Commercial hatcheries set 202 million eggs in incubators during the week ending June 22, 2013, an increase of 3 percent from the eggs set the corresponding week a year ago, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Average hatchability for chicks hatched during the week was 84 percent.
Broiler growers placed 168 million chicks for meat production during the week ending June 22, which was a slight increase from the comparable week a year earlier, NASS reported. Cumulative placements from Dec. 30, 2012 through June 22 were 4.11 billion, up slightly from the comparable year ago period.
