III. Plant Organization, Practices, and Equipment 



Unit Growth and Organization of Firm 



No significant relationship exists between the type of business organization 

 and length of time in business or the area in which located. 



More medium-sized and large plants than small plants are incorporated. 

 Indeed, with many of the two former groups, the processing unit may be 

 only one of several units involved in a corporation; the others dealing 

 with hatching, growing, contract growing, distributing, milling, etc. 



Of 13 large plants, 11 indicated that the present management had begun 

 processing operations in the post-World War II period. They started either 

 as medium-sized or large. The two other units presently classified as large 

 both started as small hand operations. Some other large units were oper- 

 ating earlier under different management, and perhaps on a smaller scale. 



Of 30 small and medium-sized plants, 11 started prior to World War II 

 and 17 after 1946. Again, some of the post-war starts may represent forma- 

 tion of new managerial arrangements to accommodate veterans and family 

 members joining the firm. Only three firms — one in each size category — 

 indicated the present management had begun processing during World 

 War II. 



Four small plants, one medium-sized plant, and two large plants reported 

 no supplementary functions. Supplementary functions are activities of a 

 plant other than assembling live birds, processing, and distributing pro- 

 cessed birds, and are measures of integration. 



Five small plants were, or recently had been, primarily growers, and pro- 

 duced many of the birds they processed. The five large processors carrying 

 on growing operations limited these to certain classes (turkeys) which did 

 not constitute a large share of plant volume, to breeding and experimental 

 flocks, and to a few plant-owned broiler farms. In no case was the growing 

 operation of the large unit a major contributor of plant volume. 



The mere counting of functions can be misleading. In terms of the present 

 shares of plant volume, contract growing is of negligible importance to 

 medium-sized plants, but of considerable importance to large plants. Dis- 

 tribution of live poultry is still carried out to some extent by processing 

 units. To some of the smaller plants, this volume may be important and may 

 exceed volume sold in processed form. Some of the medium-sized and 

 large plants evolved out of live buyer operations, and may still retain a 

 few old contacts. For all plant sizes, the live market may function as an 

 outlet for surpluses at particular seasons or of particular market classes. 



For smaller plants, the egg handling operation is likely to be supple- 

 mentary to the delivery of processed poultry to retail-level outlets. As size 

 increases, the operation tends to move closer to the wholesale type. In this 

 study, the two large processing plants handling a large volume of eggs were 

 both cooperatives playing a major role as egg receivers in their localities. 

 A few other plants marketed surplus eggs from their own breeding flocks. 



Several small plants produced and hatched their own eggs as did two 

 medium-sized plants involved in production of one-pound Rock-Cornish 

 birds. A number of large plants carried breeders and either used local 

 hatching facilities or jointly owned them. 



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