Expansion Opportunities 



for the 



New Hampshire Poultry Meat Industry 



1. The Competitive Position of the industry 



by 



J. R. BOWKING 



Associate Professor of Agricultural Economics 



and 

 William H. Wallace* 



KEEN COMPETITION in the poultry industry in the United States necessi- 

 tates a continuous assessment of the current situation and examina- 

 tion of potential opportunities for expansion or change. 



It is the purpose of this first study in a series to examine broadly 

 some basic factors of the New Hampshire poultry meat industry in rela- 

 tion to its competitors. The analysis is oriented to the Boston market be- 

 cause of its size, location, and potentialities for an expanded use of New 

 Hampshire poultry meat. 



With this objective, the more important competitive factors will be 

 discussed in the following order: baby chick prices, farm wage rates, housing 

 costs, prices at the farm, transportation rates, and feed prices. Consider- 

 ation of these economic factors will provide a background for further dis- 

 cussion of production and marketing problems as they exist and as they 

 are likely to exist in the future, with the aim of providing guides and im- 

 proving information on the poultry meat industry of New Hampshire. 



Poultry Meat Production in New Hampshire 



At one time New Hampshire poultry men were among the largest pro- 

 ducers of winter broilers in the country. The majority of the broilers pro- 

 duced from 1919 to 1923 were shipped live to the New York market where 

 extraordinarily high prices were paid for them during the winter months. 

 This era was started with the discovery of vitamin "D" in fish oil which 

 made possible the rearing of broilers in confinement during the winter 

 months. 



The sale of broilers now accounts for about 12 percent of the total 

 receipts from the poultry industry in the state. The sale of fowl accounts 

 for 18 percent, which means that approximately 30 percent of total re- 

 ceipts is from poultry meat. The remainder of the income is from market 



*This study is based on a thesis by William H. Wallace presented in partial fulfillment of the 

 M.S. degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of New Hampshire. 



