276 POULTRY PRODUCTS 



The poultryman must prepare in advance for this trade. 

 He must hatch the chicks in the fall and winter, and have 

 them ready for market in January, February, and March. 

 The natural season for broilers comes in the months of May, 

 June, and July, when the surplus cockerels which result 

 from the hatching of pullets for layers, reach the broiler age. 



Most of the broilers sold are raised as a side line to egg 

 production. There are a few special broiler farms about the 

 country, but, as a rule, they are not financially a success. 

 It costs from twenty to thirty cents to produce a broiler; 

 this includes the egg and the feed. Prices vary considerably 

 during the special broiler season in the winter, and there is 

 a noticeable drop in price about the first of June, when the 

 natural supply floods the market. The largest profits are 

 realized from broilers if they can be made marketable before 

 the natural supply reaches the market. 



Roasting Chickens. The term " roasting chickens" ap- 

 plies both to pullets and cockerels sold for roasting, and 

 usually marketed when from eight to ten months old. The 

 idea is to market them just before they reach maturity. 

 There are two market types, the small and large roaster. 

 The small roaster ranges in weight from four to five pounds, 

 the large from six to eight (Fig. 152). The natural roasting 

 season is in the fall and winter, and the heaviest demand 

 usually comes in the holiday seasons of Thanksgiving and 

 Christmas. Roasters bring a price of from twenty-four to 

 thirty cents a pound, and they can be made very profitable 

 if grown on free range. 



There are three types of roasting chickens ; Cockerels, pul- 

 lets, and capons. Cockerels are generally produced as a by- 

 product to egg farming, and are marketed for roasting during 

 August, September, and October. In a few sections they are 

 produced purposely to cater to the roasting trade, and then 

 they undergo a fattening process to put them in prime con- 

 dition for market. Pullets are rarely sold for roasters except 



