Current state of the most popular global fast-growing broilers

3^rd International Conference on Veterinary & Livestock

November 02-03, 2017 Bangkok, Thailand

Yusuf Leonard Henuk and Chris A Bailey

University of Sumatera Utara, Indonesia
Texas A&M University, USA

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Vet Sci Technol

Abstract :

Poultry meat and eggs are among the most common animal source of food consumed at global level, through a wide diversity of cultures, traditions and religions, making them key to food security and nutrition. Worldwide, this poultry sector consists of chickens (90.55%), ducks (5.53%), geese and guinea fowl (1.67%), turkeys (2.09%) and other poultry (0.15%). On the world stage chicken production represent about 87% compared with 6% for turkey meat, 4% for duct meat and less than 3% for the combined category of geese with guinea fowl. Broilers used in intensive systems are of strains that have been bred to be very fast growing in order to gain weigh quickly with typical gains of over 50 g per day. Unlike laying hens (kept for egg production) which live for about a year, broilers only live for several weeks before they are slaughtered. In the US, the average slaughter age is 47 days at a weight of 2.6 kg. While, the average slaughters age in the EU is 42 days at a weight of 2.5 kg. In Indonesia, for example, broilers are grown to 1.0-2.0 kg (average of around 1.4 kg at 30 days of age). Mortality on broiler farms is 6-7%. Over the last 80 years or so from 1925 to 2016, the slaughter age of a standard fast growing broiler has been decreasing from 112 days to 47 days, and market weight of broiler has increased from 1.25 kg to 3.11 kg, feed to meat gain has decreased from 2.35 kg to 0.94 kg and mortality has decreased from 18% to 4.8%, respectively. In comparison, traditional meat chickens take around 12 weeks reach slaughter weight. In conclusion, most of the world�s chicken meat production is merely based on intensive farming of the most popular fast-growing hybrids (i.e., Cobb, Hubbard and Ross) reaching the slaughter weight in a very short time and having high meat yields.

Biography :

Yusuf Leonard Henuk is a Professor in the Faculty of Agriculture at University of Sumatera Utara in Indonesia. He has received Bachelor’s degree from the University of Nusa Cendana in Indonesia from 1980-1984. He has obtained his Master’s degree in Rural Science from the University of New England and continued Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from the University of Queensland in Australia. He also participated in many national seminars in Indonesia and international seminars.