While Oregon may not be the number one chicken and egg producer in the nation, both still play a large role in Oregon’s state economy. In 2020, there were 2,757,000 chickens counted in Oregon, and eggs ranked Oregon’s #17 commodity.1
Which came first: the chicken or the egg? While this age-old question may never be answered, the history of chickens is well documented. The ancestors of the chickens we know today are traced back to ancient Egypt 3,200 years ago. The birds were originally domesticated for sport but it was soon realized that the meat and eggs were good sources of food, and chickens became livestock.
As people moved throughout the world, chickens moved with them. People raised chickens in their backyards and were able to feed themselves with the eggs and meat produced by their flock.
The egg industry began with farmers selling eggs at local farmer’s markets. As more people moved to the city and fewer had their own flocks, it became profitable for farmers to have large numbers of hens to sell the eggs.
Around the same time the egg industry was taking off, so was the chicken meat industry. The development of the broiler was the main beginning of this commercial industry. Broilers are chickens that are bred to give more meat, particularly in their breast muscles. The fifty years between the 1920s and 1970s saw a large expansion in the chicken meat industry. This growth can be credited to vertical integration which means one owner took care of hatching the chickens to processing the products, instead of each stage being split up by many farms.
There are hundreds of different chicken breeds. Some breeds are good for egg production and some are good for meat production. Below are three breeds that are commonly found in their large-scale egg production or meat production farms.
Laying hens begin as fertilized eggs, which means a rooster has mated with a hen laying eggs. Fertilized eggs are sent to a hatching facility, where the eggs are incubated, or kept warm, for 21 days until they hatch. Once hatched, the female babies are called pullets. The pullets are moved to a grow-out facility where they grow for 19 weeks until they are ready to lay eggs. When they are ready, the pullets are transferred to the laying facility where they are officially hens! A hen can lay an egg every 24 to 26 hours and will lay around 300 eggs in her production life cycle. After a year of laying eggs, the hens are sent to a processing plant to be used for meat.
The broiler life begins the same as a laying hen. Fertilized male eggs arrive at the hatching facility, are incubated for 21 days, and then sent to the grow out facility. At the grow out facilities, the chickens have access to fresh water and feed almost 24 hours a day. The lighting in the building is carefully watched. The longer the light is on, the more the chickens will eat. This is done so the chickens can reach market weight as soon as possible. A broiler chicken will reach a market weight of 5 pounds in 6 to 7 weeks. Once the birds reach this weight, they are taken to the processing plant for harvest.
Caged hens are kept in cages, normally 6 to 7 hens per cage. They have access to fresh water all day and food. The hens lay their eggs in the cage, and the eggs roll down to a conveyor belt. The hens do not have access to the outside, but the barns are well ventilated, heated in the winter, and cooled in the summer.
Cage free hens are kept in a large barn, similar to how broilers are raised. Some systems have nest boxes for the hens to lay their eggs, to make collection easier. There is access to fresh food and water at all times. Like the cage system,the hens do not have access to the outside.
Free range is the same as cage free, with one important difference: free range hens have access to the outside. In addition to the feed available in the barn, the hens may also eat grass and insects.
To produce more chickens with desired traits
Male chickens used for meat
A practice of farming where the hens are kept in cages and not let outside
A practice of farming where the hens are not kept in cages and not let outside
Animals trained to coexist or benefit humans
The eggs produced when a rooster mates with a hen
A practice of farming where the hens are not kept in cages and allowed to go outside
When a chick, or baby chicken, breaks out of its egg
When eggs are artificially kept warm to mimic a hen sitting on them
Animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor or produce commodities
Young hens before they are mature enough to lay eggs
One owner takes care of hatching to processing