Download Hatcheries - Chicken.org.au

Australian Chicken Meat
Federation (ACMF) Inc
Hatcheries
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Eggs from breeder farms are sent to a hatchery for 21 days incubation.
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Incubation can be delayed for up to a week, allowing hatching to be planned to meet the company’s
future day-old chick needs.
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Eggs are fumigated at the hatchery, if this has not been done on the breeder farm prior to entering
the incubation process.
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The hatching operation involves two stages:
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The setter stage
 When the eggs are first received from breeding farms, they are placed in racks on
shelves, fumigated and incubated in a machine called the setter for 18 days.
 These machines mimic the natural conditions a hen would provide for proper
embryonic development, controlling temperature and humidity and turning the
eggs hourly.
The hatcher stage
 Eggs are transferred to the hatcher after 18 days and placed loose in trays.
 The hatcher provides similar conditions to the setter, but a slightly higher
temperature, encouraging development and stimulating hatching.
 The hatcher stage takes three days.
Hatchability
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Hatchability is the percentage of live chicks hatched. This is affected by:
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The health, age, nutrition and fertility of the breeder flock – hatchability declines as
flocks age.
The genetic line of breeder - eggs from great-grandparent flocks might average up to
80% hatchability, rising to 85% hatchability for eggs from parent flocks.
How well incubation conditions have met the embryo’s needs
How well eggs have been handled since being laid
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When a chick hatches, it takes what remains of the yolk inside its abdomen, giving it nutrients
which last until it is delivered to a farm where it will be reared.
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Good hatchery hygiene is important to ensure that the chicks do not pick up an infection in the
hatchery and are healthy and vigorous on release.
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After hatching, chicks are graded and in some cases divided by sex.
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They may be vaccinated for diseases such as infectious bronchitis, Newcastle disease and
Marek’s disease.
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The chicks are then counted and dispatched to breeding or broiler-growing farms.