Short film from H&N International offers fascinating insight into the surface of eggs.

Southeastern Vietnam’s latest hatchery has an initial annual production capacity of more than 19 million chicks — for both the meat and egg sectors. In its second phase, this will rise to 38.4 million.

Supplies of broiler and layer chicks from the first hatchery in the Caribbean island of Dominica are proving popular with the local poultry farmers. Already the company owning the hatchery is planning Dominica’s first feed mill, and a farm that breeds pigs.

While there is a wide variety of auditing programs that assure that poultry hatcheries are following good welfare practices, the National Chicken Council (NCC)-based animal welfare audit guidelines in most cases will put hatchery managers in a “very good position for any audit that a customer our outside firm might do,” said Dallas Wynn, senior manager, animal welfare, Tyson Foods.