Poultry Slaughter National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released July 6, 1999, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Poultry Slaughter" call John Lange (202) 720-0585 or Mike Barker (202)720-3243, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Ready-to-Cook Weight Up 8 Percent Poultry certified wholesome during May (ready-to-cook weight), totaled 2.95 billion pounds, up 8 percent from the amount certified in May 1998. Updated totals for April 1999 show that 3.02 billion pounds were certified. The preliminary total live weight of poultry inspected during May 1999 was 4.01 billion pounds. Inspections included 3.36 billion pounds of young chickens, 77.6 million pounds of mature chickens, 559 million pounds of turkeys, and 11.9 million pounds of ducks. Young chickens slaughtered during May 1999 averaged 5.04 pounds per bird, up 4 percent from May 1998. The average live weight of mature chickens was 5.07 pounds per bird, down 2 percent from a year ago. Turkeys slaughtered during May 1999 averaged 25.7 pounds per bird, up 3 percent from May 1998. Ante-mortem condemnations during May 1999 totaled 15.2 million pounds. Condemnations were 0.38 percent of the live weight inspected, unchanged from a year earlier. Post-mortem condemnations, at 64.4 million pounds (N.Y. dressed weight), were 1.78 percent of quantities inspected, compared with 1.85 percent a year earlier. May 1999 contained 21 weekdays and five Saturdays, the same as May 1998. Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, May 1999 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature 2/ : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Apr 1999 : 684,939 15,666 700,604 1,929 ----- May 1998 : 635,698 14,713 650,411 1,867 ----- May 1999 : 668,120 15,298 683,418 1,781 ----- : Jan-May 1998 : 3,226,099 71,637 3,297,737 9,393 ----- Jan-May 1999 : 3,340,808 75,746 3,416,554 9,473 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Apr 1999 : 3,432,314 79,358 3,511,672 12,593 900 May 1998 : 3,085,643 76,117 3,161,759 12,218 997 May 1999 : 3,364,490 77,631 3,442,121 11,885 868 : Jan-May 1998 : 15,704,478 361,595 16,066,073 62,477 5,277 Jan-May 1999 : 16,755,541 382,954 17,138,494 63,108 4,142 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Apr 1999 : 5.01 5.07 5.01 6.53 ----- May 1998 : 4.85 5.17 4.86 6.54 ----- May 1999 : 5.04 5.07 5.04 6.67 ----- : Jan-May 1998 : 4.87 5.05 4.87 6.65 ----- Jan-May 1999 : 5.02 5.06 5.02 6.66 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, United States, May 1999 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young 3/ : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Head Number Inspected : : Apr 1999 : --- 21,775 175 21,950 ----- May 1998 : --- 21,180 108 21,288 ----- May 1999 : 27 21,614 107 21,748 ----- : Jan-May 1998 : --- 107,920 715 108,635 ----- Jan-May 1999 : 27 102,638 660 103,325 ----- : : 1,000 Pounds Live Weight : : Apr 1999 : --- 552,727 4,693 557,419 4,082,585 May 1998 : --- 528,904 2,750 531,654 3,706,629 May 1999 : 236 555,980 2,798 559,014 4,013,887 : Jan-May 1998 : --- 2,716,442 19,230 2,735,672 18,869,499 Jan-May 1999 : 236 2,629,900 17,691 2,647,827 19,853,570 : : Pounds Average Live Weight : : Apr 1999 : --- 25.38 26.83 25.39 ----- May 1998 : --- 24.97 25.45 24.97 ----- May 1999 : 8.72 25.72 26.24 25.70 ----- : Jan-May 1998 : --- 25.17 26.89 25.18 ----- Jan-May 1999 : 8.72 25.62 26.82 25.63 ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Federally inspected only. Totals may not add due to rounding. 2/ Of the Mature Chickens inspected, the number reported in thousands as heavy fowl (broiler breeding stock) was: May 1998: 5,973, May 1999: 5,733. 3/ Of the Young Turkeys inspected, the number reported in thousands as young breeders was: May 1998: 89, May 1999: 30. Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, May 1999 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :---------------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Apr 1999 : Chilled : 2,302,918 44,116 2,347,035 3,426 320 Frozen : 217,371 3,220 220,591 5,448 211 : Total : 2,520,290 47,336 2,567,626 8,874 531 : May 1998 : Chilled : 2,068,562 42,067 2,110,629 3,026 371 Frozen : 191,061 4,043 195,105 5,652 142 : Total : 2,259,623 46,110 2,305,734 8,678 513 : May 1999 : Chilled : 2,248,583 43,275 2,291,858 3,248 298 Frozen : 211,390 3,547 214,938 5,058 199 : Total : 2,459,973 46,823 2,506,796 8,305 496 : : Jan-May 1998 : Chilled : 10,453,019 199,897 10,652,916 15,428 1,920 Frozen : 1,035,774 17,756 1,053,530 29,015 1,004 : Total : 11,488,793 217,653 11,706,446 44,443 2,924 : Jan-May 1999 : Chilled : 11,214,342 213,855 11,428,197 17,353 1,522 Frozen : 1,060,881 16,842 1,077,722 26,821 856 : Total : 12,275,223 230,697 12,505,920 44,174 2,377 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Chilled and Frozen, Pounds Certified by Type, United States, May 1999 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :---------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Apr 1999 : Chilled : --- 199,784 2,581 202,365 2,553,146 Frozen : --- 235,993 934 236,927 463,177 : Total : --- 435,778 3,515 439,293 3,016,323 : May 1998 : Chilled : --- 195,582 1,238 196,820 2,310,846 Frozen : --- 223,558 780 224,338 425,237 : Total : --- 419,141 2,018 421,158 2,736,083 : May 1999 : Chilled : 21 192,170 1,514 193,704 2,489,107 Frozen : 146 244,909 603 245,657 465,852 : Total : 166 437,078 2,117 439,361 2,954,958 : : Jan-May 1998 : Chilled : --- 1,028,362 9,606 1,037,969 11,708,232 Frozen : --- 1,110,777 4,847 1,115,624 2,199,173 : Total : --- 2,139,140 14,453 2,153,592 13,907,406 : Jan-May 1999 : Chilled : 21 960,847 9,654 970,522 12,417,594 Frozen : 146 1,110,692 3,601 1,114,438 2,219,838 : Total : 166 2,071,539 13,255 2,084,960 14,637,431 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. Totals may not add due to rounding. Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, May 1999 with Comparisons 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : Chickens : : Other :------------------------------------: Ducks : Poultry : Young : Mature : Total : : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Apr 1999 : 12,716 1,734 14,450 16 6 May 1998 : 11,099 1,485 12,584 13 11 May 1999 : 12,729 1,087 13,816 16 4 : Jan-May 1998 : 60,282 5,601 65,883 58 21 Jan-May 1999 : 68,751 5,877 74,627 81 24 : Percent 2/ : : May 1998 : 0.36 1.95 0.40 0.11 1.13 May 1999 : 0.38 1.40 0.40 0.13 0.47 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Apr 1999 : 52,818 5,039 57,857 324 7 May 1998 : 47,607 4,082 51,688 260 8 May 1999 : 48,383 4,893 53,276 290 8 : Jan-May 1998 : 254,130 21,243 275,374 1,293 48 Jan-May 1999 : 263,167 23,794 286,961 1,511 32 : Percent 3/ : : May 1998 : 1.71 5.96 1.82 2.37 0.92 May 1999 : 1.60 7.00 1.72 2.71 1.07 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- See footnotes at end of table. -- continued Poultry Slaughter: Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, United States, May 1999 with Comparisons 1/ (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Turkeys : :--------------------------------------------: Total : Fryer- : : : Total : Poultry : Roasters : Young : Old : Turkeys : :------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Ante-Mortem : (Live Weight) : : Apr 1999 : --- 1,314 35 1,349 15,821 May 1998 : --- 1,350 21 1,371 13,979 May 1999 : --- 1,313 24 1,338 15,174 : Jan-May 1998 : --- 7,421 145 7,566 73,528 Jan-May 1999 : --- 6,806 162 6,968 81,700 : Percent 2/ : : May 1998 : --- 0.26 0.76 0.26 0.38 May 1999 : 0.17 0.24 0.87 0.24 0.38 : : 1,000 Pounds Post-Mortem : (N.Y. Dressed Weight) : : Apr 1999 : --- 11,263 336 11,599 69,787 May 1998 : --- 9,395 218 9,613 61,570 May 1999 : 2 10,507 275 10,784 64,358 : Jan-May 1998 : --- 55,191 1,381 56,572 333,287 Jan-May 1999 : 2 52,667 1,309 53,979 342,482 : Percent 3/ : : May 1998 : --- 1.97 8.82 2.01 1.85 May 1999 : 0.96 2.10 10.92 2.14 1.78 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Federally inspected only. Totals may not add due to rounding. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of pounds (live weight) inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. 3/ Pounds condemned as percent of pounds N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, May 1998-99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : AL : 67,325 76,395 328,661 391,762 4.88 5.13 AR : 92,346 96,858 447,328 474,763 4.84 4.90 DE : 21,519 23,192 122,600 134,360 5.70 5.79 FL : 11,224 10,603 49,723 57,151 4.43 5.39 GA : 92,024 95,399 447,326 477,598 4.86 5.01 LA : 12,354 12,511 57,057 56,468 4.62 4.51 MD : 17,590 17,150 82,808 82,096 4.71 4.79 MS : 56,754 55,160 272,437 277,586 4.80 5.03 MO : 29,593 30,009 128,975 138,720 4.36 4.62 NC : 50,470 52,569 276,451 306,695 5.48 5.83 PA : 8,855 9,033 44,600 48,742 5.04 5.40 SC : 17,951 18,345 82,242 87,617 4.58 4.78 TN : 15,287 17,914 73,862 87,806 4.83 4.90 TX : 40,856 45,823 185,712 215,192 4.55 4.70 VA : 29,951 31,065 143,056 152,219 4.78 4.90 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 635,698 668,120 3,085,643 3,364,490 4.85 5.04 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, May 1998-99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : AL : 241,110 290,696 6,831 7,575 2.31 2.15 AR : 319,597 342,530 5,566 5,995 1.38 1.40 DE : 87,209 97,632 2,403 2,890 2.18 2.39 FL : 35,600 40,134 841 944 1.88 1.84 GA : 331,928 352,750 6,901 6,799 1.71 1.58 LA : 40,499 39,077 882 1,163 1.72 2.29 MD : 59,073 57,689 1,109 1,339 1.49 1.81 MS : 206,673 205,499 3,948 2,580 1.61 1.03 MO : 93,546 101,064 1,447 1,444 1.25 1.16 NC : 209,704 231,034 4,741 4,707 1.91 1.71 PA : 31,084 34,689 1,354 1,331 3.37 3.04 SC : 60,556 64,407 1,486 1,430 2.01 1.81 TN : 53,675 63,630 846 867 1.27 1.10 TX : 141,520 162,737 2,127 2,402 1.27 1.24 VA : 100,435 105,336 1,759 1,549 1.37 1.13 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 2,259,623 2,459,973 47,607 48,383 1.71 1.60 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of equivalent N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Young Chickens Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, May 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : --- 4,377 221,958 397,077 1,839 12,656 AR : --- --- 319,599 146,789 14,197 6,574 DE : --- 10,320 122,313 94,875 --- 19,603 FL : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- 136,066 318,484 936 9,548 LA : --- --- 35,574 33,023 270 1,197 MD : --- 11,589 105,894 54,175 74 9,256 MS : --- 2,204 112,087 36,995 1,250 2,891 MO : --- 3,800 90,815 32,103 2,929 1,570 NC : --- --- 154,420 83,244 145 48,853 PA : --- --- 39,519 36,347 210 --- SC : --- 1,102 36,434 65,914 59 --- TN : --- 277 56,553 15,833 --- --- TX : --- --- 127,603 64,518 1,248 2,408 VA : --- --- 72,766 41,417 50 --- WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : --- 148,259 1,998,640 1,493,276 40,733 152,820 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AL : 11,239 35,629 64,820 12,604 224,428 986,627 AR : 11,785 31,754 52,801 6,284 139,562 729,345 DE : 2,571 15,018 17,880 7,855 70,991 361,426 FL : --- 3,069 7,048 --- --- 10,117 GA : 11,489 36,057 61,828 9,886 337,828 922,122 LA : 1,498 --- --- --- 13,177 84,739 MD : 1,487 12,032 --- 1,265 31,589 227,361 MS : 4,840 21,231 22,477 2,215 80,446 286,636 MO : 2,206 14,579 17,450 1,974 42,921 210,347 NC : 7,155 41,237 42,544 6,601 131,920 516,119 PA : 2,481 4,071 --- --- 31,342 113,970 SC : 3,809 17,480 9,821 7,672 37,603 179,894 TN : 2,908 9,439 --- 1,557 --- 86,567 TX : 1,926 13,522 16,286 2,048 13,067 242,626 VA : 2,274 9,404 6,994 2,188 50,287 185,380 WA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 77,707 301,224 455,629 72,437 1,400,073 6,140,798 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, May 1998-99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 14,713 15,298 76,117 77,631 5.17 5.07 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, May 1998-99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : CA : --- --- --- --- --- --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 46,110 46,823 4,082 4,893 5.96 7.00 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of equivalent N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Mature Chickens Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, May 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- --- --- 20 10 --- GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : --- 8,691 374,106 24,406 895 165,743 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : CA : --- --- --- --- --- 30 GA : --- --- --- --- --- --- : US : 43,960 40,987 205,177 1,727 68,006 933,698 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and United States, May 1998-99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Average : Number : Live Weight : Live Weight State : Inspected : Inspected : Inspected 1/ :-----------------------:---------------------------:------------------- : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ 1,000 ------ ---- 1,000 Pounds ---- --- Pounds --- : AR : 2,072 2,087 36,637 39,438 17.69 18.90 CA : 1,193 1,348 27,589 33,218 23.12 24.64 IA : 1,184 1,416 32,077 42,358 27.09 29.91 MN : 3,319 3,575 74,731 87,707 22.52 24.53 MO : 1,991 1,974 55,654 57,463 27.96 29.11 NC : 3,000 2,711 80,732 67,392 26.91 24.86 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 2,721 3,038 56,367 66,841 20.72 22.00 : US : 21,180 21,614 528,904 555,980 24.97 25.72 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Average weight based on unrounded data. Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and United States, May 1998-99 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-Mortem Condemnations : Total :----------------------------------------- State : Certified 1/ : N.Y. Dressed Weight : Percent 2/ :-----------------------------:----------------------------------------- : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------------ 1,000 Pounds ------------------ -- Percent -- : AR : 30,151 32,081 503 574 1.53 1.62 CA : 21,867 27,090 373 428 1.50 1.43 IA : 24,973 32,355 710 1,010 2.46 2.65 MN : 59,722 70,389 1,665 2,176 2.48 2.76 MO : 43,415 44,226 1,069 1,205 2.13 2.33 NC : 63,667 51,756 1,191 1,196 1.64 1.97 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : 43,816 52,237 723 924 1.43 1.54 : US : 419,141 437,078 9,395 10,507 1.97 2.10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of equivalent N.Y. dressed weight of quantity inspected. Percentages based on unrounded data. Young Turkeys (Mature) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, Selected States and United States, May 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- --- 4,455 210 5 --- CA : --- --- 5,016 49 --- --- IA : --- --- 6,295 2,480 --- --- MN : --- --- 17,173 --- --- 4 MO : --- --- 13,350 --- --- 4 NC : --- --- 4,684 --- --- --- PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : --- --- 3,763 246 --- --- : US : --- 725 81,539 15,867 5,973 92,325 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : AR : --- --- --- --- --- 4,670 CA : --- --- 150 --- 630 5,845 IA : --- --- 752 --- --- 9,527 MN : --- 849 988 --- 1,601 20,615 MO : 67 366 --- --- 1,598 15,385 NC : 108 --- 1,703 --- 997 7,492 PA : --- --- --- --- --- --- VA : --- 1,305 212 --- 1,270 6,796 : US : 950 8,291 7,937 3,276 11,839 228,722 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Old Turkeys (Breeders) Slaughtered: Number Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause, United States, May 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Tuber- : : : Airsac- : : State : culosis : Leukosis : Septicemia : culitis : Synovitis : Tumors ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : --- --- 3,424 481 --- 33 :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : Contam- : : : : Bruises : Cadaver : ination : Overscald : Other : Total :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : Number : US : 21 80 219 19 816 5,093 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Poultry Slaughter Estimates Data Sources: Primary data for commercial poultry slaughter estimates are obtained from the Poultry Inspection Form (FSIS 6000-21) completed by inspectors of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), USDA. This form provides actual counts of birds slaughtered in Federally Inspected (FI) plants. Over 99 percent of the total U.S. slaughter for any species is under FI. The FSIS 6000-21 forms collect number of head slaughtered daily under FI by species and class as well as condemnations and total live and dressed weights. Approximately 350 plants in the U.S. are operated under Federal Inspection. Annual totals of poultry slaughtered under State-administered Non-Federal Inspection (NFI) are published in the April release. Revision Policy: Revisions are generally the result of late reports received by FSIS from plants and are usually less than one-half of 1 percent of the preliminary totals. Revisions for the previous month and year-to-date totals are published in each monthly release. Final data are published in the annual summary released in April and reflect any late reports or corrections which occurred after the monthly revision were published. Procedures and Reliability: Plant inspectors submit forms (FSIS 6000-21) weekly summarizing the plant's activity. When inconsistencies in the data are detected, the reports are returned to the inspectors for correction. Inspectors correct or validate the report and resubmit it. The reports cover weekly activities through Saturday night and reported data are allocated to the appropriate month as it enters the database. A NASS computer program provides a review of current data with historical data for each plant. An edit provides checks for the detection of errors such as invalid plant information, duplication, and erroneous data. The program also generates a missing reports listing for a telephone follow-up. Data are summarized weekly and accumulated to a monthly total for this release. Major slaughter plants with missing reports are adjusted prior to publication to assure that all plants slaughtering a significant portion of a specific class are accounted for each week. Estimates for missing weeks are made only after verifying that the plant was in operation. Adjustments are based on either the previous week's information or a week determined to be similar to the one missing. Late reports replace imputed data as they become available. While there will continue to be a varying degree of incompleteness from month to month, it is expected to have only a minimal impact on the final totals. Poultry slaughter estimates are based on a census of operating plants and, therefore, have no sampling error. However, they may be subject to errors such as omissions, duplications, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. These errors are minimized through strict quality controls in the edit and summarization process, and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. Generally, no State data are published if less than three plants operate for a species in a State, or if one plant has 60 percent or more of the total head for that species. These data are included in the U.S. totals. Definitions Used To Report Federally Inspected Slaughter Ante-Mortem Condemnations - Birds condemned prior to their entry into the slaughter plant. Certified Ready-to-Cook - The weight of poultry certified wholesome by inspection after post-mortem condemnation pounds are removed. Ready-to-cook represents poultry meat ready for the marketing channel. Ducks - Includes all ducks regardless of age and weight. Fryer-Roaster Turkeys - Young immature birds, usually under 16 weeks of age. Mature Chickens - Fowl from breeder and market egg flocks and stags and cocks. New York Dressed Weight - Carcass weight after only feathers and blood are removed. This weight is approximately 90% of live weight. Old Turkeys (Breeders) - Fully matured birds held for egg production, usually over 15 months of age. Other Poultry - Includes all other ready-to-cook products which bear the U.S.D.A. Inspected for Wholesomeness legend. Post-Mortem Condemnations - Carcasses or parts condemned by the inspector because of disease or mishandling and removed from the slaughter line and destroyed. Young Chickens - Commercially grown broilers-fryers and other young immature birds such as roasters and capons. Young Turkeys (Mature) - Young birds grown to a matured market age, about 5 months. Index Page Definitions.............................................................. 16 Mature Chickens Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, U.S., May 1998-1999..................................................... 11 Mature Chickens Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999................................. 11 Mature Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, U.S., May 1998-1999..................................................... 11 Old Turkeys (Breeders) Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, U.S., May 1998-1999..................................................... 14 Poultry Chilled and Frozen Pounds Certified (RTC) by Type, U.S., May 1998.......................................................... 4 Poultry Slaughter Ante-Mortem and Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type, U.S., May 1998................................................. 6 Poultry Slaughter Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type, U.S., May 1998..................................... 2 Reliability Statement.................................................... 15 Young Chickens Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999................................. 8 Young Chickens Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999................................. 10 Young Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999................................. 9 Young Turkeys (Mature) Number Inspected, Live Weight, and Average Live Weight, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999.................... 12 Young Turkeys (Mature) Post-Mortem Condemnations by Cause, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999................................. 13 Young Turkeys (Mature) Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations, Selected States and U.S., May 1998-1999................................. 12 The next "Poultry Slaughter" report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on August 5, 1999. 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