Broiler egg sets and placements continue to trend below a year ago as the industry responds to declining demand expectations while improving prices.

The USDA says 230.167 million broiler type eggs were set into incubators last week, nearly 4 million lower than the previous week and 3% under last year.

Hatchability did see a slight week-to-week improvement, continuing to hold above 80%.

Placements of broiler type chicks into meat production were 177.491 million head, up just under a million on the week, but down 4% on the year.

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