South Korea's imports of chicken soared nearly 70 per cent on-year in the first seven months of the year as demand rose due to outbreaks of a contagious pig disease here and the World Cup season, according to a Korea Customs Service report.

Yonhap reports that chicken imports totalled 52,446 tons in the period from January to July, up 69.9 per cent from a year earlier.

 

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A total of 1,194 cows – 959 for milk and 235 for meat – died of heatstroke and other heat-related causes between 1 July and 15 August, while 657 pigs, 289,000 broiler chickens and 136,000 chickens that lay eggs also died, according to a survey by the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry.

According to The Japan Times, all figures rose compared with the last survey in 2008, with the total number of cow deaths increasing by 232, pigs by 130, broilers by 119,000 and egg-laying chickens by 80,000.

To prevent more deaths, the ministry said it has instructed regional agricultural administration officials to make sure livestock farmers are taking measures, such as putting heat shield materials on the walls and roofs of barns and using fans to lower the temperature inside.

The latest survey does not cover Miyazaki Prefecture, which was hit by foot-and-mouth disease.

 

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Sri Lanka's Bairaha Farms, a poultry breeder and processor says the industry is recovering and increasing production after state restrictions on the industry were relaxed but demand is also rising, reports Lanka Business Online.

Sri Lanka's poultry industry was badly hit by state price controls on chicken and import controls imports to 'protect' maize farmers as the expense of chicken farmers. Maize import controls pushed chicken feed prices up and meat price controls, hit farmer incomes discouraging farmers, who had stopped production from re-entering the business.

"The main challenge faced by the Company and the Group was the Government's resistance for price increase as the Government desired to control price of chicken," Yakooth Naleem chief executive of Bairaha Farms, a listed firm told shareholders in the annual report.

"However, after a prolonged delay a satisfactory price increase was eventually granted in February 2010."

Bairaha said the state also relaxed its controls on maize after the crisis in the poultry industry.

"Since the Government has been encouraging the local cultivation of maize, it did not allow imports in spite of the 35 per cent Cess even though there was a shortage of maize in the country during certain months of the year," the company said.

"However, there was a change of policy after the authorities realised that there was an acute shortage of maize in the country. A limited quantity of maize was then allowed to be imported under a special permit scheme.

"The current maize price is around 34 rupees (LKR) per kg but at one time it shot up to LKR51 per kg during a few months in the year under review due to restricted imports as well as the high Cess on imported maize."

The economies of both India and Sri Lanka lagged behind the rest of the world due to what is now called the 'permit raj'. In the 1970s, when Sri Lanka reached the height of its 'permit raj', unemployment hit over 20 per cent.

Self-service supermarkets in particular, which did not sell at 'blackmarket prices' were frequently out of chicken last year due to price controls, according to Lanka Business Online. Such 'shortages' and 'blackmarkets' are a direct result of price controls and were common in the controlled economy era in the 1970s.

High grain prices cause protein prices to go up by a multiple factor as a number of kilograms of grain is needed to produce a kilogram of meat.

Analysts say high grain prices can not only increase the price of poultry but also the price of close substitutes like fish.

Bairaha says increased tourist arrivals are now creating more demand for poultry and demand is also coming from the North and the East of the island, after the end of a war.

"It took nearly 10 years for the Sri Lankan Poultry Industry to double its production and consumption, and now with the potential for massive growth, doubling production in a shorter period is not too far away, provided the consumption grows as expected," chairman M.T.A. Furkhan told shareholders.

Furkhan said finance secretary P.B. Jayasundera had said the industry should double output within five years, given the projected increase in tourist arrivals and rising incomes.

Bairaha sells chicken meat and also processed meat products. The firm said it had started distributing products in north and the east of Sri lanka and also participated in a trade fair in Jaffna in April.

"We expect the Group's production of day-old-chicks to increase by 15 percent this year, helping to strengthen and dominate its market position," Mr Naleem said.

"Also on the cards is the introduction of existing processed meat products in new packaging aimed at further improving and enhancing the brand status in the market."

The firm said Fortune G-P Farms (Lanka) Ltd, a group firm had exported two consignments of broiler parent chicks to Nepal. The unit was the largest of two broiler parent breeders in the island, the firm said.

The company said it revenues increased to LKR2.06 billion in the year to March 2010 from LKR1.83 billion a year earlier. Group profits rose to LKR134.1 million from LKR2.5 million a year earlier, concludes the Lanka Business Online article.

 

 

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Producers in Ghana’s poultry industry worry that the influx of imported poultry products threatens their jobs and is also a serious threat to national food security.

To facilitate poultry farmers in the Ashanti Region a seminar, ‘Guides for Better Poultry Management’, was jointly organised by Laprovet SAS, a France-based veterinary drug manufacturer and their local representative, Maridav Ghana Limited, a leading supplier of animal health and nutrition products.

According to the Managing Director of Maridav, Ernest Owusu-Afari, “A major challenge to local poultry farmers is the negative effects of the hot climatic conditions of the sub-region. Adverse effects of excessive exposure to high temperatures include excessive panting, poor growth and development of birds and reduced egg production and size, and lower egg shell quality.”

Equip poultry farmers
He said the capacity-building programme will equip poultry farmers with proven techniques for efficient and rewarding poultry production, adding that the company is committed to supporting farmers improve managerial practices and optimal utilisation of resources.

Later in an interview with Luv FM, Owusu-Afari noted that the unbridled poultry imports are weakening the capacity of local farmers, and in effect makes Ghana an exporter of jobs to other economies.

“Personally it is my opinion that perhaps it is a little short-sighted to open the floodgates to the extent to which we have done over the past couple of decades and in so doing we have weakened the Ghanaian poultry farmer and it's a source of worry to us”, Owusu-Afari stated.

 

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The Valéron AVA laminate has two highly reflective aluminium surfaces which optimises energy usage, helping to keep poultry cool in hot climates and conserving heat in colder zones.

“The first installations are achieving results,” says Allan Meldrum, director of Food Chain Innovation, which is supplying the product globally. “The initial UK results from an Essex broiler farm during the recent hard winter showed a 24% gas saving, improved weight gain of 4.4 grams a day and enhanced litter quality with 29% less being used.”

At this farm the walls and ceiling were lined with Valéron AVA, the tough, smooth aluminium laminate which is easy to sanitise.  The material is manufactured in the UK and Belgium by Valéron Strength Films to seal units from air leakage and moisture, and enhance climate control and airflow.

In hot climates the heat reflecting properties of the lining are achieving very significant temperature decreases and also enhancing bird performance through improved airflow and ventilation, according to Meldrum. 

Meldrum says the product is now being introduced both to renovate older buildings and for new state-of-the-art housing where it is particularly easy to install.

 

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Mould growth, which is directly related to moisture content, proliferates under a wide range of conditions and produces secondary toxigenic fungi known as Mycotoxins.  More than 350 types of Mycotoxins have been found with many being harmful, even at low levels. Mycotoxins are now widely recognised as being one of the biggest problems associated with feed and raw materials affecting both animal health and performance.

 “Our new Neutox product comprises four active components which aim not just to control an existing problem but to remove the problem wherever possible,” said Mike Rogers business development director at Kiotechagil. “We conceived the product to be used as a routine in order to avoid animal health problems and to maintain performance.”

 The four active components of Neutox are hydrated silicates, which specifically binds polar mycotoxins such as Aflatoxin, Orchratoxin and Fumonisin as it is critical to minimise the impact of these toxins which can affect the liver and kidney. The second is purified primary growth yeast cell wall and is effective against non polar toxins, commonly field mycotoxins, which are predominantly based on Fusarium growth. The third, Kieselguhr compliments the activity of the hydrated silicates and maintains the free flow characteristics of the product and finally Propionic Acid which, in a safe to handle form, inhibits new mould growth and prevents new toxins in feed and raw materials.

 “All the components of Neutox have been shown not to bind nutrients in the feed and we are very excited about its prospects,” said Kiotechagil’s Mike Rogers.  “Neutox has seen significant take up in countries where it has been trialed and we are now looking to roll it out across other markets.”

 

 

 

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Chicken sexers can manually sort poultry at a speed of 8,000 chicks per day and 99.7% accuracy by learning to identify the external appearance of the birds' sexual organs.

Most experts in so-called "vent" or "cloaca" sexing come from Japan, where the method of distinguishing patterns of birds' sexual organs at one day-old was invented in 1933 and helped revolutionise the poultry business, with Japanese sexers in demand internationally for their skills.

But as Japan's youth migrates to cities, fewer people want the job. "I just got two emails from Denmark and Hungary asking to send over Japanese experts but I have nobody at hand," said Atsushi Nodera from Japan Livestock Technology Association, a sexer with over 30 years experience.
 
"Young people now want a degree and to become a doctor. The effect is that we have plenty of jobless doctors and no one to carry on our profession," added Nodera who spent 10 years in Spain and Germany working as a chick sexer.
But the poultry industry is also changing, with chicken imports eroding the need for sexers at some Japanese hatcheries.
 
The demand for Japanese experts internationally is also on the decline with more breeders using chickens with feather sexing. This has led to a fall in the number of chicken sexers being trained in Japan which once boasted a workforce of more than 1,000 sexers but now only has a few hundred.

The only permanent Chick Sexing School that exists internationally, run each year by the Zen Nippon school in Nagoya, central Japan, has struggled to attract students, with only three finishing this year."There was 30 of us when I went there in 1967. It's a shame young people don't want to take up a sexing career -- a breeder can pay you as much as 8 yen (90 US cents) per hatchling," said Nodera.

This can lead to earnings of about 1,260,000 yen ($15,000) a month with the added bonus of overseas contracts.
But to achieve close to 100 percent accuracy and near the world record speed of some 3 seconds per hatchling requires long hours of training and only a few end up with such skills.

"Years of desire to be a 100% accurate in my work required discipline, practice, practice, focussing and the trusting of my intuition," said former chick sexer and poultry farmer Bob Martin, author of the book "The Specialist Chick Sexer."

Martin also wrote how the discipline needed to be a good chick sexer was almost addictive as it required full concentration for hours on end with a steady hand and good eye.
 
Nodera laments the decline in the interest and demand for experienced chicken sexers whose skill has been compared to that in playing chess or other games involving pattern recognition.

"When I lived in Spain, I often went to admire Gaudi and Picasso," said Nodera. "Not because I love modern art -- I would go there time and again in search for the stroke of genius."

 

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Radio Iowa reports that production in the slaughter area of Tyson Fresh Meats was temporarily halted on Tuesday afternoon after a USDA inspector raised some concerns about the way hogs were being handled at the plant.

According to Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson, about 250 workers were affected by the temporary disruption in operations.

He says the concerns were addressed immediately and full operations resumed later on Tuesday afternoon once the concerns were resolved.

Tuesday’s temporary disruption effected pork processing operations at the plant this morning.

Mr Mickelson says first-shift pork processing workers had the day off because there were not enough carcasses to process. Full operations are expected to back to normal this afternoon.

 

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But that changes in January 2013 when the European partial stalls ban is fully implemented.

The rest of the continent will introduce the minimum requirements of European law, which means sows can still spend almost a quarter of their productive lives in stalls.

In the Netherlands, however, producers will be subject to more demanding welfare restrictions.

They must loose-house gilts and sows except for one week before farrowing and for only four days after service, whereas European law will allow up to four weeks in stalls after service.

The new Netherlands model will bring it almost into line with Sweden (sows must always be loose-housed except for the week before farrowing) and the United Kingdom (stalls outlawed altogether).

Some British retailers may claim the new Netherlands welfare model is as near to Britain's as makes no difference, which would give an unwelcome edge to Vion's marketing in this country.

As a major exporter of weaners across the continent, the Netherland's higher welfare stance will be transmitted through the continental supply chain.

It has been suggested a third of Dutch producers could cease production in 2013 in response to unilateral environmental and welfare legislation in Holland. It is a fair bet the survivors will be seeking a premium.

 

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Poultry producers in Zimbabwe are heading for a showdown with banks as they battle to repay loans following the lifting of the Government ban on imports, reports The Herald of Zimbabwe.

A senior banking executive this week said Government's decision to lift the ban on poultry product imports had disastrous consequences.

"Instead of allowing poultry products into Zimbabwe, Government should be promoting imports of hatching eggs and parent chickens. Flooding of poultry into Zimbabwe is dangerous for chicken farmers who had received hefty loans for the industry.

"Banking institutions forwarded loans to several farmers for the development of the industry, but Government has allowed cheaper imports to flood the market to the detriment of the local producers," he said.

The official said the farmers were not making money as they could not compete with cheap imports and they were left "high and dry" with banks recalling their loans.

"There is need for Government to reflect on the decision to lift the ban," the official said.

Prominent chicken farmer, Jonathan Kadzura, urged Government to empower local producers.

He said: "Instead of solving consumption problems, intervention should come at the production level. Poultry imports that are much cheaper are an affront to the land reform programme. Government should shift its policy and work on empowering farmers."

Another chicken farmer accused retailers of misleading consumers by repackaging the imports.

He alleged: "The retailers know that people do not like the imports and some shops are packing the chickens in Zimbabwean wrapping to dupe customers. This is serious fraud."

There has also been a general outcry that while Government has banned GMO foods, the products were coming in through 'the back door'.

Zimbabwe Poultry Association chairman, Solomon Zawe, was recently quoted by the local media as saying: "We incur huge costs in rearing our chickens, on equipment and infrastructure. Therefore, our prices are justified, as they include these factors."

Major retail shops sell a two-kilo packet of imported chicken cutlets at around US$4 compared to the US$7.30 for the local birds.

In August, the Government early this month lifted the ban on imports saying it would thoroughly inspect the products to guard against poor quality, according to The Nation. Poultry imports had been suspended since March.

 

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