A Maryland report* shows 90.1 percent of the chicks hatched as cross- 

 breeds and 6.6 percent as New Hampshires. while in a Maine studyt it was 

 reported (December 1946 to November 1947) that 49.5 percent of the 

 hatching eggs sold were crosses, 34 percent New Hampshires, 12.1 percent 

 sex-linked, and 4.4 percent Rhode Island Reds. 



More than 70 producers who were selling about 1,000 cases per week 

 reported that approximately 74 percent of the hatching eggs went for broiler 

 production and 26 percent for replacement purposes. Of the producers re- 

 porting, 47 percent sold all their hatching eggs for broiler purposes; 3 

 percent sold all their eggs for replacement purposes; 25 percent sold over 

 half, but not all, for broiler purposes; 14 percent sold about half for broil- 

 ers and half for replacement; and 11 percent sold over half, but not all, 

 for flock replacements. 



Hatching eggs are sent from New Hampshire to all parts of the United 

 States. The volume which went into different areas in 1947 was reported 

 as follows: 10 percent to New England; 52 percent to the Middle Atlantic 

 states; 31 percent to the Southern states; and 7 percent to the Western 

 states. 



Disposal of Eggs by Hatching-Egg Producers 



Data on disposal of hatching eggs were obtained from 69 hatching 

 egg producers who handle about 1,400 cases per week. Approximately one- 

 third of these used part of their eggs in their own hatchery operations. In 

 the disposal of hatching eggs, sales direct to hatcheries ranked first; those 

 used in their own hatcheries were second; and sale to buyers at the farm 

 came third. These data are summarized as follows: sale of eggs direct to 

 hatcheries, 41 percent; eggs used in own hatcheries, 30 percent; eggs sold 

 to buyers at farm, 19 percent; those sold as market eggs, 9 percent; and 

 other sales, 1 percent. 



New Hampshire hatching egg producers rely to a large extent upon 

 their own eggs for flock replacements and buy only about 15 percent out- 

 side the state. Commercial hatcheries in the state were reported as hatch- 

 ing 31,441,000 chicks in 1949, providing an important outlet for hatching 

 eggs. Six New Hampshire hatcheries had a combined egg capacity of over 

 3,000,000 eggs in 1947. Reports on the capacity of 38 hatcheries are shown 

 in Table 5. 



No other New England state hatches as large a number of chicks as 

 related to eggs produced. Chicks hatched totalled 8.17 percent of all eggs 

 produced, a rate more than double that of Massachusetts and more than three 



Table 5. Egg Capacity of 38 New Hampshire Hatcheries in 1947 



Production in 1947 

 Egg Capacity Reported as a 



No. Included Included % of Egg Capacity 



Under 10,000 eggs 

 10.000 — 25.000 eggs 

 25,000 — 100,000 eggs 

 Over 100,000 eggs 



38 



3,678,130 



♦Maryland Misc. Publication 71, March 1949, Marketing Hatching Eggs and Broiler Chicks in Dela- 

 ware and Eastern Shore of Maryland by H. D. Smith, P. R. Poffeiiberger, and S. H. DeVault. 

 tMaine Misc. Publication 617, Marketing of Hatching Eggs in Maine by Andrew Watson. 



8 



