● Meat quality:
The caliber of the flesh, emphasizing its appearance, feel, juiciness, flavor, and usefulness. Consumers are more likely to make repeat purchases when the meat is of high-quality, consistency.
● Produced Meat:
How much meat an animal can produce that is suitable for human consumption. This metric is often determined by multiplying the result of dividing the amount of edible product by the animal's weight at market weight by 100.
● Feed Efficiency: How effectively hens convert nutrients in their feed into meat.
● Preventing Early Chick Mortality:
Because their immune systems are still developing, young birds are particularly susceptible. Producers/growers can concentrate on preventing young chick deaths to support flock performance and economic value.
● Prevention of Pathogens:
Birds called broilers are used to make chicken meat. The likelihood of germs growing on completed food products, which may cause human harm, must be reduced overall by taking steps to prevent infections as early in the animal production process as possible.
Pathogens not only pose a threat to human health, but they also have the potential to worsen bird performance and welfare circumstances.
These problems can cost producers money, challenge birds, and occasionally even result in bird losses.
Common challenges in broiler production
Mortality: Mortality is the term used to track a flock's mortality rate. Depending on their age, environment, amount of stress, management, and other factors, birds might pass away for a variety of causes.
Pathogens:
Are any bacteria, viruses, or other microbes that have the potential to cause disease.
For broilers, typical pathogen issues include: Bacteria (e.g., Salmonella, Campylobacter, E. coli, Clostridium, etc.)
● Viruses (e.g., avian influenza, bronchitis, etc.)
● Worms (like roundworms)
● Fungi (e.g., mycotoxins from moulds)
High Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR), Low Feed Intake And Low Weight Gain:
FCR, feed intake and weight gain are performance metrics that are monitored to check a flock’s health and performance. The goal is to have a low feed conversion (FCR), a high feed intake and a high weight gain.
Ventilation And Air Quality:
The majority of commercial broilers are grown inside of structures referred to as chicken houses. To guarantee that the chickens are always comfortable, the air flow and quality in the coops are constantly being checked.
The birds can be kept indoors where they are safe from predators and other biosecurity risks and where the humidity, temperature, and air quality of the environment can be monitored to their fullest potential.
In order to remove excess heat, moisture, dust, and odours, as well as to dilute airborne disease organisms and conserve energy, effective ventilation varies depending on the dwelling construction.
Flock Uniformity is a metric used to assess consistency in terms of a flock's size and weight distribution.
When a flock is uniform, it means that every bird receives the proper nutrition on a consistent basis, which is crucial, especially before the flock enters the processing facility.
Processing facilities are built to accommodate the specific target size of the birds to ensure a consistent food product for consumers.
Coccidiosis:A common illness in poultry brought on by a protozoan invasion in the colon (Eimeria or Iospora). Intestinal inflammation, lesions, diarrhoea, weight loss, and occasionally even death are signs of coccidiosis.
Meat Quality The quality of meat, with a focus on its look, texture, juiciness, flavor, and usefulness. White striping and wooden breasts, which alter the appearance and texture of the flesh, are typical meat quality issues.
● White Striping: White striations across the chicken meat.
● Wooden Breast: Hard/tough texture of the chicken meat.
Stress
Stress can take many different forms in birds, and it's typically brought on by adjustments to things like diet, climate, management, or transportation. Weight loss, a decrease in water intake, lethargy, droopy wings, ruffled feathers, and other symptoms are typical signs of stress in broilers.
*Sustainability:**
Since broilers are one of the fastest-growing protein sources and are raised with minimum resources, sustainability is a major concern with them. The vertical integration of the chicken industry makes it more efficient and traceable.
IMPORTANT
The U.S. chicken business achieved numerous significant sustainability intensity metrics in 2020, including a 13% decrease in land use, a 22% decrease in the scarcity of fossil resources, a 22% decrease in the creation of fine particulates, an 18% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, and a 13% decrease in water use.
The sustainability of the broiler sector can be impacted by a variety of factors, including management practices, management systems, and bird nutrition.
Tips for maximising health and performance
● >Incorporate a multi-enzyme into broiler diets to help optimise nutrient absorption and protein breakdown.
● >Provide antioxidants and minerals that are better absorbed in order to increase mineral reserves.
● >Ensure that the proper nutrition is provided in the early stages of life in order to support natural defences and help build immunity.
