The USDA says 4.562 billion pounds of poultry were produced in March 2022, down 1% from March 2021.

That follows a 1% declines for the monthly preliminary live weight, to 6.011 billion pounds, the chicken slaughter of 833.824 million head and the turkey slaughter of 19.327 million head. The average live weight of all chickens was 1% heavier, while the average for turkeys was 2% lighter.

The reported cases of avian influenza in commercial poultry flocks also likely contributed to the lower year-to-year production numbers.

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