The search for high performai

摘要

The main goal in broiler production is to maximise the enormous growth potential of the bird, resulting in high body weight and high breast meat yield. However, both of these objectives are negatively correlated with fertility. As a result, the fertility of broiler breeders has become a challenge. The question arises whether the tipping point has been reached, and if altered broiler breeder fertility has become irreversible. When discussing chicken meat production, the focus is often on the final product, being the growth and performance of the broiler chick. The actual "creators" of such a powerful bird are breeding companies that have a history of success in breeder management. Their goal is to maintain or even widen their share of the global market with high-performing, easy-to-manage breeders and broilers. Problems arising from inferior parent breeding stock or inferior broiler chicks can lead to regional loss in the market and take considerable time and effort to rectify. It is for this reason that broiler breeding programmes should focus not only on growth and performance, but also on the reproductive performance of the parents, such as egg number, fertility and hatchability.