Broiler breeder farm | 台北市立動物園資訊網

Broilerbreederfarms,whichareoperatedbybroilerhatchingeggfarmers,raisefemale(hens)andmale(roosters)birdswhoaretheparentsofbroilerchickens.

Photo courtesy of the Poultry Industry Council

What came first, the chicken or the egg? The answer to this age-old question is more complicated than you might think! Those cute fluffy chicks that arrive on the broiler farm have to come from somewhere, and the answer is the hatchery. But where does the hatchery get the eggs needed to hatch a chick? That’s where broiler breeder farms come in. We could go on and on, back through the breeding program of broiler chickens, but let’s keep it simple and begin with the parents of broiler chickens.

Broiler breeder farms, which are operated by broiler hatching egg farmers, raise female (hens) and male (roosters) birds who are the parents of broiler chickens. These hens and roosters mate to produce fertilized eggs (not the same as the table eggs we eat), which are sold to broiler hatcheries for incubation.

There are two stages in a broiler breeders’ life – rearing an...