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March 25, 2013 Volume 60, Number 7 www.poultrytimes.net
William Claybaugh named to Nebraska Hall of Fame
Photo: Nebraska Poultry Industries
Hall of Fame: William J. Claybaugh, right, president of Nebraska Eggs Ltd., received the 2013 Nebraska Poultry Industries Hall of Fame award at the recent NPI annual convention. Presenting the award was Tim Bebee, NPI board member and vice president of farm operations for Michael Foods, which purchases eggs from Claybaugh’s company. For more NPI awards, see page 9.
LINCOLN, Neb. — William J. Claybaugh, president of Nebraska Eggs Ltd. in Carrroll, Neb., has received the Nebraska Poultry Industries Hall of Fame award. The award was presented at the recent annual Nebraska Poultry Industries convention held in Norfolk, Neb. Claybaugh is the third generation to receive the Hall of Fame award. His grandfather, J.H. Claybaugh, received the award in 1971; and his father, Joe Claybaugh, was honored in 1985. The latest award winner is the newly elected president of the Midwest Poultry Federation. He has also served as president of the Nebraska
Poultry Industries and as president of the Nebraska Egg Council. Claybaugh also volunteers with various community organizations, including the chamber of commerce, local volunteer fire department, his church, the local Red Cross and Provident Medical Center Foundation. The award was presented by Tim Bebee, NPI board member and vice president of farm operations for Michael Foods, which purchases eggs from Claybaugh’s company.
Person of the Year The Nebraska Poultry Industries also honored Robert F. Storant as
the 2013 Nebraska Poultry Industry Person of the Year. Storant is the Nebraska Department of Agriculture’s administrator of finance and personnel. Since 1993 his participation in quarterly poultry and egg board meetings has involved budget and production information, keeping the poultry industry abreast of funding opportunities, providing information on pertinent issues that may affect the poultry industry, providing financial direction and continual assistance in assuring that the Poultry and Egg Division is in compliance with state rules and regulations. More information can be obtained at www.nepoultry.org.
Food manufacturers call for stable workforce Get ready for hot weather now WASHINGTON — A broad food manufacturers coalition is calling for a stable and permanent workforce that can help sustain the rural communities where meat and poultry facilities operate. Speaking on behalf of the Food Manufacturers Immigration Coalition, National Chicken Council President Mike Brown outlined immigration reform themes before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security “To date much of the discussion has focused on the need to retain highly skilled workers such as scientists and engineers, and the need for additional temporary agricultural workers,” Brown said. “These are important objectives, but they do not meet the needs of our industry sector. We are manufacturers, wanting a stable and permanent
workforce that can help sustain the rural communities where we do business.” Brown highlighted five major themes for immigration reform on which the coalition is focused: border security; a very simple improvement to the E-verify system as an alternative to a national identity card; clarity in anti-discrimination laws; an occupational visa category that the meat and poultry industry can use that could be tied to local or regional employment; and, options to effectively address the 11 million undocumented workers in the shadows of our economy. “Some think there is an economic incentive for manufacturing employers to hire illegal immigrants at below-market wages,” Brown con-
See Workforce, Page 17
By Jim Donald, Jess Campbell, Dennis Brothers & Gene Simpson
Special to Poultry Times
AUBURN, Ala. — Hot weather devastated the poultry Industry in most parts of the U.S. last year. From Texas to Maryland and Kentucky to South Alabama no one escaped triple digit temperatures Jim Donald is a professor and Extension engineer; Jess Campbell and Dennis Brothers are both poultry housing specialists, National Poultry Technology Center; and Gene Simpson is a professor and Extension economist, all associated with Auburn University, Auburn, Ala. More information can be obtained at www.poultryhouse.com.
for days on end. Here at the Na- are not expensive. However, they tional Poultry Technology Center must be done in advance. In other (NPTC) our phone rang off the words, preventive maintenance is hook with questions from grow- a must! ers and managers looking for the Checklists are a great way to magic bullet to stop rising mortali- keep on track and set priorities on ties and decreasing performance. servicing equipment and houses. In too many cases, after asking One-per-page checklist for questions about the particular situ- preventive maintenance on Fans, ation we found that there was no Evaporative Cooling, Electrical simple solution, and most of the Systems and the Backup Gensteps we could recommend to cope erator can be found at http://www. with this problem were things that aces.edu/poultryventilation/docushould have been done in April or ments/Nwsltr-76GetReadyforHoMay, not put off until July or Au- tWeatherNow.pdf. gust. You can print and carry these After last summer, we all know checklists with you (or give to how bad hot weather can get. helpers), as well as post in conveWe can hope that this summer nient places in your office or your won’t be so bad — but it would houses as both reminders and rebe foolish not to do everything we cords to make sure your houses and can reasonably do to be ready for equipment keep running smoothly. another long, hot summer. Most of these steps are not hard to do and See Hot, Page 14
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2012
The ‘new normal’: $5-plus corn & $300-plus soybean meal ATLANTA — The new normal for animal feed costs will be at least $5 corn and $300 soybean meal, according to Thomas Elam of FarmEcon during his presentation on the “Economic State of the Industry.” He was speaking at the Meat and Poultry Research Conference held at the 2013 International Production and Processing Expo. Elam The conference was cosponsored by the American Meat Institute, U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, the American Meat Science Association and the Poultry Science
Association. “Will we see $10 corn and $650 soybean meal?” Elam questioned. “It’s very possible. Also, $5 corn and $300 soybean meal is equally probable.” But, he believes those are minimums in the future. “We will continue to see volatile feed costs for the next 18-20 months,” Elam added. “There will be no significant change through March and April. Then, it will depend on the weather this summer. If there is no rain again this year, we’re in serious trouble. And, there has not been enough snow this winter so far. Then, there is the ethanol squeeze.” From 1950-2005, for meat and poultry producers, consumer demand was the major driver, Elam explained. Now, feed cost is the driver, and consumer demand has
slowed. And, it is slowing the recovery from the recession, because more personal income is required for food. On the positive side, “exports have held up incredibly well. However, there are always opportunities,” Elam said. “They include product innovation, distressed asset sales, more flexible price contracts, up-selling export markets and continued cost cutting for increased efficiency.” Also on the program, Dr. David Wicker, Fieldale Farms, discussed antibiotic-free broiler production. “Why do we do it? Because that’s what the customer wants,” Wicker said. “Antibiotics are not used in the feed or water and are not injected into the egg. We use an all-vegetarian diet, with no meat meals and no animal fats.” He listed several factors that impact antibiotic-free broiler production. The immunity level of the parents is important, particularly
the parent hen immunity. The breed strain plays a role, and less density can be another requirement. Miles McEvoy, with the USDA Natural Organic Program, examined regulatory standards and requirements for natural and organic food production. He said that organic agriculture has grown substantially in the last 20 years, from negligible to $31 billion in 2011. “The reasons vary,” he noted. “Why organic? Things like environmentally sound, biodiversity, less toxic, animal welfare, rural development and economic opportunity.” The 1990 Farm Bill established national organic standards through the Organic Foods Production Act. McEvoy said certification is very important in organic agriculture. Consumers can choose production methods, and it protects consumers, establishes a level playing field and ensures that products are produced without prohibited methods. It is also scale-neutral, in that all opera-
Looking at global impacts of current egg legislation ATLANTA — In his presentation on the “Global Impact of Animal Welfare Legislation,” Hans-Wilhelm Windhorst, International Egg Commission economist, described the effects of the conventional layer cage system ban in Germany in 2010. Windhorst was speaking at the “Future of the U.S. Egg Industry” education program, held during the 2013 International Production & Processing Expo. The program was sponsored by the United Egg Producers and the U.S. Poultry & Egg AsWindhorst sociation.
According to Windhorst, the ban resulted in a loss of egg production, necessitating that eggs for consumption be imported. The ban also forced many farms into foreclosure and took some time for the egg industry to recover. Windhorst further remarked that “the cost of transforming to new housing in Germany was 1.2 billion” and encouraged the egg industry to be transparent and show consumers that birds are not being harmed. As part of his presentation on the “Economic Impact of Egg Legislation,” Tom Early, vice president of Agralytica Consulting, described a study conducted last year related to the submission of the bill on egg legislation to the Senate. He also projected the economic
See Eggs, Page 14
tions must meet the same requirements. The food production categories that can be certified include crops, wild crops, livestock and processed products. There is a fee for certification. and the cost depends on the size and scope of the farm. The average is $1,000, and annual re-certification is required. “Processing Challenges” were addressed by Kevin Myers, Hormel Foods. He focused on natural high pressure processing of ready-to-eat meats to reduce pathogens. He said that high pressure processing has been around 100 years, but has seen rapid growth in the last 10 years. He listed the technical differences from other processing techniques. Myers said it also may impact things like shelf-life and sometimes flavor but is a viable and growing option.
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Without air movement cooling pads can increase heat stress By Michael Czarick & Dr. Brian Fairchild Special to Poultry Times
ATHENS, Ga. — Though evaporative cooling is used around the world to keep birds cool during hot weather, by itself it is not a very effective method of reducing bird heat stress. To understand why, one must understand how a bird cools itself. Poultry feed is rich in energy/ calories (similar in energy density to chocolate cake with frosting). The energy in the feed is used by the Michael Czarick is an Extension engineer; and Dr. Brian Fairchild is an associate professor and Extension poultry scientist, both with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in Athens, Ga. More information can be obtained at www. poultryventilation.com.
birds to grow, produce eggs, move, as well as, power the basic functions of life (breathing, pumping blood, maintaining body temperature, immunity, etc.). Though we view birds as very efficient animals, the fact is that only 25 percent of the energy in the feed consumed is actually used for these functions, the remaining 75 percent is essentially put off in the form of heat — heat a bird must rid itself of in order to maintain normal body temperature and survive. In a way, a bird is not that different from an automobile. A gallon of gas is packed full of energy. The car’s engine “consumes” the gasoline and uses the energy from the fuel for motion, power the air conditioning system, lights, radio, as well as power basic functions (pulling air into the engine, pumping gasoline, maintaining proper engine temperature, etc.).
Like a bird only, a small percentage of the energy in the fuel is used for these purposes (approximately 35 percent), the remainder is put off in the form of excess heat. If the engine does not rid itself of this heat (primarily though the use of its radiator and tail pipe), the engine temperature can increase to a point where the engine will seize up and “die.” A bird rids itself of excess heat primarily in two ways: (1) it loses heat to the air around it (sensible heat loss) and (2) it loses heat through the evaporation of water off of its respiratory system (latent heat loss). Sensible heat loss is fairly simple to understand. The bird’s body is warmer than the air and therefore the bird loses heat to the air surrounding it. The cooler the air the greater the amount of heat loss. The warmer the air, the smaller the amount of heat loss.
Latent, or evaporative heat loss can be a harder concept to understand. As a bird breathes, moisture evaporates from the respiratory system. As this moisture evaporates, heat is removed from the bird much as the evaporative cooling pads “remove” heat from air entering a house during hot weather. As you might expect, the amount of heat a bird loses through the evaporation of moisture off of its respiratory system depends on the relative humidity of the air it breathes. The lower the relative humidity, the more moisture the bird can evaporate off of its respiratory system the more heat which is removed from the body. Conversely, the higher the humidity the lower the amount of moisture evaporated from its respiratory system the lower the amount of heat removed. From the day a bird is hatched, it continually utilizes both these methods of heat
removal to maintain an ideal body temperature. yy How much heat are we talking about? At 70 degrees F, a 5 pound broiler produces approximately 60 Btu’s (British thermal units) of heat each hour, which is roughly equivalent to the amount of heat produced by a 25 watt incandescent light bulb. At a relative humidity of 50 percent, approximately 36 Btu’s/hr of heat (60 percent) is lost from a bird through the evaporation of moisture off its respiratory system and 24 Btu’s/hr (40 percent) is lost to the air surrounding a bird. yy How does this compare to you and me? Seated and at rest the average male adult will produce approximately 340 Btu’s of heat each hour
See Movement, Page 16
Court urged to award legal fees to Md. family from clean water suit WILLARDS, Md. — Attorneys for Berlin, Md.-based Alan and Kristin Hudson, the embattled farmers at the heart of a Clean Water Act lawsuit filed by the Waterkeeper Alliance and the Assateague Coastal Trust (ACT), have submitted a motion asking a federal Judge for repayment of legal fees and other associated costs that were expended over the last three years, which nearly bankrupted the family. The court ruled that the Hudsons were innocent of all accusations in a December 2012 ruling. However, unlike the New York-based Waterkeeper Alliance, which was given free legal counsel by the taxpayerfunded University of Maryland Environmental Law Clinic, the Hudson family was forced to pay legal fees out of their own pockets. Since the Waterkeepers filed their lawsuit in 2010, the Hudsons have accumulated fees totaling approximately $500,000. Without the financial support of members of their community on Maryland’s Eastern
Shore and farmers throughout the U.S. who raised funds by hosting spaghetti dinners and other events celebrating agriculture, they would have long ago had to give up their farm, which has been in their family for three generations. “The Clean Water Act does not exist for celebrity-funded New York lawyers to recklessly and without merit sue the farmer into bankruptcy,” said Hudson Family attorney George Ritchie, Esq., of Gordon Feinblatt. “The plaintiffs funded their suit with out-of-state monies — raised during celebrity events, while the Hudsons relied on the support of their neighbors, fellow Eastern Shore farmers and sympathetic family farmers across the country. It is time for the Waterkeepers to own up to their ill-conceived and harmful legal actions, and repay the farmers that supported this beleaguered farm family,” continued Ritchie. “Further, repayment of legal fees is clearly permissible and allowed for
under the CWA.” Ritchie went on to say that the case was never about the activist groups’ concerns about discharges from the Hudson Farm. Instead, it was the culmination of a lengthy campaign to force poultry integrators to seriously alter if not abandon their operations on the Eastern Shore. “The Hudsons were simply collateral damage in the Waterkeepers zealous campaign to strike at Perdue and other integrators in the poultry industry,” he said. “They were not content simply to pursue a senseless case against the Hudsons through the trial. They actually went a step further last year by opposing legislative attempts to help the Hudsons pay for their legal expenses, arguing that the CWA permits a prevailing defendant to recover its fees and costs. It’s finally time for them to stand behind their words. The court should award the Hudsons reasonable legal fees and costs incurred in defending this needless and ground-
less lawsuit.” According to Lee Richardson, president of the Wicomico County Farm Bureau and a SaveFarmFamilies.org member, farmers across America helped the Hudsons stay in the fight and it’s right that those legal fees get reimbursed to dissuade activists groups from filing cases that are in reality an attempt to end contemporary agriculture. “By repaying Alan and Kristin this money, we can set a precedent that activist groups cannot ‘sue first and ask questions later,” he said. Richardson said the Waterkeeper Alliance and ACT’s claims against the Hudsons were groundless from the start. “When the Waterkeepers and ACT learned that what they assumed was an uncovered pile of chicken manure was actually a pile of harmless bio-solids, it nevertheless proceeded with a lawsuit, despite the Maryland Department of Environment clearing the couple of any wrongdoing,” he said.
The resulting three-week trial, which took the Hudsons away from their farm and their two young children, demonstrated the irresponsible and frivolous nature of the plaintiff’s claims. “Through this lawsuit, the Waterkeepers and ACT had the ability to wreak havoc on an innocent farm family simply trying to make a living by feeding Americans,” Richardson said. “The repayment of legal fees goes well beyond the Hudsons,” said Andrew McLean, past president of Delmarva Poultry Inc. and a SaveFarmFamilies.org member. “This is an important first step to hold the Waterkeepers, the Assateague Coastal Trust and the UMD Law Clinic accountable for reckless ‘hard-nosed’ litigation tactics. If they do not have to pay the Hudsons legal fees they will never stop this type of activity that unfairly harms our family farmers.”
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Viewpoint Compiled by Barbara Olejnik, Associate Editor 770-718-3440 bolejnik@poultrytimes.net
By Emily Meredith
Special to Poultry Times
ARLINGTON, Va. — Last month Grocery Headquarters magazine ran an article entitled "Pets are People too" which discussed the continued humanization of America's pets. The article advised savvy retailers to expand their pet sections and to purchase toys and treats, which are manufactured and marketed similar to products for infants and children. Meredith While the article may seem innocuous to some, the very title — not to mention the content — of the article highlight a growing problem for the animal agriculture industry: that pets are people and should be treated as such. Even though farm animals weren't specifically mentioned in the article, the humanization of animals poses a significant hurdle that the industry must overcome. While there are many theories about how the humanization of the pet came to be, one significant factor in this trend could be the marriage rate of average Americans. According to the 2012 census data, the marriage rate was 6.8 per 1000; while the divorce rate was 3.4 per 1000. Over 50 percent of first marriages end in divorce. Certainly, these statistics are not a glowing endorsement for the sancEmily Meredith is communications director of the Animal Agriculture Alliance with offices in Arlington, Va.
tity and stability of marriage, but they also highlight a growing trend — which is, people are becoming less connected to each other, and as a result, are turning to other species for companionship. Enter dogs and cats. America is a nation of pet owners. Collectively in 2012, pet owners spent $53 billion on pet care, according to the American Pet Products Association (APPA). That includes $34 billion on food and veterinary care; $4.4 billion on grooming, boarding and pet-sitting; and $12.5 billion on alternative care such as animal acupuncture. And that's not even factoring in the cash spent on the fashion wardrobes that can be spotted on Chihuahuas and Puggles strutting down Main Street. More than spending, however, America's cultural pendulum has swung toward pets. According to APPA, 62 percent of U.S. households include a pet, and (evidenced above) most are willing to spend lots of money to ensure those pets are happy healthy, and yes, fashionable. The pet industry has tripled in the past 15 years. So why have pets become so important? Colin Jerolmack, a sociology professor at New York University who studies animals in society, speculates that the more people become disassociated and disconnected from each other — thanks to the increase of online social networks, long work hours, and distances between families — the more time people spend alone. Thus, the companionship of pets has become that much more valuable. Perhaps more crucial, however, is that a relationship with a pet is much less messy than a human one. People believe that pets love you no matter what your appearance or personal-
ity, and show affection constantly. Jerolmack notes that people are fascinated by pets — and that they are treated as children. In a recent article entitled "the Pet Culture" in Forbes magazine, pet expert Charlotte Reed called herself a "proud mother" to her and her husband's two cats and four dogs. The couple, who has no children, appoints each dog a "godmother" and all four eat and sleep with their owners — cramming into the couples' full size bed in their Manhattan apartment. The animals even receive presents and a card (which is signed by all the other pet siblings) on their birthdays. While we all might chuckle at this pet devotion, Mrs. Reed is hardly the exception; remember those spending statistics? Even retailers are being encouraged to capitalize on this trend, and there's no sign of the humanization of American's pet slowing down any time soon. To many, the undying devotion to a four-legged friend might not seem concerning. But even Jerolmack warns that the continued humanization of pets could prompt larger issues, as people continue to demand increased social recognition of pets. The humanization of Fido and Fluffy, however, also pose a significant threat to how Americans view animal agriculture. Most in the animal agriculture industry agree that one of the largest communications problems facing the industry is how to explain standard industry practices without sounding too clinical or scientific. Unfortunately, animal rights activists have capitalized on the industry's communications struggles and have further exploited this notion that pets = people. When activists release photos or videos depicting some of the more graphic industry practices, most often with a completely misleading narrative, many viewers take pause and some are disturbed by what they see. Putting aside that most Americans have never even seen a farm, and thus have no concept of what they are seeing, and whether it is "standard" or "substandard," in the first place, there could be other is-
“
‘A growing problem for the animal agriculture industry: that pets are people and should be treated as such.’ Emily Meredith
Animal Agriculture Alliance
sues at play. For instance, it could be that the viewers aren’t necessarily disturbed by the practices themselves, but rather disturbed because they wonder if they would be comfortable with that procedure being performed on their treasured and loved pet. There’s a strong likelihood that
as more and more people become pet owners, more and more of those pet owners will view all animals the same — they will view farm animals, raised for consumption, as they view their own pet. And if they view food animals as
See Meredith, Page 5
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Poultry Times (USPS 217-480) ISSN 0885-3371 is published every other Monday, 345 Green Street, N.W., Gainesville, Georgia 30501. Telephone 770-536-2476; Fax 770-532-4894. Postage paid at Gainesville, Georgia 30501. Poultry Times assumes responsibliity for error in first run of an in-house designed ad only. Advertisers have ten (10) days from publication date to dispute such an advertisement. After ten (10) days, ad will be deemed correct and advertiser will be charged accordingly. Proofs approved by advertiser will always be regarded as correct. Subscriptions: Surface mail in U.S., $18.00 for one year, $29 for two years and $40 for three years. Business or occupation information must accompany each subscription order. Change of Address: Postmaster, report change of address to Poultry Times, P.O. Box 1338, Gainesville, GA 30503. Companion Poultry Publications: A Guide to Poultry Associations; Poultry Resource Guide; Georgia Ag News. The opinions expressed in this publication by authors other than Poultry Times staff are those of the respective author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Poultry Times. Advertisement content is the sole responsibility of the advertiser. Poultry Times assumes no liability for any statements, claims or assertions appearing in any advertisement.
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
USPOULTRY presents 2013 Clean Water Awards TUCKER, Ga. — GNP Co. of Saint Cloud, Minn., and Marshall Durbin of Jasper, Ala., have been awarded the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association’s 2013 Clean Water Award. Presented annually, the award recognizes excellence in the operation of wastewater treatment plants in the poultry industry. The presentations were made during USPOULTRY’s Environmental Management Seminar, held recently in New Orleans, La. The winners were selected by a committee made up of industry engineers and managers, university personnel and retired state regulatory officials. Awards are presented in two categories, full treatment and pretreatment. The full treatment category covers facilities that fully reclaim
wastewater prior to discharge into a receiving stream or final land application system. The pretreatment category includes facilities that discharge pretreated effluent to publicly-owned, full treatment facilities. To be eligible, a facility must have a minimum of two years of no significant non-compliances or notices of violations or any other type of enforcement action. GNP Co. was selected as the winner in the full treatment category for their poultry processing operation in Saint Cloud, Minn. The Saint Cloud facility processes an average of 1.4 million gallons of water per day, with 400,000 to 500,000 gallons reused in the processing plant. The facility utilizes state-of-the-art membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology for wastewater treatment, the only known poultry process-
ing plant utilizing this technology. In the MBR system, water is vacuumed through the membrane filter and then passes through a network of hollow strings, resulting in clear water with almost no solid particles. GNP’s Saint Cloud facility typically achieves an effluent turbidity of 0.1 to 0.3, which is substantially lower than what can be achieved with other treatment methods. The system is 100 percent automated and runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The system also features biological phosphorus and ammonia nitrogen removal, which addresses increased pressure by state and federal environmental regulatory agencies to reduce the level of nutrients in treated wastewater. Marshall Durbin was selected as the winner in the pretreatment category. Marshall Durbin’s Jasper,
•Meredith (Continued from page 4)
pets and pets as people — those correlations could prove all the more challenging for those of us who are communicators on behalf of the industry. While the fact remains that pets aren’t people (otherwise they would be called “people”) this logic escapes many because this train of thought isn’t logical, it’s emotional. That emotion is the same reason Sarah McLachlan is singing on a commercial with sick dogs and cats — emotion raises money and prompts outrage and action. Those in the industry are well aware of the irony of these campaigns. Case in point, activists routinely campaign against standard castration procedures in the cattle and pork industries, yet actively encourage pet owners to get their dogs and cats neutered.
Same procedure — except one just has a much nicer name. But terminology is important. Yes, admittedly, the activists come up with catchy buzz-words and sling mud, but it is an effective tactic (just pick up a mainstream newspaper and see if there are any articles about animal agriculture — guarantee there are!). So how do we combat this emotional name-calling? Well, it’s high time the industry got emotional. The clinical and industry terms are great when we’re talking to each other, but don’t play so well when we’re communicating to the consumer. Think about how many see animals — as friends and companions — rather than as a food source. That person is going to want to hear about how well cared for your animals are, and not because a healthy animal produces a better
end product, but rather because it’s the right thing to do. Let’s talk about our moral and ethical obligations to give animals a good life, and good death (when the time comes). My guess is that approach will resonate much more with the public. After all, those consumers are the ones in the grocery stores every night, buying chicken breasts for their families and chicken-flavored biscuits for their dogs. To learn more about animal activist campaigns, how to better communicate with consumers, and proactive industry initiatives don’t miss the 12th annual Animal Agriculture Alliance Stakeholders Summit, themed: “Activists at the Door: Protecting Animals, Farms, Food & Consumer Confidence.” To register, visit: www.animalagalliance.org/register. More information can also be obtained at 703562-5160.
Ala., facility processes 210,000 birds per day, five days a week. The company’s wastewater facility processes approximately 1 million gallons per day. The facility uses a vacuum system to transfer solids from the plant to the screening room. Installation of the vacuum system has reduced pollutant loads in the wastewater and decreased water usage throughout the facility. One highlight of their operation is the use of a flow-track system that administers accurate dosages of polymers (cationic and anionic) and bentonite clay to the wastewater. The system provides the operator with more control over excessive water flow and chemical changes in wastewater, due to changes in plant operation. Koch Foods of Gadsden, Ala., which processes 400,000 birds per
day and treats roughly 1 million gallons of wastewater per day, received honorable mention in the full treatment category. “The poultry industry is recognized as a leader in conserving our natural resources,” said USPOULTRY Chairman James Adams, Wenger Feeds, Rheems, Pa. “U.S. Poultry & Egg Association is constantly calling attention to the importance of environmental stewardship by identifying excellence in environmental programs at our member companies. USPOULTRY also offers technical assistance and training in environmental management. Congratulations to these three companies for their excellent example.” More information can be obtained at www.uspoultry.org.
PTA Holdings acquiring Eggspress motor carrier PHOENIX — PTA Holdings Inc. has completed due diligence for the purchase of Eggspress, an Iowa based motor carrier serving the egg and agricultural industry. Eggspress will strengthen the company’s service capability as it expands its footprint servicing the distribution of these products throughout the Midwest, the company noted. Leonard J. Lewensohn, chief executive officer stated that “we are making real progress as the company pursues its acquisition roll-up strategy. “The Eggspress deal will bring an expected revenue base of approximately 3-5 million dollars annually to our company along with a bluechip customer base.” He further stated that, “PTA Holdings Inc. will continue its focus on expanding the business by
implementing its targeted acquisition strategy of transportation companies.” Matthew Spafford, CEO of Eggspress states, “We are pleased to bring Eggspress into PTA Holdings Inc. along with Nortford, a sister company primarily serving the egg industry. Iowa has regained the distinction of being the number one egg producing state and the Iowa Egg Council estimates that there are over 40 million layers producing 9.5 billion eggs annually. The multiplier impacts on the Iowa economy are even more impressive with total labor income of $160 million and value added of $224 million attributable to direct and indirect impacts of the egg industry on the Iowa economy. Our combined companies are strategically positioned to capitalize on our expanded service capabilities.”
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Business Compiled by David B. Strickland, Editor 770-718-3442 dstrickland@poultrytimes.net
House of Raeford exits turkey business Focusing on chicken production ROSE HILL, N.C. — House of Raeford Farms has announced that it will focus its resources on increasing chicken production volumes and expanding its fully cooked turkey and chicken product lines during the next two to three years, phasing out its commodity turkey growing and slaughter operations in eastern N.C. This decision will result in closure of its Rose Hill, N.C., turkey hatchery, Raeford, N.C., turkey slaughter plant and turkey growing operations in eastern N.C., during the next four to six months. The company will continue to operate its Raeford, N.C., cook plant and will expand its production of fresh ready-to-cook chicken, tray pack ground turkey and chicken, battered and breaded nuggets and patties, and fully cooked turkey and chicken products. Implementation of this decision will have a positive operational impact on current House of Raeford chicken operations. During the past decade, growth in chicken operations has transformed House of Raeford into one of the nation’s top 10 chicken producers and processors, the company noted. The effect of high corn prices caused by government ethanol mandates has driven feed costs higher. The turkey industry has experienced multiple years of
flat to declining per capita turkey consumption, yet forecasts predict production volume increases over the next two years. These factors, combined with rapidly falling commodity turkey prices and historic and projected losses, contributed to the company’s decision, House of Raeford noted. By contrast, the company’s chicken business — which now represents more than 90 percent of sales — has grown considerably. “We intend to further expand the chicken business over the next two to three years so that our increased chicken volume will replace the turkey production we are phasing out,” said Bob Johnson, CEO of House of Raeford. “This expansion will provide opportunities for as many of our growers and employees as possible to transition into the chicken business.” House of Raeford will proactively assist all employees affected by this decision by offering severance packages, priority employment opportunities at other plants and community transition services such as job placement counseling and retraining. Management will also begin working with individual turkey growers to determine interest in transitioning their turkey farm operations into chicken operations. “We’re grateful to the employees and growers who have been an active part of our turkey operation and we are committed to helping
See Raeford, Page 7
Other Business News Sanderson becomes PGA Tour sponsor PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Sanderson Farms has agreed to title sponsor the PGA (Professional Golfers’ Association) Tour’s 2013 tournament at Annandale Golf Club in nearby Madison, Miss., scheduled for July 18-21. The former True South Classic has been renamed the Sanderson Farms Championship. In making the announcement, the PGA Tour, Sanderson Farms and host organization Century Club Charities said discussions regarding a possible longer-term relationship would take place following this year’s tournament. “We are extremely pleased to welcome Sanderson Farms as title sponsor of our tournament in Mississippi, which has been a mainstay on the PGA Tour for 45 years,” said Andy Pazder, chief of operations for the PGA Tour. “We look forward to working with Sanderson Farms to meet its objectives as title sponsor in July and then begin discussions about the possibility of continuing its involvement beyond this year.” “Mississippi is known for its hospitality and being a great host for the PGA Tour,” said Joe Sanderson, Sanderson Farms CEO and chairman of the board. “Sanderson Farms wants to continue that tradition and be a great host for this exciting event.” The Sanderson Farms Championship, which debuted on the PGA Tour in 1968, has proven to have significant economic impact on the region. A study commissioned by the Mississippi Development Authority and conducted by Mississippi State University determined in 2010 that the tournament had a $22 million impact. Additionally, the tournament generated approximately $500,000 last year for local charities. “This tournament has great economic impact on the state of Mississippi and the metro Jackson area,
not to mention the tremendous good it does for charity,” said Sanderson, when asked why the company stepped in as title sponsor. “We felt this was in line with our goals and mission at Sanderson Farms to be good citizens, support our communities and positively impact the tournament’s charities.” “We are thrilled to have Sanderson Farms involved this year, and ecstatic about the possibility of a long-term relationship,” said Century Club Charities President Johnny Lang. “Sanderson Farms is a great, multi-generational Mississippi success story and a wonderful corporate citizen. They share our commitment to the state of Mississippi, Friends of Children’s Hospital and countless charities, our other sponsors, the volunteers and the PGA Tour to host a first-class event.” Last year, the tournament operated with a consortium of local sponsors, which remains in place for 2013. The Sanderson Farms Championship is one of three “additional events” that is scheduled the same week as a major championship or a World Golf Championship event. The other two are the Puerto Rico Open presented by SeePuertoRico. com (opposite the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship) and Reno-Tahoe Open (opposite the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational). This year, the additional events are awarding increased FedExCup points, with the winners earning 300 points, up from 250. Scott Stallings is defending champion of the Sanderson Farms Championship. More information can be obtained at www.sandersonfarms. com, and www.pgatour.com.
Jackson addresses IPPE luncheon ATLANTA — “Make sure you know where the money’s coming
from. That sounds so basic in business, and yet I see it abused all the time. In looking at how a business is performing, we are attributing value in areas that are not creating value, and we are robbing value from areas that are,” said Dr. Don Jackson, retired JBS CEO, at a luncheon held during the 2013 International Production & Pro- Jackson cessing Expo. Jackson was introduced by Abit Massey, president emeritus for the Georgia Poultry Federation and 2012 Harold E. Ford Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. The luncheon was sponsored by Rabobank. Jackson reflected on his experiences in the poultry industry, with an emphasis on lessons learned throughout the years. He also provided his projections on the future of the poultry industry, remarking that he is still very optimistic. However, the industry has to maintain its global competitive edge. “The journey past is not the journey forward. If we continue to apply the same solutions to new problems, we are going to be disappointed with the results. I challenge us as an industry to really think differently about the future than we have thought about a very successful past,” Jackson said. “Don’s reflections on his tremendously successful career were very informative, as well as very entertaining at the same time. We appreciate him taking the time to meet with our industry leaders at the International Production & Processing Expo,” said John Starkey, president of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association. (Continued on next page)
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013 (Continued from previous page)
GNP Co. earns conservation award ST. CLOUD, Minn. — GNP Co., the Midwest’s leading chicken producer of the Gold’n Plump® and Just BARE® chicken brands, earned the poultry industry’s highest environmental honor — the 2013 Clean Water Award from the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association. Winning in the full-treatment category, the award recognizes GNP Co.’s outstanding water treatment facilities and was announced at the association’s Environmental Management Conference on March 12. Clean, safe and energy-efficient water treatment has been one of the company’s main areas of focus during the last several years. In July 2011, GNP Co. expanded and upgraded its existing water treatment facility at its Cold Spring, Minn., production plant. It now uses membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology, a state-of-the-art process that saves energy, resources and water. The Clean Water Award Committee of USPOULTRY noted that GNP Co. is the only poultry company using the MBR technology, and is also known to be the largest MBR system in the state of Minnesota. GNP Co.’s facility also uses the most energy efficient air blower system possible for additional environmental and economic preservation, the company noted. “Our company is committed to preserving the viability and beauty of our natural landscape and resources. The investment we made in our water treatment exemplifies that, and we’re honored to receive this award,” said Mike Helgeson, CEO of GNP Co. With the MBR process, GNP Co. captures and reuses about one-third of its daily water use, or 400,000 to 500,000 gallons of treated, reclaimed water in non-food contact areas. Ultraviolet disinfecting is used to treat all water and ultimately results in it being returned to the local Sauk River, significantly cleaner
than the naturally occurring water in which it enters. This process also removes biological phosphorus and nitrogen by-products, a critical issue for fish and other organisms. Sand filtration is used in the process of treating reclaimed water. Overall, the cleaned water far exceeds industry standards and has no traceable odors. Solids remaining after water treatment are captured and used to make a premium compost product, putting important nutrients that would otherwise be wasted into the land, the company noted. “Taking a holistic look at the entire process and where we can add value, while lessoning our impact on the environment, not only makes good business sense, it’s the right thing to do,” said Clay Watson, environmental manager and 30-year veteran of GNP Co. “As our mission states, GNP Co. is dedicated to healthy food, families and farms. Producing high-quality chicken is one way we achieve that. Caring for the environment and serving our communities are equally valued,” Helgeson added. More information can be obtained at www.gnpcompany.com.
Pilgrim’s protecting Mex. breeder supply GREELEY, Colo. — Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. has identified an increased mortality rate of the breeder flock at the company’s complex located in the state of Guanajuato in central Mexico. Management is working closely with regulatory authorities to perform blood tests to check for whether H7N3 virus is present, but has already instituted preventative precautions, the company said, adding that the identified complex has been isolated with additional biosecurity measures implemented. These measures include seeking and receiving authorization to vaccinate both breeders and grandparent stock in unaffected areas. The Guanajuato complex is responsible for a small amount of
Pilgrim’s Mexican hatching eggs. The majority of Pilgrim’s hatching operations are located in other states throughout Mexico. “We recognize the importance of chicken as a protein source to our customers in Mexico. We’ve taken proactive measures leveraging our U.S. production facilities to supply eggs and processed meat from our U.S. operations, as well as alternative suppliers locally,” said Bill Lovette, Pilgrim’s CEO. “We expect to be able to source an uninterrupted supply of both hatching eggs and chicken products, allowing us to continue to provide our customers and consumers with high quality products.” More information can be obtained at www.pilgrims.com.
Tyson Foods obtains Don Julio Foods SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Donnie Smith, president and CEO of Tyson Foods Inc., has announced its subsidiary company, Tyson Mexican Original Inc., has acquired the assets of Don Julio Foods of Clearfield, Utah. Don Julio, a maker of flour and corn tortillas, and salty snacks like potato chips, tortilla chips and pretzels, sells products to retailers throughout the U.S. under the Don Julio Authentic and Clover Club brands. Tyson Mexican Original is the second largest manufacturer of tortillas in the U.S., the company said. A majority of its sales are currently with foodservice customers; however the acquisition will put the company’s products on grocery store shelves throughout the U.S. “Don Julio is an example of a brand that’s the right fit for Tyson Foods,” Smith said. “The people are great, the business expands on an existing tortilla business where we already have expertise and it will allow us to offer our retail customers another product with a loyal consumer following.” The management team — which
Business includes Nate Fisher, son of company founder, Craig Fisher — will continue to manage the operation. Don Julio employs about 50 people, the majority of whom are expected to become Tyson team members. The acquisition includes all brands marketed by Don Julio, equipment and related assets. Financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed. Tyson Foods purchased Mexican Original Inc. in 1983 to diversify its product offerings. Prior to the Don Julio acquisition, the company operated three dedicated tortilla operations in Fayetteville, Ark.; Portland, Ind.; and Sanford, N.C. Mexican Original tortillas and chips are sold to foodservice and restaurant customers. About 1,300 employees work for Mexican Original. “We are excited to have the Don Julio folks join our Tyson Foods team,” said Richard Irvin, manager of operations for Mexican Original. “We look forward to working with them and helping them grow the Don Julio and Clover Club brands.”
Ric Sundal named COO of Moark ST. PAUL, Minn. — Moark LLC
recently announced that Ric Sundal will become its chief operating officer. Sundal will replace Craig Willardson, who will retire as of April 1. Sundal and Willardson worked together on the transition plan. “Ric has a strong background for this role with more than 25 years of management experience across the food and agriculture industry, including work in the egg business,” said Dan Knutson, chairman of the Moark board of managers. “He has a passion for the egg industry and is very excited to take on his new role of COO of Moark and work to build Moark’s overall business.” Prior to his new role, Sundal was senior director of Purina Animal Nutrition’s specialty businesses and international, where he has successfully managed a sizable portion of the Purina P&L. He was previously director of Purina’s national accounts, and director of corporate internal audit, finance strategy and business development for Land O’Lakes Inc. Prior to joining Land O’Lakes, Sundal was COO of Ergotron and CFO and managing partner of Best Brands. He has a bachelor’s degree in accounting and economics from the University of Minnesota.
•Raeford (Continued from page 6)
each one of them during this transition,” Johnson said. The Raeford, N.C.. turkey slaughter plant, which will be idled after producing holiday turkeys for customers, currently employs 950 workers. The Rose Hill, N.C., turkey hatchery currently employs 30, most of whom will be offered jobs at other company facilities in the surrounding area. The Raeford, N.C., cook plant,
which will remain open, currently employs 400 workers. This decision will not affect the cook plant or the remaining 5,300 House of Raeford employees, of which approximately 2,300 are employed in North Carolina. House of Raeford Farms Inc. is a third generation, family-owned and operated company based out of Rose Hill, N.C., with additional facilities in Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina and South Carolina. More information can be obtained at www.houseofraeford.com.
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Fresno State’s new Foster edu. facility gets humane certif. LOS ANGELES — For the first time ever, an educational and research facility has been certified by the 136-year-old American Humane Association, the nation’s first national humanitarian organization. The new Foster Farms Poultry Education and Research Facility (PERF) at Fresno State’s Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology features a fully working, state-of-the-art poultry barn and is a reflection of the longstanding support of agricultural education and ongoing advancements in poultry science by major West Coast poultry producer Foster Farms. The 16,320-square-foot, ecofriendly, power-efficient building will include advanced climatecontrol and feed delivery systems replicating professional poultry production. The facility has been designed to
provide hands-on agricultural training and education for more than 500 students in the Animal Sciences and Agricultural Education Department. Faculty and students will also conduct research in the areas of poultry nutrition, animal welfare and improved environmental practices. The new educational and research facility will meet the same stringent animal welfare standards used by American Humane Association’s American Humane Certified program. The program is based on the implementation and independent, third-party verification of more than 200 rigorous science-based animal welfare standards, covering everything from food and water to living conditions, lighting, ventilation, minimum space requirements and the ability of animals to express natural behavior.
The March 11 dedication was made in conjunction with a major joint animal welfare announcement from American Humane Association and Foster Farms, which revealed that all the producer’s fresh chicken products are now certified under the nonprofit’s American Humane Certified program. “American Humane Association is dedicated to the idea that all animals are entitled to humane treatment,” said Kathi Brock, national director of American Humane Association’s Humane Heartland program. “We are very pleased to certify Fresno State’s education and research facilities in its adherence to our rigorous, science-based animal welfare standards.” Beginning in 2012, all company growing facilities dedicated to fresh chicken production in California and the Pacific Northwest have implemented AHC program stan-
dards and are participating in independent, third-party audits. The audits are administered by the AHC program and its third-party auditor, Validus. The audits consist of more than 200 stringent criteria covering living conditions, diet and natural behaviors. The standards set by American Humane Association are in practice on all Foster Farms fresh chicken ranches 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. “While the actual certification is a new development for us, our commitment to raising chickens humanely has always been important to our company,” said Foster Farms CEO Ron Foster. “It is the right thing to do for our birds and we know that it is important to consumers. In 2008, we implemented a comprehensive animal welfare program guided by our two fulltime veterinarians. Becoming an American Humane Certified pro-
ducer is a genuine milestone for our company. We see it as a meaningful sign of progress and look forward to working with American Humane Association to further improve our animal welfare efforts.” “We know that consumers want more choices for humanely raised poultry,” said Ira Brill, Foster Farms director of corporate communications. “Our longtime commitment to the welfare of our birds has made this possible and certification provides consumers with that assurance.” “By partnering with American Humane Association we are helping to ensure that more farm animals are brought under the basic protections of animal welfare,” said Brill. “Foster Farms’ commitment and resources along with guidance from animal welfare experts helped make certification both possible and affordable for the consumer.”
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Nebraska Poultry Industries’ awards
NPI officers: Officers of the Nebraska Poultry Industries for 2013 include, left to right, Brent Nelson, Nelson Poultry Farms, Manhattan, Kan., president; Lowell Ostrand, Michael Foods, Wakefield, Neb., first vice president; Kendall Potter, Junction Farms, Rising City, Neb., second vice president; and Jesus Lopez, Henningsen Foods, Omaha, Neb., secretary-treasurer. Photos by Nebraska Poultry Industries
Person of the Year: Robert F. Storant, right, Nebraska Department of Agriculture administrator of finance and personnel, was honored as the 2013 Nebraska Poultry Industries Person of the Year. Tim Bebee, director on the NPI board, presented the award.
NPIA officers: Officers for the Nebraska Poultry Improvement Association for 2013 include, left to right, Dr. Julie Kelly, Michael Foods, Wakefield, Neb., president; William Bevans, Bevans Enterprises, Waverly, Neb., first vice president; William Claybaugh, Nebraska Eggs Ltd., Carroll, Neb., second vice president; and Joline Gordon, Nebraska Poultry Industries, Lincoln, Neb., secretary-treasurer.
NEC officers: Officers of the Nebraska Egg Council for 2013 include, left to right, Lowell Ostrand, Michael Foods, Wakefield, Neb., president; Scott Kumm, Kumm’s Kustom Pullets, McLean, Neb., vice president; Brent Nelson, Nelson Poultry Farms, Manhattan, Kan., secretary; Devin Kumm, Kumm’s Kustom Pullets, Norfolk, Neb., treasurer; and Susan Joy, Nebraska Poultry Industries, Lincoln, Neb., executive secretary.
NAPI officers: Officers of the Nebraska Allied Poultry Industries for 2013 include, left to right, Jan Johnson, Willmar Poultry Co., Willmar, Minn., president; Brent Nelson, Nelson Poultry Farms, Manhattan, Kan., first vice president; Jesus Lopez, Henningsen Foods, Omaha, Neb., second vice president; and Roger Myers, Kemin Industries, Winterset, Iowa, secretary-treasurer.
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Nuggets Compiled by Barbara Olejnik, Associate Editor 770-718-3440 bolejnik@poultrytimes.net
D.C. Food labeling conf. looks at regulations WASHINGTON — The annual Federal Food Regulatory Conference will celebrate its silver anniversary when it meets here on April 22-23. Sponsored by Prime Label Consultants, the conference is designed to keep attendees current in the everchanging world of food regulations. In addition to adding a new preconference seminar on Food & Drug Administration basic labeling, the conference also has included new topics for the breakout sessions. General session topics include USDA/Food Safety & Inspection Service regulatory & labeling update, dietary guidance through food labeling, FDA regulatory & labeling update, trends in clean labeling and litigation of labeling. More information can be obtained by contacting Prime Label Consultants, 536 Seventh St., S.E., Washington, D.C. 20003; 202-546-3333; conference@primelabel.com.
GEORGIA Deep South Poultry set for Tifton, Ga. ATHENS, Ga. — The 16th annual Deep South Poultry Conference will be held April 17 at the University of Georgia Tifton Campus Conference Center in Tifton, Ga. General session topics include a
Georgia disease update, guidelines for USDA Food Safety & Inspection Service regulations and for the agency’s Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration and a discussion on composting. Concurrent sessions for the broiler and breeder sections of the industry. Broiler sessions will deal with feed withdrawal, dermatitis in broilers and biosecurity in broiler production farms. Breeder sessions examine challenges with feather licking and pecking, egg production to 65 weeks and optimal day move and spiking programs. The conference is sponsored by the Cooperative Extension Service, Department of Poultry Science, University of Georgia and the Georgia Poultry Federation.ore information can be obtained by contacting the University of Georgia, Poultry Science Dept., 324 Poultry Science Bldg., Athens, Ga. 30602-4356; 706-542-9151; poultry@uga.edu. m m m
Seminar examines healthcare reform TUCKER, Ga. — The 2013 Human Resources Seminar will take a close look at government healthcare reform and how the changes could impact employer-provided health coverage within the poultry and egg industry. Sponsored by U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, the annual seminar will be held April 22-24, at the Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort in Destin, Fla. “With national healthcare changes going into effect this year, human resource professionals need to be prepared to address the affects these changes will have on their
company’s healthcare and health and wellness programs. With escalating healthcare costs in mind, this year’s seminar will include a general healthcare reform update, in addition to a session on health and wellness program best practices,” said committee chairman George Crawford, Koch Foods. Topics will include a state of the industry update, a Washington review, Occupational Safety & Health Administration update, employment law audit survival, health and wellness program best practices and an update on healthcare reform. A series of roundtable workshops are also part of the agenda. Members of the seminar committee are Chris Lauderdale, Jackson Lewis LLP; Jennifer Buster, Sanderson Farms; Sandra Williams, Keystone Foods; Mark Bland, Claxton Poultry; Glen Balch, George’s Inc.; Devin Wood, Harrison Poultry; Debra Gray, Keystone Foods; Dan Risher; Marshall Durbin Food Corp.; Judy Jochem-Nino, Farbest Foods; Jeff Garrett, Moroni Feed Co.; Robert Barragan, Case Foods; Emil Maier, American Proteins; Dante Rogers, Pilgrim’s Corp.; Peggy Brown, GNP Co. and Jack Staugler, Cooper Farms Registration for the seminar is available at www.uspoultry.org/ educationprograms/. m m m
UGA schedules HACCP program ATHENS — The University of Georgia will hold a meat and poultry industry Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Point program here on April 23-25. The deadline to register for the program — Developing & Implementing HACCP for the Meat & Poultry Industry — has been extended until April 1. Participants in the program will work through assigned scenarios to prepare a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), create a flow diagram and work through the hazard analysis decision tree to develop Critical Control Points (CCPs) to control or
minimize food hazards in their operations. HACCP certification with the International HACCPAlliance will be given upon completion of the course and passing the HACCP exam. Under USDA regulations, all meat and poultry processing plants are responsible for developing and implementing HACCP programs in their respective companies. This program is designed to help processors understand, develop and apply HACCP principles for their production operations. The program is sponsored by the university’s Extension Food Science Outreach Program of the College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences. More information can be obtained by contacting the Spring Meat & Poultry HACCP Workshop, Extension Food Science Outreach, University of Georgia, 140A Food Science Bldg., Athens, Ga. 306022610; EFS@uga.edu.
iowa Forum to discuss egg industry issues AMES — The 5th annual Egg Industry Issues Forum will be held April 16-17 at the Hilton St. Louis Fontenac in St. Louis, Mo. Speakers will examine the impact of stocking density and group size in enriched caged housing on hen behavior, welfare and performance; what’s next for U.S. layer housing legislation; the cage ban in Europe; and a three-year field experience and performance with an enriched colony housing system. Also being discussed will be the Food & Drug Administration egg safety rule, reduction of egg-borne transmission of Salmonella enteritidis and a risk management approach to dealing with high feed prices.
More information can be obtained by contacting the Egg Industry Center, Iowa State University, 201 Kildee Hall, Ames, Iowa 50011-3150. Ph: 515-294-8587; answeb@iastate.edu; www.eggindustrycenter.org.
VIRGINIA Feed safety is workshop focus ARLINGTON, Va. — The American Feed Industry Association will host the workshop “FAMI-QS Awareness in Feed Safety Program: Solutions for the Specialty Feed and Mixture Industry” on April 17-18, 2013, in Des Moines, Iowa. The training course covers the regulations of the FAMI-QS (European Feed Additives and PreMixture Quality System) program in an easy-to-understand format that will help companies achieve certification. AFIA’s International Safe Feed/Safe Food Certification Program, a third-party-verified program for ingredient facilities, also works under the same rules and scope of FAMI-QS. The FAMI-QS certification program is benchmarked against European Commission Feed regulations and allows for exporters and importers to gain entry to new international markets with greater ease. Topics will include feed safety management, the global importance and implementation of FAMI-QS, EU regulations and compliance, crisis management and audit planning. More hotel information can be obtained at www.eurofinsus.com/ FAMI_OS_workshop.pdf. Registration information is available at www.afia.org
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Calendar Compiled by Barbara Olejnik, Associate Editor 770-718-3440 bolejnik@poultrytimes.net
APR 5 — OPA INDUSTRY CELEBRATION BANQUET, Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel, Columbus, Ohio. Contact: Ohio Poultry Association, 5930 Sharon Woods Blvd., Columbus, Ohio 43229. Ph: 614-882-6111; jchakeres@ ohiopoultry.org; www.ohiopoultry.org. APR 16-17 — EGG INDUSTRY ISSUES FORUM, Hilton St. Louis Frontenac, St. Louis, Mo. Contact: Egg Industry Center, Iowa State University, 201 Kildee Hall, Ames, Iowa 50011-3150. Ph: 515-294-8587; answeb@iastate. edu; www.eggindustrycenter.org. APR 17 — DPI BOOSTER BANQUET, Salisbury, Md. Contact: Delmarva Poultry Industry Inc., 16686 County Seat Hwy., Georgetown, Del. 19947-4881; dpi@ dpichicken.com; www.dpichicken.com APR 17 — DEEP SOUTH POULTRY CONF., Tifton Campus Conference Center, Tifton, Ga. Contact: University of Georgia, Poultry Science Dept., 324 Poultry Science Bldg., Athens,Ga. 30602-4356. Ph: 706-542-9151; poultry@uga.edu. APR 19-21 — GPF ANNUAL SPRING MTNG., Lake Lanier Islands Resort, Buford, Ga. Contact: Georgia Poultry Federation, P.O. Box 763, Gainesville, Ga. 30503. Ph: 770-532-0473; claudette@gapf.org; www.gapf.org. 22-23 — FEDERAL FOOD APR REGULATORY CONF., Washington, D.C. Contact: Prime Label Consultants, 536 Seventh St., S.E., Washington, D.C. 20003. Ph: 202546-3333; conference@primelabel.com APR 22-24 — HUMAN RESOURCES SMNR., Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort, Destin, Fla. Mo. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770-493-9401, seminar@uspoultry. org, www.uspoultry.org/edu_index.cfm. APR 23-24 — TPF SPRING SYMPSM, John Q. Hammons Center, Rogers, Ark. Contact: The Poultry Federation, 321 S. Vixtory St., Little Rock, Ark. 72201. Ph: 501-375-8131 APR 23-25 — MEAT & POULTRY HACCP WKSHP., University of Georgia, Athens, Ga. Contact: Spring Meat & Poultry HACCP Workshop, Extension Food Science Outreach, University of Georgia, 140A Food Science Bldg., Athens, Ga. 30602-2610; EFS@uga.edu. MAY 1-2 — STAKEHOLDERS SUMMIT, Westin Arlington Gateway Hotel, Arlington, Va. Contact: Animal Agriculture Alliance, 2101 Wilson Blvd.,
Suite 916B, Arlington, Va. 22201. Ph: 703-562-1412; kjohnson@animalagalliance.org; www//animalagalliance.org. MAY 2-3 — NATIONAL BREEDERS ROUNDTABLE, Airport Marriott Hotel, St. Louis, Mo. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770-493-9401, seminar@uspoultry. org, www.uspoultry.org/edu_index.cfm. 6-7 — TURKEY & BROILER MAY HEALTH MGMNT. SCHOOL, Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center, Michigan State University, 219 S. Harrison Road, East Lansing, Mich. 488241022. Contact: Dr. Teresa Morishita at tmorishita@westernu.edu or Sophia Alvarez at salvarez@westernu.edu. MAY 8-9 — LAYER HEALTH MGMNT. SCHOOL, Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center, Michigan State University, 219 S. Harrison Road, East Lansing, Mich. 48824-1022. Contact: Dr. Teresa Morishita at tmorishita@westernu.edu or Sophia Alvarez at salvarez@westernu.edu. MAY 14-15 — AFIA BOARD MTNG., Arlington, Va. Contact: American Feed Industry Association, 2101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 916, Arlington, Va. 22201. Ph: 703524-0810; afia@afia.org, www.afia.org. MAY 15-16 — POULTRY PROCESSORS WKSHP., Embassy Suites Atlanta Centennial Olympic Park, Atlanta, Ga. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770493-9401, seminar@uspoultry.org, www.uspoultry.org/edu_index.cfm. MAY 19-22 — ALLTECH INTERNATIONAL SYMPSM, Lexington, Ky. Contact: Alltech International, 3031 Catnip Hill Pike, Nicholasville, Ky. 40356; www.alltech.com/symposium. MAY 20-22 — UEP LEGISLATIVE BOARD MTNG., Washington, D.C. Contact: United Egg Producers, 1720 Windward Concourse, Suite 230, Alpharetta, Ga. 30005. Ph: 770360-9220; www.unitedegg.com. MAY 20-23 — NEQS — Harrisburg, Pa. Contact: National Egg Quality School, Maryland Department of Agriculture, 50 Harry S. Truman Pkwy., Annapolis, Md. 21401. Ph: 410-841-5769; Deanna. Baldwin@maryland.gov; www.neqs.org. JUN 7-8 — AP&EA GOLF TOURNAMENT and EVENING OF FUN, Birmingham, Ala. Contact: Alabama Poultry & Egg Association, P.O. Box 240, Montgomery, Ala. 36101. Ph: 334-
265-2732; www.alabamapoultry.org. JUN 10-11 — CPF SUMMER BOARD MTNG., The Cliffs Resort, Shell Beach, Calif. Contact: California Poultry Federation, 4640 Spyres Way, Suite 4, Modesto, Calif. 95356. PAh: 209-576-6355; www.cpif.org. JUN 11-13 — ITF SUMMER MTNG., Adventureland Inn, Altoona, Iowa. Contact: Iowa Turkey Federation, 535 E. Lincoln Way, Ames, Iowa 50010. Ph: 515-22-7492;gretta@ iowaturkey.org; sheila@iowaturkey.org; www.iowaturkey.org. JUN 14-15 — ANNUAL POULTRY FESTIVAL, Rogers, Ark. Contact: Poultry Federation, P.O. Box 1446, Little Rock, Ark. 72203. Ph: 501-3758131; www.thepoultryfederation.com. JUN 19-21 — GEA - GEC ANNUAL MTNGS., King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort, St. Simons Island, Ga. Contact: Jewell Hutto, Georgia Egg Assocation - Georgia Egg Commission, P.O. Box 2929, Suwanee, Ga. 30024. Ph: 770-932-4622; goodeggs@bellsouth.net; www.georgiaeggs.org. JUN 19-21 — MTGA SUMMER MTNG., Grand View Lodge, Nisswa, Minn. Contact: Lara Durben, Minnesota Turkey Growers Association. Ph 763-6822171; ldurben@minnesotaturkey.com. JUN 20-22 — NCC SUMMER BOARD MTNG., Newport Coast, Calif. Contact: National Chicken Council, 1052 15th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005. Ph: 202-296-2622; ncc@ chickenusa.org; www.nationalchickencouncil.org; www.eatchicken.com. JUN 21-22 — DELMARVA CHICKEN FESTIVAL, Snow Hill, Md. Contact: Delmarva Poultry Industry Inc., 16686 County Seat Hwy., Georgetown, Del. 19947-4881; dpi@dpichicken.com; www.dpichicken.com 24-26 — FINANCIAL MGMNT. JUN SMNR., Orlando, Fla. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770-4939401, seminar@uspoultry.org, www.uspoultry.org/edu_index.cfm. JUL 27-30 — TPF ANNUAL CONV., San Antonio, Texas. Contact: Texas Poultry Federation, 595 Round Rock W. Drive, Suite 305, Round Rock, Texas 78581. Ph: 512-248-0600; tpf@ texspoultry.org; www.texaspoultry.org.
Tenn. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770493-9401, seminar@uspoultry. org, www.poultryegginstitute.org. JUL 18-20 — AAMP CONV., Charleston Area Convention Center, North Charleston, S.C. Contact: American Association of Meat Processors, 1 Meating Place, Elizabethtown, Pa. 17022. Ph: 717-367-1168; aamp@ aamp.com; www.aamp.com. JUL 21-23 — NCC & NPFDA CHICKEN MARKETING SMNR., Coeur d’Alene Resort, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Contact: National Chicken Council, 1015 15th St., N.W., Suite 930, Washington, D.C. 20005, 202-296-2622, www.nationalchickencouncil.com, www.eatchicken.com; or National Poultry & Food Distributors Association, 2014 Osborne Road, St. Marys, Ga. 31558, 770-5359901, kkm@npfda.org, www.npfda.org. JUL 21-25 — PSA ANNUAL CONV., Town and Country Resort & Convention Center, San Diego, Calif. Contact: Poultry Science Association, 2441 Village Green Place, Champaign, Ill. 61882. Ph: 217-356-5285; pas@ assochq.org; www.poultryscience.org. JUL 22-23 — AP&EA ANNUAL MTNG., Destin, Fla. Contact: Alabama Poultry & Egg Association, P.O. Box 240, Montgomery, Ala. 36101. Ph: 334265-2732; www.alabamapoultry.org. 8-9 — NCPF ANNUAL CONF., AUG Greensboro, N.C. Contact: North Carolina Poultry Federation, 4020 Barrett Drive, Suite 102, Raleigh, N.C. 27609. Ph: 919-783-8218; rlford@
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AUG 10-11 — POULTRY PROCESSING & SAFETY WKSHP., Athens, Ga. Contact: Poultry Processing & Safety Workshop, Extension Food Science Outreach, University of Georgia, 240A Food Science Bldg., Athens, Ga. 30602-2610. Ph: 706-542-2574; http://nline.uga.edu; EFS!uga.edu. AUG 16-17 — TPA ANNUAL MTNG. / SUMMER GETAWAY, Hilton Downtown, Nashville, Tenn. Contact: Tennessee Poultry Association, P.O. Box 1525, Shelbyville, Tenn. 371621525. Ph: 931-225-1123; dbarnett@ tnpoultry.org; www.tnpoultry.org. AUG 19-21 — NATIONAL SAFETY CONF. FOR THE POULTRY INDUSTRY, Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort, Amelia Island, Fla. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770-493-9401, seminar@uspoultry. org, www.uspoultry.org/edu_index.cfm. 19-29 — UEP AREA MTNGS., AUG TBA. Contact: United Egg Producers, 1720 Windward Concourse, Suite 230, Alpharetta, Ga. 30005. Ph: 770360-9220; www.unitedegg.com. AUG 22-23 — WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP CONF., Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort, Amelia Island, Fla. Contact: U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, 1530 Cooledge Road, Tucker, Ga. 30084-7303, Ph: 770493-9401, seminar@uspoultry.org, www.uspoultry.org/edu_index.cfm. AUG 24 — GPF NIGHT OF KNIGHTS, Cobb Galleria Centre, Atlanta, Ga. Contact: Georgia Poultry Federation, P.O. Box 763, Gainesville, Ga. 30503. Ph: 770-532-0473; beverly@gapf.org; www.gapf.org.
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Salt being trimmed from many foods amid campaign The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Salt has quietly been slipping out of dozens of the most familiar foods in brand-name America, from Butterball turkeys to Uncle Ben’s flavored rice dishes to Goya canned beans. A Kraft American cheese single has 18 percent less salt than it did three years ago. The salt in a dollop of Ragu Old World Style pasta sauce is down by 20 percent. A handful of honey Teddy Grahams has 33 percent less salt. A squirt of Heinz ketchup is 15 percent less salty. Their manufacturers are among 21 companies that have met targets so far in a voluntary, New York Cityled effort to get food manufacturers and restaurateurs to lighten up on salt to improve Americans’ heart health, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on Feb. 11. While it’s unclear whether consumers have noticed the changes, campaigns aim to get more salt out of the national diet in the coming
years — a challenge for an ingredient that plays a role in the taste, preservation and even texture of food. Salt reduction has become a recent focus of public health campaigns in the city and elsewhere. Salt, or sodium chloride, is the main source of sodium for most people. Sodium increases the risk of high blood pressure, a major cause of heart disease and stroke. Dietary guidelines recommend no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day, equal to about a teaspoon of salt; the American Heart Association suggests 1,500 milligrams or less. But average sodium consumption in the U.S. is around 3,300 milligrams, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have found. Officials said the first step was a meaningful one. “The products they’re making healthier are some of America’s most beloved and iconic foods,” noted Bloomberg, a fan of Subway’s
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meaty Italian BMT sandwiches, which are now 27 percent less salty. At a Manhattan grocery store, shoppers said they hadn’t noticed the salt falloff, either because they didn’t taste the difference or because they eschew prepared foods to begin with. “A decrease is good — not putting anything in there is even better. People should add their own salt,” shopper Lynne Davis said. Fashion design student Vanndy Pan said she doesn’t think about the salt in her food, though her mother has high blood pressure. “Maybe I should,” the 26-yearold said as she bought a loaf of sandwich bread, but “I’m a student. At this point, I only buy the cheap food.” Health officials say Americans get the vast majority of their salt from processed and prepared foods, and not necessarily the foods they’d imagine: Bread and rolls are the number one source. “The problem is not the salt on the table. The problem is the salt on the label,” city Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley said. The amount of salt in any given food item can vary widely. A slice of white bread can have 80 to 230 milligrams of sodium, for example. A cup of canned chicken noodle soup has 100 to 940 milligrams. A 1-ounce bag of potato chips ranges from 50 to 200 milligrams. In one of a series of healthy-eating initiatives on Bloomberg’s 11-year watch, the city announced voluntary salt guidelines in 2010 for various restaurant and store-bought foods. Besides trimming salt levels in the foods by 25 percent by 2014, the campaign aimed to reduce consumers’ overall sodium intake by 20 percent in the same timeframe. Interim targets for the foods were set for 2012. For instant hot cereals, as an example, the guidelines called for a 15 percent salt reduction by last year
and a 31 percent cut by 2014. A company can hit the target for a category, such as canned soup, even if not every product makes the mark. Boston-based cafe chain Au Bon Pain lowered salt in sandwiches and breads by getting suppliers to use fresh vegetables, whole grains and herbs, CEO Sue Morelli said in a release. Kraft Foods Inc. squeezed salt out of products ranging from steak sauce to bacon partly by substituting potassium chloride, research Vice President Russ Moroz said. It’s also salty-tasting, but potassium lowers blood pressure, and most Americans don’t get enough of it, Farley said. The switch works up to a point — generally, about 10 percent to 15 percent of the sodium content — before potassium chloride causes a bitter or metallic taste, Moroz said. Northfield, Ill.-based Kraft can use other flavors to mask that, but maintaining the taste is “really the challenge in continuing to reduce sodium,” he said. “If you don’t make foods that taste good, people don’t buy them, and, in the end, we haven’t really done anything to impact the diet in the country,” Moroz said. Bloomberg has seized on improving New Yorkers’ eating habits as a public health priority, leading charges that have banned trans fats from restaurant meals, forced chain eateries to post calorie counts on menus and limited the size of some sugary drinks. He and city officials say they’re making pioneering, reasonable efforts to save lives and cut health care costs. Some food industry interests and consumers have said New York is turning into a nutrition nanny. The salt effort has been less controversial, although the Salt Institute, a trade association, calls it misguided. There has been some scientific debate in recent years over
how dangerous dietary salt is. “If (Bloomberg’s) goal is to improve health, we recommend that he seek a second opinion based on the available peer-reviewed scientific evidence,” institute President Lori Roman said on Feb. 11. Some companies, meanwhile, have embarked on their own saltreduction plans. ConAgra, which makes Chef Boyardee and Marie Callender’s products, is following its own 2009 commitment to shave the amount of sodium in its foods by 20 percent by 2015. Salt was simply reduced in some recipes; others have swapped some table salt with potassium chloride or sea salt, which has lower sodium levels, said Mark Andon, vice president of nutrition at Omaha, Neb.based ConAgra Foods Inc. Another technique is using finer salt particles, which spread the taste over more surface area; that approach has reduced salt in its Orville Redenbacher and Act II popcorn by 25 percent. But ConAgra hasn’t broadcast the changes on its food labels. “If you put that on your packaging, that can be a negative taste cue,” Andon said. PepsiCo Inc., which makes FritoLay products, announced in 2010 that it would cut sodium in key brands by one-fourth in five years. Spokesman Christopher Wyse said that the Purchase, N.Y.-based company was looking for alternatives after a plan to use smaller salt crystals didn’t work. The company does offer “lightly salted” chips that have half the sodium of the regular ones. The Campbell Soup Co. announced in 2009 that it was lowering salt in half its soups, including its famous condensed tomato soup. But two years later, the Camden, N.J.based company said it was bringing back some higher-sodium soups out of concern about the taste.
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Forced air furnaces can reduce bird cooling during hot weather By Michael Czarick & Dr. Brian Fairchild Special to Poultry Times
ATHENS, Ga. — To produce optimal cooling of large broilers during hot weather most houses today are being designed to obtain a wind speed of between 600 and 750 feet/ minute. It is important to realize that a design air speed is an average air speed. Air speed can vary significantly across the cross-section of a house. Air speeds will tend to be higher in the center of the house than along the sidewalls and higher at the ceiling than near the floor. The reason for the variation is the fact that air will tend to take the path of least resistance, which is typically down the center of the house. Though the air will tend to travel fastest down the center of the house, how much slower the air speed is near the sidewall is determined in part by how smooth the sidewalls are. A rough sidewall (i.e., one with exposed posts or studs) will tend to deflect air towards the center of the house, resulting in an air speed difference of up to 30 percent between the center and sidewall areas. One of the many benefits of a totally enclosed house is that the typically smooth sidewalls can often help to reduce air speed variation to less than 10 percent, resulting in a
significant increase in overall bird cooling. It is important to realize that just having a smooth sidewall does not ensure uniform air speeds from wall to wall. Forced air furnaces positioned along a sidewall can basically nullify the benefits of having a smooth sidewall by acting as obstructions to the flow of air along the sidewall, causing the air to move towards the center of a house. The reduction in air speed will not only be in the immediate vicinity of a forced air furnace, but can extend along an entire sidewall when there are a series of furnaces positioned along a sidewall. Recently, tests conducted in a 50-foot X 560-foot totally enclosed house, with an overall average air speed of 700 ft./min., found that sidewall furnaces reduced the air speed along the sidewall by 30 percent, the same as that seen in houses with exposed sidewall posts. Anemometer poles were positioned across the cross-section on the nonbrooding end of the house approximately 80-feet from the tunnel fan end wall. There were three equally spaced forced air furnaces on the nonbrooding end of the house, positioned two feet from the sidewall and 1 foot above the floor. The anemometer poles were 8 feet upstream of the furnace closest to the tunnel fan end wall, and 60-feet downstream of the center
nonbrooding end forced air furnace. The air speed 5 feet from the sidewalls with near the forced air furnaces was approximately 200 ft./ min. lower than from the sidewall without the forced air furnaces. Though the greatest reduction in average air speed occurred near the sidewall, the forced air furnaces negatively affected the air speed as far as 15-feet from the sidewall. A 200 ft./min. reduction in average air velocity would likely result in a significant decrease cooling for roughly 10 percent of the birds on the nonbrooding end of the house during hot weather. In fact, research has indicated that a decreasing air speed from 700 to 500 ft./min. could increase the effective temperature 6 degrees or more. The research is supported by the grower’s observations that during hot weather with market age birds, he tends to find more mortality along the sidewall with the forced air furnaces. Raising the furnaces to 4 feet above the floor did not significantly affect the over all air velocity profile. This is not to say that raising the furnaces close to the ceiling had no effect. When raised, there was a slight decrease in air velocity at the ceiling and slight increase of 50 ft./ min. at floor level. The effect was more noticeable in the immediate vicinity of the furnaces. So, though it is generally recommended that forced air furnaces be raised high
Merrigan departs deputy secretary post at USDA WASHINGTON —U.S. Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan, on March 15, made the following statement on her departure from the USDA: “Today I am announcing that I will be leaving USDA. I am grateful to President Obama for the opportunity to serve as Deputy Secretary and be part of his leadership team. I also want to thank the U.S. Senate for its unanimous confirmation and the many members of Congress,
particularly Chairman (Patrick) Leahy, with whom I have worked closely to ensure support for USDA programs. It has been an ambitious first term. From implementing the 2008 farm bill, improving school meals, expanding opportunities for American farmers, spending countless hours in the White House situation room, to shepherding USDA budgets through challenging times, it has been an honor to play a small
part in history. I hope that during my tenure, I was able to help open USDA’s doors a little wider, inviting new and discouraged constituencies to participate in USDA programs. With Secretary (Tom) Vilsack at the helm, aided by very talented and dedicated USDA employees, I am able to leave fully confident that, USDA will thrive and continue to improve its service to the American people.”
above the birds during hot weather, it will not significantly reduce the overall negative effect of installing forced air furnaces near the sidewall. From a bird cooling standpoint, it would be best to install forced air furnaces in the center of the house, as high above the birds as possible. In this location, sidewall air velocities would be maximized and the air moving along the peak of the ceiling would tend to be diverted away from the ceiling toward the floor. Though installing forced air furnaces in this manner would be problematic in most houses from a clean out, shaving truck and bird catching standpoint, it would not be for radiant heater systems. Radiant brooders or radiant tube heaters are located near the ceiling during hot weather, positioned either near the feed lines or the peak of the ceiling where they tend to deflect air from moving along the ceiling instead of along the sidewalls. The combination of smooth sidewalls and a heating system installed
at the ceiling peak resulted in very uniform air velocities from wall to wall. In fact, the there was less than a 50 ft./min. difference in average anemometer readings from sidewall to sidewall. Air speed is crucial to keeping birds cool during hot weather. As a result, efforts should be made to ensure that air speed is evenly distributed across the width of the house so that all birds have equal exposure to optimize the uniformity and performance. House design and equipment placement should be considered so that air velocity is not negatively affected. Michael Czarick is an Extension engineer; and Dr. Brian Fairchild is an associate professor and Extension poultry scientist, both with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in Athens, Ga. More information can be obtained at www. poultryventilation.com.
14
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
•Hot (Continued from page 1)
Challenges Modern poultry house ventilation and evaporative cooling systems are designed to allow growing the maximum number of birds in a given house floor area. Extreme heat is a challenge to individual bird performance and survival, and extremely hot weather challenges our goal of maximizing live weight production. To maintain comfort, birds must be able to dissipate about 12 British thermal units (Btu’s) of heat per hour per pound of body weight. If the air temperature surrounding the birds is close to the desired temperature for comfort they will lose up to about 5
Btu’s per pound per hour from their body surface and lose about 7 Btu’s per pound per hour through respiration or breathing. Under these conditions the heat balance of the bird is at equilibrium. They eat, drink, behave and grow normally. Problems arise if the surrounding air temperature increases above that normal level. Warmer air will not allow the transfer of the 5 Btu’s per pound per hour from the bird’s body. When the bird’s ability to dissipate heat from its body’s surface is diminished due to warmer surrounding air, the bird must compensate by increasing its respiration rate through panting. Then, if surrounding air is so warm that the bird cannot ade-
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quately compensate by panting, its internal body temperature will rise, causing severe heat stress, and eventually mortality. The goal in hot weather is to keep the bird dissipating body heat so that panting does not result. The first and most important tool we have to keep the bird from panting is air velocity or wind speed. As we increase the velocity of the air over and around a bird, the windchill effect greatly helps the bird’s ability to shed surface body heat. Every broiler grower has seen this phenomenon over and over again. Birds mildly panting in still air quit panting when the house is put into tunnel ventilation. In extremely hot conditions, especially as birds approach market age, the ventilation system must be operating at 100 percent capacity, which is why fan and shutter maintenance is so important for achieving the goal of maximum live weight production. The second tool we have in a modern house is evaporative cooling. Reducing the incoming air temperature further accelerates the bird’s ability to lose heat from the surface of its skin. It’s important to realize that the effectiveness of the
evaporative cooling system also depends on maintaining adequate airflow with adequate water applied to the pads. Clogged cool cells not only reduce cooling, they reduce the windchill effect of tunnel ventilation, which is why evaporative cooling system maintenance is so important. While first-class and top-functioning ventilation and cooling systems can take us a long way toward meeting the hot weather challenge, a point can be reached when we get into triple digit temperatures with market age birds, where heat stress, reduced performance and increasing mortalities are inevitable. In other words, the heat load of the house is more than the ventilation and cooling system can handle on that day. At that point, we are outside of the design envelope for that particular house on that particular day. The fact is that it’s not only warmer air, but also heat given off by the birds that make up the severe hot weather challenge. This means that stocking density may need to be taken into consideration well in advance of anticipated hot weather. Houses with inferior
insulation, hot air leaks and inadequate air speed will especially do better in severe hot weather if we take some of the heat load out of the house by reducing the density. People don’t like to talk about reducing densities because of the effect on cash flow. For example in a 40x500 house changing the hot weather density from 0.90 to 1.05 results in 3,175 fewer birds in the house. But at 6.5 pounds market weight that reduces the total heat load on the poultry house by over 100,000 Btu’s per hour. Adjusting stocking density ahead of anticipated severe heat conditions is a business decision, and one that can make good economic sense, resulting in slightly lower live weight production, but better overall flock performance and fewer mortalities; however, it has to be made at the time of placement, often four to six weeks ahead of the time we think the hottest conditions of the summer might prevail. Make no mistake, however: whatever the weather, a well-maintained Class A tunnel house will always get you closer to the goal of maximum live weight production.
different sizes, different configurations, some are still high rise, some are not,” Early said. Eric Benson, president of JEM Eggs, described his company’s experience with two enriched colony cage houses the company built. Each colony houses 150,000 birds, and the steel used and building costs per square foot are almost the same as conventional housing, as well as other fixed costs. Benson considers the life of the buildings to be similar to conventional ones, around 20 years.
The cost of enriched colony enclosures is $24.50 for each hen, while conventional housing is $14 to $15. “We have found that performance of the birds during their lives is a little bit better than it has been for our average flock,” Benson said. “Mortality is a little bit better or comparable. We have put in three flocks so far, and each one has outperformed the standards. We are very pleased with the results of our colony systems,” he added.
•Eggs (Continued from page 2)
impact of the new legislation, production costs, and consumer prices. Early stated that capital investment during the next 18 years would be $5.7 billion dollars, production costs would be up slightly with average costs increasing 1.5 cents per dozen eggs, and consumer price impact would be modest. “It is challenging to estimate what is going to happen under this law, because you have such a wide variety of layer houses out there —
15
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Evaluating costs of tunnel ventilation fans By Jim Donald, Jess Campbell, Gene Simpson & Ken Macklin
Special to Poultry Times
AUBURN, Ala. — Growers continue to ask us for help in selecting fans for both new and retrofit poultry housing. We can make no specific brand name recommendations, but we do try to provide the most up to date information on fan engineering and economics and to explain the criteria that enable growers to make sound fan decisions. The tunnel fans are the engine of a tunnel ventilated broiler house. They run thousands of hours per year and consume a great deal of electric power. So, when making a fan purchase decision, a grower must consider not just initial costs but long-term or lifecycle costs, including total purchase price, interest and operating costs.
Finding information One of the best places to get unbiased fan performance information is the BESS lab at the University of Illinois (the website is www.bess. uiuc.edu). All fans that have been tested by the BESS lab are posted on the website. All fans are tested in exactly the same way, which allows you compare apples to apples. Go to the main page, select performance tests, choose a manufacturer, size and airflow rating and you can look at a multitude of unbiased test inforJim Donald is a professor and Extension engineer; Jess Campbell is poultry housing field coordinator, National Poultry Technology Center; Gene Simpson is a professor and Extension economist; and Kenneth Macklin is an assistant professor and Extension poultry scientist, all with Auburn University in Auburn, Ala. More information can be obtained at www.poultryhouse.com.
mation. However, while the BESS lab fan tests provide the essential (and unbiased) data you need to make good fan decisions, the lab tests are probably not the best place from which to start the decision-making process. The reason is simply that there are so many fans listed that the amount of data available can be overwhelming. Some might be for poultry, some for swine. Some are steel housing and some are fiberglass. Just about every type of fan you can imagine that has been tested is on a manufacturer’s section of the web site with the BESS test results. We suggest narrowing down some of the choices before going to the BESS website. First, of course, you must have a good idea of what your minimum acceptable performance criteria are before you start looking at individual fan models and tests. Determining the fan size, airflow rating, type of shutter and minimum energy efficiency rating first allows a grower to more quickly focus only on the specific fan models and manufacturers that meet your performance needs. The second important consideration is that working with a good local installer who will service what he sells can be very important when retrofitting or building, and there may be only one or two local equipment installers who can do a good job furnishing, installing and servicing fans. So, looking at all of the test data on the website would not be the best use of your time. You need to be looking at fan models and manufacturers that you have access to and would feel good making a purchase from, and getting the local distributors to provide their fan recommendations to you. After this information is in hand, you can visit the BESS lab website to evaluate the different fans and decide if they meet your criteria. Note: It is also very important when
making the final buying decision to tell your supplier very specifically that you want to purchase XYZ fan equipped with shutter, motor, etc. as tested in BESS test No. 123456.
Fan selection Fan selection can become a very complex issue and a lot has been written by experts on this topic. However, the most important factors are fairly easy to understand and if you do your homework on these points that matter the most, you should be able to make buying decisions with confidence. The overall most important point to keep in mind is that while we must be looking at the initial costs and performance specifications for individual fans, it is how the total house fan package performs, including lifespan operating costs, that must make up the final criteria. Fan CFM and other basics: Most fans installed in modern broiler houses have galvanized steel cones. Fiberglass is great but to keep costs down most growers go with steel housings. The type of shutter must also be decided. Plastic, aluminum or the newer butterfly type shutters are all available. A newsletter could be written just on the different types of shutters. The most basic requirement is airflow, the cfm rating. Fans must be able to deliver the air exchange rate and the tunnel air velocity needed. Note that fan cfm ratings depend on the static pressure. Most manufacturers will rate fans at 0.05 inches SP; however, the more realistic working pressure to assume in a modern tunnel house is 0.10 inches. So all fan comparisons should be based on their cfm’s at 0.10 SP. Ten years ago 48-inch fans were the choice hands down. Today with larger houses and increasing airflow needs, larger diameter fans are being installed and there are more choices to make among fans of different di-
ameters and horsepower ratings. This means if we are doing a retrofit we also need to look at how well fans will fit into our existing structure. The grower must realize also that it may be a mistake to jump on a fan just because it’s big and will mean fewer fans to buy, install and maintain. That is certainly a benefit of having the larger fan choices, but it should be balanced against the possible advantage of getting lower lifespan operating and total costs with, say a package of 10 smaller but more efficient fans rather than eight or nine of the larger fans. This can easily happen because long-term operating costs of tunnel fans can be three to four times their initial purchase price. Installing fewer, larger diameter and/or higher horsepower fans might turn out to be the right thing to do, but the point is you need to be aware of total long-term costs for the entire building package, not just initial cost and convenience. CFM/Watt: This is the energy efficiency ratio of the fan. The higher the cfm per watt number the less electricity it takes to move the air. A fan with a 20 cfm per watt rating will cost 20 percent less to operate than a fan with a 16 cfm per watt rating. Many 10--year-old fans have very low cfm per watt numbers. Some are less than 16. Some of these old fans are also direct drive. A tremendous energy savings could be made by replacing these fans with higher efficiency models. On the average a good rule of thumb is that your tunnel fans in the broiler belt will run about 3,000 operating hours per year. So if we had 10 fans that moved 22,000 cfm at 16 cfm per watt the total yearly power bill would be $4,125 based on electricity at 10 cents/kwh. The formula for determining the cost to run a fan for 3,000 hours at 10 cents/Kwhr at 0.10 static pressure using the Bess data is:
Operating Cost = (cfm at 0.10SP/ cfm/watt)/1000 x 3000 hrs x $.10 / Kwhr If new fans were chosen that delivered 20 cfm per watt the yearly power bill would be $3,300. This is a 20 percent reduction in the power bill. Fans can be bought with energy efficiency ratios in the mid to high 20’s. But the extremely high energy efficiency ratios are often much more expensive. The point is each time you improve cfm/watt by one, the operating cost of the fan goes down by about 5 percent. The above example is an over simplification but it does illustrate the need to evaluate cfm/watt for tunnel ventilation fans. Airflow Ratio: As static pressure increases in a broiler house, the fans must work harder to draw the air into the house and the amount of air they are able to draw into the house decreases. So wind speed, wind chill and bird cooling decrease as the fans have to operate under higher static pressures. In essence the airflow ratio is a number that describes how well the fan keeps pumping air as the amount of restriction increases. It is a ratio of the air moved at a 0.20 pressure divided by the air moved at a 0.05 pressure. In general fans with higher airflow ratios cost more than fans with low airflow ratios. Buying fans with higher airflow ratios, say 0.75 or higher, is basically buying insurance that the ventilation system will maintain needed airflow under conditions of heavier than normal load, such as when shutters and evaporative cooling pads are allowed to get dirty. Fans with airflow ratios below 0.70 won’t perform very well when shutters and pads are dirty and we are operating at pressures above 0.10 inches in a modern broiler house. Fans running in pullet houses or where the inlets are restricted by
See Fans, Page 23
16
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
•Movement (Continued from page 3)
(1/7 of the heat produced by a broiler on a per pound basis). Only 28 percent of our heat loss is due to the evaporation of moisture from our respiratory system and skin (perspiration); 72 percent of our heat loss is lost to the air surrounding us. We are far less dependent upon the cooling produced by the evaporation of moisture to maintain our body temperature than are birds. As a result we are much less sensitive to high humidity situations than are the birds we grow. At an air temperature of 77 degrees F, total heat loss from a 5 pound broiler decreases from 60 Btu’s/hr to approximately 40 Btu’s/ hr as relative humidity increases from 50 percent to 90 percent. This means that as relative humidity increases, a bird’s body temperature will rise, and as a result, the bird will reduce its consumption of feed to reduce the amount of heat it is producing. It is important to note that though at an air temperature of 70 degrees F (50 percent Rh) approximately 60 percent of a bird’s heat loss is through evaporation; at 77 degrees F (50 percent Rh), 75 percent of a birds heat loss is through evaporation. This increase in evaporative heat loss is a result of the fact that the higher the air temperature, the lower the amount of heat the bird will lose to the air surrounding it, and the more it has to rely on the evaporation of moisture from its respiratory system to remove excess heat from its body. A bird can increase evaporative heat loss through the act of panting (increasing the amount of air moving over its respiratory system). But, the problem is that as the relative humidity of the air increases, panting becomes less effective, which results in an overall decrease in heat loss from a bird. The decrease in heat loss will result in an increase in body tem-
perature which in turn will lead to a reduction in feed consumption in an effort to generate less heat. The increase in panting diverts energy from growth and the reduction in feed consumption results in reduction in feed conversion efficiency and weight gains. A temperature of 77 degrees F is not what most people would view as a “stressful” temperature, but in fact for a bird it can very well be demanding if the relative humidity is high. If the relative humidity increases to 90 percent, the heat loss from a bird is decreased by nearly 35 percent. A reduction in heat loss from a bird of this magnitude will result in significantly increased body temperature and substantially reduce bird performance. yy What happens to birds at higher air temperatures? At 86 degrees F and a relative humidity of 50 percent, total heat loss from a 5-pound bird drops to approximately 45 Btu’s/hr (a decrease of 25 percent from 77 degrees F, 50 percent Rh). Now, nearly 80 percent of the birds heat loss is through respiration. This means that the relative humidity of the air in a house has an even greater effect on the bird’s ability to maintain a proper body temperature. If the relative humidity of the air in a house were to increase to 90 percent, total heat loss from a bird would be reduced by 70 percent because heat loss through respiration drops to essentially zero. In short, the research has shown that between a relative humidity of 70 percent and 90 percent (at an air temperature of 86 degrees F), respiratory heat loss for a 5-pound bird goes from approximately 35 Btu’s/ hr to essentially zero. Since the amount of heat loss from the surfaces of the bird to the air is minimal (approximately 13 Btu’s/hr) a bird will not be able to survive. yy Here is the problem growers face. During hot weather we use evaporative cooling to lower our house temperatures to increase the trans-
fer of heat from the birds to the air (sensible heat loss). The downside is that this cooling comes at a cost, increased humidity. For every 1 degree F of cooling produced through the evaporation of water the relative humidity of the air in a house will increase approximately 2.5 percent. Though the air temperature is lower, the increase in the relative humidity reduces the bird’s ability to cool itself through the evaporation of water off of its own respiratory system. So though we are decreasing house air temperature using evaporative cooling, we are adversely affecting the bird’s primary method of cooling itself because we are increasing humidity. For example, let’s say the house temperature is 86 degrees F and the relative humidity is 50 percent. Based on the research conducted by Genc and Portier the total heat loss from a 5-pound bird would be approximately 45 Btu’s/hr. We turn on our evaporative cooling system and decrease the house temperature to 77 degrees F which will in turn increases the relative humidity to approximately 75 percent. Though the air temperature is nearly 10 degrees lower, the fact is that total heat loss from the bird would only be increased by approximately one Btu/hr. Considering the fact that a 5-pound-bird needs to lose approximately 60 Btu’s/hr, it is hard to see how utilizing an evaporative cooling system would significantly improve bird performance under these conditions. Interestingly enough, in the typical poultry house utilizing evaporative cooling, house temperatures during hot and humid weather are often even more stressful with house temperatures in the low to mid 80s and relative humidity over 80 percent. According to the research conducted by Genc and Porter, as well as others, this should result in an increased level of heat stress, but we know from experience that it typically doesn’t. Why? The answer is simply air speed.
Air speed increases the amount of heat loss to the air around a bird thus reducing the need for a bird to rely on evaporation of moisture from its respiratory system to cool itself. The higher the air speed the greater the amount of heat a bird will lose to the air and the lower the amount of heat the bird needs to lose through panting, thus reducing the importance of relative humidity. At an air velocity of 100 ft/min, approximately 72 percent of a bird’s heat loss is due to the evaporation of water off of its respiratory system and therefore it would be adversely affected by a high relative humidity. Conversely, at an air speed of 600 ft./min., the heat loss due to respiratory moisture evaporation decreases to less than 50 percent, significantly reducing the importance of the relative humidity of the air when it comes to bird cooling. It all comes down to a couple of simple facts; without air movement evaporative cooling is potentially dangerous and as air velocity increases, the importance of relative humidity to a bird decreases. Too many times poultry producers view evaporative cooling as if it is “air conditioning.” It is not. Air conditioning decreases air temperature and removes moisture from a house. Evaporative cooling decreases air temperature and adds moisture to the house, a significant difference. In some areas of the world the addition of moisture to the air is welcomed. For instance, in desert areas many people use “swamp coolers” (a small box with evaporative pads and a blower) to cool their dwelling houses instead of air conditioning. If it is 105 degrees F with a relative humidity of 10 percent, a residential swamp cooler unit could be used to drop the temperature inside a house to 76 degrees F and increase the relative humidity to a little over 50 percent. A homeowner would get both cooling as well as needed humidity at a very low cost. But, if a homeowner in a humid climate used the
same type of cooling system on a typical summer day (95 degrees F, 55 percent Rh), they would end up with far from ideal living conditions (83 degrees F, 85 percent Rh). We are basically using a cooling system in our poultry houses which is best suited for use in a hot, dry climate not in hot, humid climates. The only reason we can use it effectively is because of the high air speeds and air exchange rates that exist in our poultry houses. The point is that evaporative cooling is a very good method of cooling birds only when used in conjunction with air moving over the birds. Birds can become heat stressed at surprisingly low temperatures (mid to low 70s) when the humidity is high and air speeds are low. Yes, the house may seem “cool” to you, but keep in mind that a bird is much more sensitive to high humidity conditions than you are. Make sure before using evaporative cooling systems that you have adequate fans running to offset the detrimental effects of the increased humidity caused by the evaporative cooling pads. For older birds this often requires operating all tunnel fans in a house before using the evaporative cooling system. Not only do we need to offset the negative effects of the high humidity caused by the evaporative cooling, but older birds are well feathered and space between them tends to be limited thus requiring a high air speed to remove heat from their bodies. With younger birds fewer fans can be used because pad systems are typically only being used to “temper” the incoming air which results in a lower incoming relative humidity. For instance, if we had a house with two-week-old birds when outside temperature was 100 degrees F with a relative humidity 30 percent, we could add water to a pad system sparingly which would decrease the incoming air temperature to 90 de-
See Temp, Page 17
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
•Workforce (Continued from page 1)
tinued. “Nothing could be further from the truth. Our industry needs a stable workforce. We seek workers who will stay on the job long enough to become skilled and efficient, helping us to keep our food products and employees safe.” In terms of strengthening employment verification, Brown noted that the government does not provide employers with a reliable verification method to prevent identity fraud and confirm whether new hires are legally authorized to work in the United States. “E-Verify is a step in the right direction but does not work adequately in its current form,” he said. “If strengthened, this program will serve as an effective and efficient ‘virtual border.’” Brown said that the current system, however, does not account for the meat and poultry industry’s most common issue, identity fraud, e.g. a valid Social Security number that does not relate to the person presenting it. In addition to documents such as a driver’s license or Social Security card which are easily falsified, the coalition believes employers should be allowed to require an E-Verify Self Check. E-Verify Self Check is an online service that allows U.S. employees to check their employment eligibility in the United States before beginning a new job.
In return for participating in these and other aggressive screening programs, Brown said that the coalition supports providing a safe harbor for employers that utilize the E-Verify Self Check and follow the automatic referral process. “An employer that does everything possible to avoid hiring unauthorized aliens should not be exposed to further liability,” he contended. Continued access to the labor pool is also a key element of the coalition’s framework for immigration reform. “An effective occupational visa system may be the most important barrier to illegal immigration,” Brown said. “The right visa system with the right screening tools will in effect be a second ‘virtual border.’” The existing temporary programs for general labor skilled workers are for seasonal labor only, which does not help manufacturers, whose occupational needs are year-round and ongoing. “Congress must create a general labor skilled immigrant visa for the manufacturing industry to recognize that employer needs in industry are permanent in nature, not temporary,” Brown proposed. “Employers should have the ability to recruit outside of the U.S. and sponsor workers for a defined period of time.” Also speaking before the subcommittee was American Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman who said a new, modern guestworker program for agricultural workers is needed
so that U.S. farmers and ranchers can continue growing food, tending livestock and contributing to the nation’s economy. “We want to keep these jobs in America for U.S. workers, not outsource them,” Stallman said and urged lawmakers to implement a new, market-based labor program administered by USDA. The new program would serve as a substitute for and eventually replace the H-2A program now in place, Stallman explained. It would also provide farmers with access to a legal and stable workforce over the long-term. In addition, the new program would provide employers with greater certainty that they will have access to the workforce they need, when they need it and at a competitive cost. AFBF economists estimate that the agricultural economy and the broader U.S. economy are facing $9 billion or more in lost productivity each year if the agriculture labor force issue is not addressed. Members of the Food Manufacturers Immigration Coalition, in addition to the National Chicken Council, are the National Turkey Federation, U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, North American Meat Association, American Meat Institute, California Poultry Federation, Georgia Poultry Federation, The Poultry Federation (Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma) and the Virginia Poultry Federation.
•Temp (Continued from page 16)
grees F and the relative humidity would increase to approximately 55 percent. A small number of fans could be used to keep the birds comfortable not only because the relative humidity is fairly low but because the young birds are not producing much heat, they are not completely feathered, and there is a large amount of space between birds thus requiring
relatively lower air speeds to pull heat from their bodies. yy Would we be better off without evaporative cooling systems in our houses? Definitely not. We need an inexpensive method of reducing house temperatures during hot weather. Though air speed is a very effective method of removing heat from a bird, the smaller the difference in temperature between the air and the bird’s body the less heat removed
from a bird. If the temperature of the air moving over a bird is equal to its body temperature essentially no heat will be lost to the air. It is not an either/ or situation. A producer needs to utilize both air movement and evaporative cooling during hot weather to keep birds comfortable and productive. But, always keep in mind that in order to maximize bird cooling it is air movement first, evaporative cooling second.
USDA to inspect poultry processing plants in China WASHINGTON — USDA inspectors are scheduled to visit China soon to inspect poultry processing plants to verify Chinese claims that several of its chicken-processing plants meet U.S. food safety standards, USDA said. Although the People’s Republic of China has wanted to sell its chicken products in the United States since 2006, China is currently not allowed to import chicken into the U.S. because of past food safety concerns, avian influenza outbreaks and previous U.S. congressional opposition. The country is interested in both processing U.S.-raised birds and exporting the meat and processing and exporting Chinese-raised chickens. The USDA inspections are the result of seven years of negotiations between the U.S. and China. U.S. officials will first consider approving the import of chicken from U.S.-raised birds that are processed
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Monitoring litter moisture for good quality By Michael Czarick & Dr. Brian Fairchild Special to Poultry Times
ATHENS, Ga. — A major component of broiler management is maintaining good litter quality throughout the flock. Litter quality is negatively influenced by moisture. As litter moisture increases, litter quality decreases. Factors that affect litter moisture include drinker management, bird health, bird density, ventilation rates, litter depth and litter type. Typically broiler facilities are bedded with materials that have moisture content less than 10 percent. Under normal conditions litter moisture at the end of the flock can fluctuate from 25 percent to 35 percent depending on the factors above. During the flock the goal is to maintain a litter moisture between 20 percent and 25 percent. As litter quality deteriorates, ammonia production increases, microbial loads in the litter increase and paw quality can decrease, none of which are conducive to good broiler performance. Many people are in-
terested in measuring litter moisture and often are looking for the correct instrument to measure litter quality. It would be nice to have an instrument where a probe could be inserted into the litter and the moisture content value is displayed on a monitor. Currently, there are no moisture meters that return an accurate and/or repeatable measurement. One of the reasons that the moisture meters used for wood, forage or soil moisture do not work could be due to the porosity of litter materials. Since the readings from these instruments are not reliable in litter moisture measurements, the currently accepted way of measuring litter moisture is to use a drying protocol. In this protocol, a sample of litter is taken from the house. It is recommended that at least three samples be taken with one from the end near the evaporative cooling pads, one from the middle of house and the other in from the rear of the house near the tunnel fans. A trench sample should be collected from each location which involves taking all the litter in a line
from the middle of the house to the sidewall. This ensures that litter is from different areas of the house including drinker, feeder and sidewall as well as from the non-feeder/ drinker area in the middle of the house. Once placed in the wheelbarrow or other container, this litter should then be mixed thoroughly and the caked litter should be broken up into the smallest pieces possible. After the litter is thoroughly mixed, random samples from this homogenous mixture should be collected. Filling a quart bag will provide more than enough material for litter moisture analysis. Be sure to seal the bag completely and do not leave it in the sun or in the heat. For best results the samples should be processed that day. If samples are stored for overnight or longer, they should be refrigerated. Once in the lab, the samples should be poured into a small container and mixed thoroughly once more. Record the empty pan weight, and then weigh out 50 g to 100 g of litter into the pan. The pan should be aluminum or other material that will not be affected by heat or mois-
ture. It is recommended that at least three replicates for each sample be used to account for as much variation as possible. After weighing the pan is placed in a drying oven at 120 degrees F for 24 hours. The pan should be removed from the drying oven and the dry weight should be obtained. The percent litter moisture can be calculated using the following equation — percent litter moisture = 100 - ((dry litter weight/Wet litter weight) X 100). Once the percent litter moisture has been calculated, an average of the three replicate samples can be calculated to determine the average litter moisture for each trench sample (front, middle and back). If multiple trench samples were collected then these can be averaged to get the percent litter moisture for the entire house. While this method may be somewhat labor intensive and provides information 24 hours later, it is an approved method that has been found to yield objective measurements that are accurate and repeatable. The litter can be inspected visu-
ally; however, monitoring should be more than just monitoring how much caked litter is in a house. Caked litter is a symptom of an earlier moisture problem. Daily monitoring of the floor condition will be a proactive way of preventing caked litter. As shavings or used litter become damp they will be darker in color and appearance than the drier floors. Another method of inspecting the litter is to pick up a handful and squeeze it. Litter that has moisture of less than 30 percent will be friable and will not stick when your hand is relaxed. Litter that is too damp will still clump together. While these methods are good, if an actual number is desired, the litter will have to be dried using the protocol discussed above. Michael Czarick is an Extension engineer, and Dr. Brian Fairchild is an associate professor and Extension poultry scientist; both with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in Athens, Ga. More information can be obtained at www. poultryventilation.com.
Drought forecast to linger, spread in Plains, West The Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. — Climate experts say the drought affecting more than half of the nation will persist in the Great Plains and West through the spring and spread over more of California, Texas and Florida. Experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center and the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln released their latest predictions on Feb. 21.
Currently, 56 percent of the continental U.S. is covered by some form of drought. That’s an improvement from last summer, when the drought covered two-thirds of the nation. The drought forecast calls for conditions to improve somewhat in eastern Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Georgia and South Carolina. But the February-through-May drought forecast predicts conditions will worsen overall this spring, NOAA climatologist Dan Collins said. And below-average precipita-
tion is expected this spring in most Western states and the southeastern United States. As a result, the drought is expected to spread from southern California to cover nearly the entire state. All of Arizona, most of Texas and most of Florida also are expected to be affected. Texas rancher Debbie Davis didn’t want to hear that the drought is likely to get worse this spring. She said she’s already sold off more than half of her cattle herd because feed and hay prices have
risen in the drought, and now she’s wondering whether more changes will be needed. “We’re trying to figure out whether this is the new normal — is this climate change? Or is this just another 10-year drought?” said Davis, who ranches northwest of San Antonio. The climate experts didn’t have any answers for Davis’ bigger questions on Feb. 21. NOAA climate scientist Jake Crouch said January was the ninthwarmest January ever globally. In
the United States, January temperatures averaged 1.6 degrees above normal. Crouch said a smaller-than-average snowpack in the central and southern Rockies in Colorado and Wyoming has added to concerns about the drought. It suggests that there won’t be enough water flowing down streams and rivers this spring to replenish reservoirs. But Crouch said snowpack levels could still improve in the next two months.
19
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Consumer Corner Turkey Pastrami Sandwich on Irish Soda Bread National Turkey Federation Servings: 4 Ingredients: 1 loaf (8-inch) Irish soda bread 1 bottle (8 oz.) thousand island dressing
4 cups prepared deli coleslaw, divided 12 oz. turkey pastrami, thinly sliced Directions:
To serve, cut sandwich into four wedges. More information and recipes can be obtained from the National Turkey Federation at www.eatturkey. com.
Cut Irish soda bread in half lengthwise. On each half of bread, spread 1/3 cup dressing. Layer bottom of loaf with 1/3 of cole slaw and 1/2 of the pastrami. Repeat layering with 1/3 of cole slaw, 1/3 cup dressing, remaining pastrami and remaining 1/3 cole slaw. Cover with top half of loaf. Wrap sandwich tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
Senate passes continuing appropriations resolution WASHINGTON — The National Turkey Federation on March 20 praised the U.S. Senate for passing a continuing appropriations bill that includes a critical amendment that hopefully will prevent a furlough of meat and poultry inspectors this year. By a voice vote, the Senate approved a resolution authored by Sens. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) and Roy Blunt (RMo.), that provides additional funding to USDA’s Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) and that confirms the department has the budgetary flexibility necessary to avoid the furloughs. “The Senate’s bipartisan action today was an important step in ensuring the nation’s turkey plants continue to operate on a full schedule for the rest of the year,” said NTF President Joel Brandenberger. “The threat of
furloughs is not completely gone, but we are hopeful the House will concur in the Senate’s action, and USDA then will take the steps necessary to cancel the planned furloughs. “Furloughs would have idled plants for one day per week, causing a major disruption in turkey production and economic harm to the family farmers who raise turkeys, the farmers who raise feed for those turkeys, the employees who process and transport the turkeys and, ultimately, to the American consumer who likely would see food prices increase as the food supply tightened. “We thank Senators Pryor and Blunt for their leadership and the entire Senate for affirming the vital importance of the nation’s meat and poultry inspection system.”
USDA sets thresholds on farm loan interest WASHINGTON — USDA has announced an interim rule that sets thresholds on the interest rates charged by lenders on guaranteed farm ownership and operating loans. The changes will amend guidelines for interest rates and establish new policies that clearly set the maximum interest rate lenders may charge to borrowers. “By providing clear thresholds on interest rates for federally-guaranteed farm loans, USDA is ensuring greater certainty to producers, making compliance easier for our lenders and ensuring greater benefits for all farmers and ranchers,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “It is important that American agriculture continue to play a key role in driving economic growth and creating good-paying jobs across the American middle class. By setting thresholds on interest rates, USDA will strengthen access to farm credit.” USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) guaranteed loans reduce the risk of loss to lenders (banks, farm credit institutions and credit unions) by guaranteeing up to 95 percent of the loss of principal and interest on a loan. By reducing a lender’s risk, borrowers benefit from a lower rate. The agriculture department said the interim rule on maximum interest rates for FSA-guaranteed loans will benefit lenders and producers alike.
Lenders have expressed a desire to see greater clarity in FSA’s interest rate policy. At the same time, FSA seeks greater consistency with industry standards and other government agencies that administer similar programs. The improvements in the new rule will make credit pricing procedures easier to follow and improve compliance for lenders, the department noted. FSA is also requesting additional comments on the interim policies in the rule, aiming to assure that the benchmark rates required of lenders do not prevent farmers and ranchers from obtaining guaranteed loans. USDA is seeking comments through June 3, 2013. USDA also continues to expand its traditional farms loans. Since 2009 USDA has made more than 134,000 farm loans totaling nearly $18 billion. USDA has increased the number of loans to beginning farmers and ranchers from 11,000 loans in 2008 to 15,000 loans in 2011. More than 40 percent of USDA’s farm loans now go to beginning farmers. In addition, USDA has increased its lending to socially-disadvantaged producers by nearly 50 percent since 2008.
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20
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Vilsack to lead U.S. delegation at G-8 ag conference WASHINGTON — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will lead the U.S. delegation at the G-8 International Conference on Open Data for Agriculture on April 29-30, 2013, in Washington, D.C. “I am pleased to partner with G-8 colleagues in ensuring that agriculturally relevant data is readily available to users around the world. By making our data accessible and encouraging others to do the same, we will enable collaborations that will spur innovation and increase economic growth around the world,”
said Vilsack. The U.S. delegation will also include: Dr. Catherine Woteki, undersecretary for research, education and economics and chief scientist, USDA; Paul Weisenfeld, assistant to the administrator, Bureau for Food Vilsack Security, U.S. Agency for International Development; Jonathan Shrier, special representative for global food security, State Department; and representatives
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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
N.C. chicken farmers sue Ukrainian billionaire McClatchy Newspapers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When a young Ukrainian billionaire acquired the North Carolina operations of chicken processor Townsends out of bankruptcy in early 2011, the deal seemed to symbolize the increasing globalization of our food supply. Oleg Bakhmatyuk, the majority owner of Ukraine’s largest egg producer, had elaborate plans to turn the facilities into the American outpost of a food empire that would strategically move protein around the world like pieces on a chess board. Chickens grown on North Carolina farms would be fattened with cheap grain imported from the Ukraine, while the dark meat processed in Townsends’ Siler City and Mocksville facilities would be exported to markets in the Middle East, Ukraine, Russia and China. As it turned out, Bakhmatyuk’s plan was more fantasy than revolutionary. After failing within six months, the Townsends operations have sat idle for more than a year while Bakhmatyuk (bak-mah-TEWK) and his executives mull their next move. Left in limbo are the heavily indebted chicken farmers whose livelihoods are tied to the Townsends facilities — and who are now desperate to be rid of their one-time white knight. “He was filthy rich and had no idea what he was getting into; that’s exactly what it sounded like,” said Mickey Bowman, 48, a third-generation Randolph County chicken farmer. “He didn’t care who he hurt along the way over here. It was nothing to him to close this down.” Bowman is one of about 130 chicken farmers who sued Omtron USA, the company Bakhmatyuk used to buy the Townsends assets, for breach of contract in state and federal court. The litigation has turned into its own chess match, with the farmers using the courts to seek damages for their terminated
contracts and to try and force Omtron to sell. They won a victory of sorts in November, when Omtron filed for bankruptcy and now must follow a court-mandated time frame to liquidate its assets. But those in North Carolina who have had dealings with Omtron say trying to predict the company’s next move would be foolish. “Where it’s going to go from here and what’s going to happen, I don’t know,” said Kim Decker, a poultry marketing specialist with the state Department of Agriculture. “It depends on how they proceed. Everything seems to have been a stalling tactic thus far. Is bankruptcy another one of those? I don’t know.” Through the company’s Philadelphia-based lawyer, executives with Omtron declined to comment. In hindsight, it’s easy to view Bakhmatyuk’s plan as half-baked and those who believed it would succeed as naive. But at the time, it seemed plausible that the Ukrainian’s global reach and deep pockets were just what were needed to turn the Townsends operation around. Townsends, which traces its roots back to 1891, had been forced into bankruptcy by the rising cost of corn — the main ingredient in chicken feed — and the decline in U.S. chicken consumption caused by the recession. The entire industry has struggled to remain profitable in recent years as overproduction and rising feed prices eroded profit margins. Townsends’ downfall threatened more than 1,000 jobs in Siler City, west of Raleigh in Chatham County, and Mocksville, southwest of Winston-Salem. It also jeopardized an entire integrated poultry operation that included a network of chicken farms, a hatchery and a feed mill. Bakhmatyuk, it was assumed, had the financial resources to invest in the operations, make them more efficient, and withstand periods of elevated corn and fuel prices. His wealth comes from his 77 percent
stake in Avangardco Investments, which is based in Cyprus but trades on the London Stock Exchange and has a market capitalization of around $750 million. Bakhmatyuk, 38, is the company’s chairman; his sister serves as CEO. But poultry represented Bakhmatyuk’s attempt to diversify, as his holding company makes most of its money producing sugar, eggs and corn. He also had no experience operating in the U.S., a more heavily regulated and competitive market. He hired David Purtle, a former Tyson Foods executive, to be Omtron’s CEO. It’s unclear whether Bakhmatyuk ever visited the North Carolina operations he spent more than $35 million acquiring and upgrading. The Ukrainian executive North
Carolina officials usually dealt with was George Kikvadze, a Bakhmatyuk adviser whom everyone just referred to as “George K.” “We believe in American brands,” Kikvadze, who no longer works for Omtron, told the (Charlotte) News & Observer shortly after the company acquired the Townsends assets. “Oleg came for the first time to America in November (2010). He just fell in love with the country . . . We believe in America and the American recovery.” Whatever reservations some chicken farmers may have had about their new Ukrainian partner were muted in June 2011, when Omtron offered three-year contracts to the group of farmers tasked with growing the chickens to their ideal weight. Although economic condi-
tions in the industry were bleak, the contracts did not include a clause allowing Omtron to terminate them for economic reasons. “It was business as usual,” said John Benton, a Chatham County farmer who had been growing chickens for Townsends since the late 1990s. Benton, 64, hoped the Omtron contract would provide him with enough income to pay down the debt on his 180-acre farm so that he could retire. While Omtron was securing a steady supply of birds, it was also moving quickly to upgrade the Townsends plants. Omtron spent $8 million installing new equipment in the Siler City plant, removing the organic production line and re-en-
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22
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
Markets
market on tom breast meat and tenderloins was steady with a steady to weak undertone. The market on breast trims, wing meat and scapula was steady with a steady to firm undertone. The market on breast trims, wing meat and tenderloins was light while white trims were light to mostly moderate. Offerings of tom breast meat and destrapped tenderloins was moderate to moderately heavy. Breast trim, scapula and wing meat offerings were light to moderate, mostly light. The market on institutional sized breasts was steady with a steady to weak undertone. Demand was light to moderate for the moderate offerings. The market tone on tom bulk parts was steady to firm. Demand was light to moderate. Offerings light. The thigh meat market was
Compiled by David B. Strickland, Editor 770-718-3442 dstrickland@poultrytimes.net
Nat’l. Turkey Market: (Mar. 18): The market on 8-16 lb. hens and 16-24 lb. toms was steady. Demand was light to instances moderate. Offerings of hens and 16-24
lb. toms was moderate. Frozen Grade A basted equivalent processor offering prices on a national basis for hens was 94-99¢ f.o.b. and 16-24 lb. toms 94-99¢ f.o.b. from current production for current shipments. No trading reported. The
steady. Demand was light to moderate. Offerings moderate. The market on mechanically separated turkey was steady, demand moderate, offerings light to moderate, trading light, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service reports.
F owl: Mar. 15: Live spent heavy fowl
Final prices at Farm Buyer Loading (per pound): range 10-22¢
P arts: Georgia:
The f.o.b. dock quoted prices on ice-pack parts based on truckload and pool truckload lots for the week of Mar. 18: line run tenders $1.85½; skinless/boneless breasts $1.68; whole breasts $1.10;
The following chart provides an annual high and a comparison of recent activity of major poultry company stocks.
USDA Shell Eggs AMS weekly combined region shell egg prices Average prices on sales to volume buyers, Grade A or better, White eggs in cartons, delivered warehouse, cents per dozen.
Company Annual High Mar. 5 Mar. 19 Cal-Maine 47.66 40.66 43.45 Campbell Soup 42.23 41.69 42.19 35.27 34.73 35.26 ConAgra Hormel 39.60 38.17 39.53 Pilgrim’s Pride 9.90 9.15 9.01 Sanderson Farms 55.87 52.63 54.63 Seaboard 2934.00 2806.25 2849.90 Tyson 24.49 23.21 24.17 (Courtesy: A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc.)
Mar. 15
Extra Large Regions: N ortheast 118.50 Southeast 118.50 Midwest 109.50 South Central 122.50 Combined 117.47
Large
Medium
116.00 100.00 116.50 94.00 107.50 90.50 118.50 96.50 114.77 95.28
Computed from simple weekly averages weighted by regional area populations
Grain Prices OHIO COUNTRY ELEV. Feb. 26 Mar. 5 Mar. 19 No. 2 Yellow Corn/bu. $7.11 $7.28 $7.40 Soybeans/bu. $14.41 $14.68 $14.14 (Courtesy: Prospect Farmers Exchange, Prospect, Ohio)
Broiler Eggs Set/Chicks Placed in 19 States EGGS SET (Thousands)
CHICKS PLACED (Thousands)
Feb. 16
Feb. 23
Mar. 2
Mar. 9
Feb. 16
Feb. 23
Mar. 2
Mar. 9
Del Fla Ga Ky La Md Miss Mo. N.C. Okla Pa S.C. Tex Va Other states
28,116 21,859 10,392 3,415 1,221 33,069 7,680 3,288 7,198 17,272 8,216 20,173 6,992 3,806 5,311 14,825 6,217 7,877
28,189 21,840 10,189 3,419 1,223 33,125 7,672 3,349 7,213 17,606 8,105 20,316 6,837 3,828 5,492 15,038 6,188 7,932
27,967 21,816 10,498 3,415 1,221 33,852 7,551 3,364 7,254 17,516 8,110 20,165 6,918 3,781 5,417 15,172 6,396 7,923
27,487 21,772 10,692 3,417 1,221 33,042 7,599 3,379 7,453 16,957 8,268 20,085 6,886 4,004 5,333 15,223 6,661 7,989
21,471 19,327 10,272 4,141 1,588 25,981 5,719 2,930 6,310 14,553 5,699 15,464 4,842 2,778 5,643 12,104 4,592 6,096
21,257 20,166 9,629 4,202 1,194 26,431 5,902 2,964 5,684 14,629 5,630 15,911 4,400 2,885 4,572 12,329 5,454 5,939
20,731 20,311 9,247 3,818 1,089 26,310 5,747 2,967 6,713 14,814 5,172 15,780 4,996 3,028 4,436 12,435 5,024 5,925
20,510 20,875 10,005 4,062 1,488 27,175 6,219 2,968 6,494 14,731 5,144 16,412 4,797 3,146 4,442 12,202 4,451 5,866
19 States Total
199,050
199,629
200,413
199,479
163,414
163,239
162,618
165,121
% Prev. yr.
102
102
101
100
101
102
100
101
Ala Ark
Ca,Tn,Wv
1/Current week as percent of same week last year.
N ational Slaughter: Broiler: Estimated slaughter
for week ending Mar. 16 is 154,574,000. Actual slaughter for the week ending Mar. 9 was 156,219,000. Heavy-type hen: Estimated slaughter for the week ending Mar. 16 is 1,320,000. Actual slaughter for the week ending Mar. 9 was 1,333,000. Light-type hen: Estimated slaughter for the week ending Mar. 16 is 1,603,000. Actual slaughter for the week ending Mar. 9 was 1,548,000. Total: Week of Mar. 16: 157,497,000. Week of Mar. 9: 159,100,000.
Broiler/Fryer Report
Industry Stock Report
boneless/skinless thigh meat $1.37; thighs 72¢; drumsticks 72½¢; leg quarters 55¢; wings $1.78½.
USDA National Composite Weighted Average For week of: Mar. 15 For week of: Mar. 8
107.78¢ 107.82¢
Majority (whole body) Mar. 15 Eastern Region: $1.04--$1.11 New York: $1.08--$1.13 Central Region: 98¢--$1.06 Chicago: 99¢--$1.07 Western Region: $1.09--$1.13 Los Angeles: $1.09--$1.13 Negotiated prices in trucklot and less-than-trucklot quantities of ready-to-cook whole body broiler/fryers delivered to first receivers; prices in cents per pound.
Turkey Markets Weighted avg. prices for frozen whole young turkeys Weighted average (cents/lb.) F.O.B. shipper dock National Week ending Mar. 15 Last year Hens (8-16 lbs.) 95.50 102.33 Toms (16-24 lbs.) 95.71 104.00 Week ending Mar. 8 Hens (8-16 lbs.) Toms (16-24 lbs.)
96.31 98.14
Feb. avg. 95.00 95.30
Egg Markets USDA quotations New York cartoned del. store-door: Mar. 5 $1.16--$1.20 Extra large, up 26¢ Large, up 26¢ $1.14--$1.18 Medium, up 21¢ 99¢--$1.03 Southeast Regional del. warehouse: Mar. 5 Extra large, up 17½¢ $1.04½--$1.23 Large, up 15¢ $1.03--$1.19 80½¢--97¢ Medium, up 15½¢
Mar. 19 $1.42--$1.46 $1.40--$1.44 $1.20--$1.24 Mar. 19 $1.22--$1.44 $1.18--$1.37 96¢--$1.15
23
POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
AMERICAN EGG BOARD HOTLINE
•Fans (Continued from page 15)
light traps should be chosen with higher airflow ratios. Fans with constant exposure to windy conditions also need a higher airflow ratio. Windy conditions are not as prevalent in the broiler belt during hot weather as they are in other parts of the country.
Making the decision In choosing tunnel fans, the basic task is to determine the fan package that will produce the needed airflow under the conditions of operation for your house, and do the job needed
at the lowest cost. Initial purchase price is important, but higher-priced fans with better energy efficiency may yield lower total long-term costs. This can happen even when more fans are required to meet the airflow needs, because tunnel fans typically cost up three to four times the initial purchase cost in electricity over their useful life. Key points to keep in mind in buying tunnel fans: yy For broiler houses, evaluate fans based on airflow produced at 0.10 inches house static pressure. yy Look at airflow ratio — fans with airflow ratio below 0.70 won’t perform well under full tunnel load
or with dirty pads and shutters. yy In evaluating fan cost/performance specifications, judge on the basis of the fan package required to meet house airflow needs, not just on individual fan specs. yy Balance likely higher initial costs for high-efficiency fan packages with lower long-term total costs. yy Buy from a dealer you trust who will provide good service over the life of the equipment. Buy fans equipped as tested by BESS Labs. As an aid to growers, we have developed an Excel spreadsheet that is now available on the www.poultryhouse.com website.
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www.continentalagra.com Cumberland, 12I..............................................................................................................................217-226-4401; www.cumberlandpoultry.com Diversified Imports, 12F................................................................................................................ 800-348-6663; www.dicversifiedimports.com DSM, 12H..................................................................................................................................................... www.unlimitednutrition-na.dsm.com Farm Alarm, 12B...........................................................................................................................................800-407-5455; www.farmalarm.com Flame, Cover B.................................................................................................................................. 800-255-2469; www.flameengineering.com FPM, 12D.............................................................................................................................................................402-729-2264; www.fpmne.com Grassworx, 8................................................................................................................................................................................. grassworxllc.com Impex, 12B...............................................................................................................................................................800-255-5024; www.impex.nl IPS- Carefree Enzymes, 12..................................................................................................................262-878-3899; www.naturesenzymes.com J&D Mfg., 12B..................................................................................................................................................... 800-998-2398; www.jdmfg.com Jones-Hamilton-PLT, 12A..................................................................................................................800-379-2243; www.joneshamiltonAg.com Kelley Mfg., 12A........................................................................................................................................... 800-444-5449; www.kelleymfg.com Liphatech, 12L.................................................................................................................................................415-351-1476; www.liphatech.com Merck Animal Health, Cover III........................................................................................................................................... www.ihc-poultry.com Port-A- Kuul, 12J............................................................................................................................................ 800-231-9940; www.kuulpads.com Reeves, Cover II........................................................................................................................................888-854-5221; www.reevessupply.com Southwest Agriplastics, 12E..............................................................................................................................800-288-9748; www.swapinc.com Space-Ray, 19 .................................................................................................................................................. 800-849-7311; 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POULTRY TIMES, March 25, 2013
•Farmers (Continued from page 21)
gineering it to focus on producing leg quarters for the export market. It also was exploring ways to make the operations more competitive by reducing water usage at the Siler City plant and making enhancements to the feed mill. “It was an indication that they were trying to make the facilities as efficient, and as effective, as they could,” said Dale Carroll, the state’s deputy secretary of commerce. But as Omtron ramped up production, reality quickly began to expose the flaws in Bakhmatyuk’s plan. The price of corn and diesel fuel, already high, spiked over the summer. Meanwhile, Omtron’s plan to take advantage of opportunities in international markets proved to be based on several faulty assumptions. China and Russia moved to restrict imports of chicken in an effort to boost their own domestic poultry production, limiting Omtron’s ability to sell Townsends’ dark meat in those markets. Omtron’s plan to import cheap grain from Ukraine ran into several snags. Decker, the state marketing specialist, said the company had not considered that the grain would need to be treated for disease before
being imported. The company also appeared to badly misjudge the politics in its own country. “They thought they had the inside track with the Ukrainian government so that they could get feed at a certain price, and then the government changed their mind and put the grain on the world market,” Decker said. Omtron was soon losing $7 million to $8 million a month, Bakhmatyuk told the Kyiv Post in November 2011. “Facing significant losses each month,” the company’s lawyers said in one of Omtron’s court filings, “the company determined that it had no choice but to close its poultry processing facilities.” The confidence and optimism that the Ukrainians had exuded before the announced shutdown was soon replaced by a lack of engagement. State and local officials rushed in to try to expedite a sale of the facilities to a buyer who would keep the operations running. Several interested parties came forward, but Omtron never seemed able, or willing, to cut a deal. “The negotiations would reach a certain point, and then the communication would stop,” Decker said. “There were several instances where people were at the price that
they requested, and they either moved the mark or quit talking to them.” Omtron stopped making the lease payments on most of the equipment in the Mocksville facility, which led the lender to reclaim it and sell it, said Terry Bralley, president of the Davie County Economic Development Commission. Two manufacturers that installed new equipment in the Siler City plant sued Omtron, alleging breach of contract and intent to defraud. One of the companies, Fabco Equipment, said Omtron notified Fabco of plans to move the equipment overseas, even though it had not paid for the machinery. Omtron’s largest creditor, according to its bankruptcy filing, is the town of Mocksville, which says it is owed $760,000 for lease payments on the remaining equipment in the facility there. Omtron is disputing the claim. The town of Mocksville purchased the equipment, an oven line, in 2009 with a $700,000 grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation that was to create 103 jobs. The equipment was leased to Townsends at fair market rates. Omtron assumed the lease after acquiring Townsends but only made one payment. The $760,000 figure includes both the outstanding lease
payments and penalties for the company failing to meets its job creation and investment requirements. Omtron also owes nearly $290,000 to two law firms that the company no longer employs, including $117,000 to the North Carolina firm Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein. The chicken farmers are asking for unspecified damages in their civil suits, though many of them also say they want Omtron to unload the assets to another buyer interested in restarting the operations. It’s unclear whether such a buyer still exists, given the added cost that would come from having to restock the pipeline of chickens and re-establish a network of buyers. Omtron has said in court filings that it believes the best way to get a good price and protect the interests of the local economies is to hire an investment banking firm to conduct a sale. Some of the chicken farms already are in foreclosure, and other farmers say they can’t hold out much longer. The farmers’ ability to catch on with another processor is limited by geography — to keep fuel costs down, companies typically won’t transport chickens beyond a certain distance. Transitioning to a new processor can also require a farmer to invest
more money to meet that processor’s specifications for growers. Bowman, the Randolph County farmer, was able to secure a threeflock contract with Mountaire Farms’ processing plant in Lumber Bridge, but the deal filled only seven of his 10 chicken houses. “That’s really just a drop in the bucket for us,” he said. Bowman owes the bank $1.5 million — a debt secured by his 170-acre farm. “We’ve struggled just about as long as we can and fought this about as long as we can,” he said. “A lot of other people are in the same boat.” John Benton, the lead plaintiff in one of the lawsuits against Omtron, got tired of waiting around for Bakhmatyuk. Last fall, he began selling the equipment inside his six chicken houses, hoping to pay enough of his debt to save his farm and retire. Benton said he understands Omtron’s need to make changes given the amount of money the company was losing. What he can’t understand is how the company could shut down the operation and then not talk to legitimate buyers who would keep the operation going. “Don’t just leave us hanging,” he said. “Don’t keep playing with our lives.”
Midwest soil could take 2 years to recover from drought University of Missouri
COLUMBIA, Mo. — The Midwest suffered the worst drought in years last summer, and Midwest soil has been suffering from a drought since early 2010. As a result, crops have wilted and farmers have fallen on hard times. Now, a University of Missouri researcher says that it may take at least two years for crops and soil to recover. Randall Miles, associate professor of soil science at the MU School of Natural Resources, found that soil in the Midwest is dry down to as
deep as 5 feet, where the roots of the crops absorb moisture and nutrients. “I wouldn’t count on a full recovery of soil moisture any time soon,” Miles said. “Even if parts of the Midwest receive a lot of snowfall and rain this spring, it will take time for the moisture to move deeply into the soil where the driest conditions exist.” In 2012, Miles found that some roots had to go down as much as 8 feet to extract water. Typically, 1 foot of soil holds 2 inches of water. To recharge completely, a fully de-
pleted soil would require about 16 inches of water over normal precipitation amounts. “The soil moisture will recharge with a hydrologic process where water moves downward from surface water and fills in the pore space found in the soil,” Miles said. “However, during the winter months it is important to remember that a foot of snowfall equals about an inch of rainfall, so the soil could take some time to recharge.” Miles has been testing the depths of soil moisture around Missouri
and found that parts of the state where Hurricane Isaac dropped extra rainfall were wet in the first few inches of soil, but dry below that level. While that moisture helps for a short while, Miles said the moisture will evaporate with just a few days of high winds. “In order for the soil moisture to return to a normal state this year, the rain and snow would almost have to come continuously,” Miles said. “The weather would almost have to be like the precipitation found in London, coming down light and slowly to minimize runoff.”
In addition to soil moisture being affected by the drought, Miles says that it could take two years of good rains for microbes and insects to recover, as well as barge traffic on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. “Until we start seeing normal rainfall, the water levels on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers are going to be low, affecting the number of barges that can pass on the rivers at one time,” Miles said. Miles believes that it could be two to three years before farmers can expect bumper crops again.
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Poultry grower financing • Land • Poultry buildings • Equipment in poultry buildings © 2013 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. MC-5566
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Farming The Sea Crisis ManageMent
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