posters are active growers and there is a lot of discussion about the business end of things, especially the grower's relationships with their integrators. Many of the posters are unhappy with being growers, but many are also happy. It seems to me that a lot depends on what integrator you are growing for.
Most of the discussion is off topic, but the most active posters are active growers and there is a lot of discussion about the business end of things, especially the grower's relationships with their integrators. Many of the posters are unhappy with being growers, but many are also happy. It seems to me that a lot depends on what integrator you are growing for.
