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The quantity of feed, and the nutritional requirements of the feed, depend on the weight and age of the poultry, their rate of growth, their rate of egg production, the weather (cold or wet weather causes higher energy expenditure), and the amount of nutrition the poultry obtain from foraging. This results in a wide variety of feed formulations.
[20] [21] Generally, chicken breeds with white ear lobes lay white eggs, whereas chickens with red ear lobes lay brown eggs. [22] Although there is no significant link between shell color and nutritional value, often there is a cultural preference for one color over another (see § Color of eggshell below). As candling is less effective with ...
For hens used in egg production in the US, as of 2011 the FCR was about 2, with each hen laying about 330 eggs per year. [25] When slaughtered, the world average layer flock as of 2013 yields a carcass FCR of 4.2, still much better than the average backyard chicken flock (FCR 9.2 for eggs, 14.6 for carcass). [26]
As is the case with chickens, various breeds have been developed, selected for egg-laying ability, fast growth, and a well-covered carcase. The most common commercial breed in the United Kingdom and the United States is the Pekin duck, which can lay 200 eggs a year and can reach a weight of 3.5 kg (7 lb 11 oz) in 44 days. [34]
Chickens are common and widespread domestic animals, with a total population of 26.5 billion as of 2023, and an annual production of more than 50 billion birds. A hen bred for laying can produce over 300 eggs per year. There are numerous cultural references to chickens in folklore, religion, and literature.
Six commercial chicken eggs — view from the top against a white background. An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the animal hatches.
Poularde is a culinary term for a chicken that is at least 120 days old at the time of slaughter and fattened with a rich diet that delays egg production. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] In the past it was common to spay the chickens early in life to ensure desirable meat quality, [ 3 ] similar to the castration of a capon .
A free range pastured chicken system. Pastured poultry also known as pasture-raised poultry or pasture raised eggs is a sustainable agriculture technique that calls for the raising of laying chickens, meat chickens (broilers), guinea fowl, and/or turkeys on pasture, as opposed to indoor confinement like in battery cage hens or in some cage-free and 'free range' setups with limited "access ...