The story of the poultry industry is one of continuous improvements. Steady advancements have reshaped the economics of food production, improved sustainability and helped make chicken the most consumed protein in the United States, said Mike Donohue, retired vice president of Agri Stats.
In 1980, the broiler chicken efficiency goal was to reach about a 4-pound market weight in 53 days, consuming 2.1 pounds of feed for every pound gained.
Fast forward to 2024: commercial broilers grew to 4 pounds in just 34 days, needing only 1.58 pounds of feed per pound of growth. That’s 35% faster growth with 25% less feed to reach the same weight, he said.
These shifts didn’t happen by chance. “It staggers me that these changes are a result of improved genetics, better field performance and nutritional changes, and the efforts made by the industry to ensure we have a safe and healthy food supply for consumers not only in the United States, but around the world,” Donohue said.
Few industries can rival the poultry sector’s record of sustained productivity gains. Genetic selection has improved bird livability, feed conversion efficiency and yield, while nutritionists have refined feed formulations to extract more value, he added.
In 1994, boneless breast meat accounted for about 15% of a chicken’s live weight. Today, it exceeds 26% (see Fig. 1), and many heavy-bird flocks achieve yields above 30%. Meanwhile, overall meat yield has climbed from 69% in 1997 to over 80% today (see Fig. 2).
These improvements represent a massive reduction in the environmental footprint of chicken production. Faster-growing, more feed-efficient birds mean fewer acres of corn and soybeans dedicated to poultry feed, less water and lower greenhouse gas emissions for each pound of protein produced.
Shifting consumer demand
As yields have increased, U.S. consumers have increased their demand for chicken. Per capita consumption of chicken in 1980 was 45.80 pounds, which was behind beef and ahead of pork. Today, per capita consumption of chicken has soared to more than 100 pounds annually in the United States.2 Over this period, consumers have also changed where and how they consume this highly demanded protein.
In 1980, the chicken industry’s main products were whole birds and chicken parts. Today’s market is dominated by boneless, skinless breast meat, portioned products and ready-to-cook tray packs. The fast-food segment for deboned breast meat has grown from 11% in 2015 to 15% in 2024. Retail tray packs for the same increased from 24% to 29% in that same period.
As demand has grown domestically, it has also increased internationally with exports growing significantly, Donohue noted. However, these exports are subject to demand and price fluctuation due to any export bans resulting from poultry disease concerns or other economic issues.
Production challenges
Although efficiencies have improved, there have been hurdles along the way for the poultry industry. Feed cost volatility has become a concern in recent years after decades of stability.
Every time you see a bushel of corn rise around a dollar a bushel, that’s going to add 2.5 cents per pound to production costs (see Fig. 3), Donohue explained. Economic consequences are the same with soybean meal. A change of $100 per ton in the price of soybean meal also affects production cost per live pound by 2.5 cents (see Fig. 4).
In addition to feed cost fluctuations, supply chain challenges are something the industry must contend with in today’s market.
In the past, breeding stock could be planned out just a few months in advance. However, meeting this level of production calls for three-year advance planning. A long lead time makes it difficult to accurately project broiler breeding needs.
Other challenges such as hatchability impact the supply chain. Hatchability has dropped from 85% to 78% since 2012 (see Fig. 5), and broiler breeder mortality has crept upward (see Fig. 6), which has created production shortfalls.
Ongoing disease challenges
Disease outbreaks have always been a hurdle for the poultry industry, but multiple avian influenza outbreaks have impacted exports and created operational challenges.
“I had my first experience with avian influenza in 1983 when more than 17 million chickens and turkeys in the United States were euthanized to control the infection and exports to many countries were curbed. At that time, we weren’t exporting much meat, but if you were exporting breeding stock, it made an impact,” he said.
In addition to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) strains affecting the industry, Marek’s disease, infectious bursal disease and infectious bronchitis have provided ongoing challenges over the years.
Vaccination costs have risen accordingly, from half a cent per chick in 1992 to about 2 cents today (see Fig. 7), but these investments have paid off in improved poultry health, food safety and food security.
Looking to the next 40 years
With the benefit of hindsight, we can look back to see how the poultry industry has changed and how those changes could influence the future. For example, like other industries, the poultry industry has seen significant consolidation in the past four decades.
In 1980, there were approximately 25 independent broiler genetic selection companies, whereas today, there are only two. But such changes should not impact the strength of the industry. “I can say that, based on what I’ve seen in the last 45 years, the next 45 years will be much of the same in terms of improvement,” Donohue said.
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