Poultry comprised nearly 37% of North Carolina’s total farm income in 2005. Chickens, turkeys and eggs combined for a total poultry farm income of more than $3.0 billion dollars. Here’s a snapshot of the North Carolina poultry industry in 2005:
Broilers (Chickens) - Ranked 4th nationally behind Georgia, Arkansas and Alabama, producing nearly 9% of the nation’s broilers.
- 735,100,000 broilers produced
- 4.5 billion pounds (live weight)
- $2.2 billion in farm income
Eggs - Ranked 10th nationally
- 2.52 billion eggs produced
- $250 million in farm income
Turkeys - Ranked 2nd nationally behind Minnesota, producing 15.5% of the nation’s turkeys
- 40.0 million turkeys produced
- 1.22 billion pounds (live weight)
- $500 million in farm income
Total Poultry (By cash receipts) – Ranked 3rd nationally with more than 10% of the nation’s poultry production
- $3.0 billion in farm income
Employment
Close to 5000 North Carolina families produce
poultry on their farms, with another 30,000 directly
employed in some aspect of poultry production or processing.
Other Poultry Facts:
- Americans continue to consume poultry in amazing quantities. On average, we eat nearly 90 pounds of chicken, 17 pounds of turkey and more than 20 dozen eggs per person per year in the United States.
- American consumers eat more chicken than any other meat. Chicken surpassed beef consumption in 1992, and continues to be the leading meat.
Other Important Links:
International Poultry Expo (www.ipe08.org)
National Chicken Council (www.eatchicken.com)
National Turkey Federation (www.eatturkey.com)
U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (www.poultryegg.org)
© Copyright 2007 North Carolina Poultry Federation. All Rights Reserved.
Close to 5000 North Carolina families produce poultry on their farms, with another 25,000 directly employed in some aspect of poultry production or processing.
