New Penn State Facility ‘Customized’ For Poultry Research
According to Penn State, the new facilities will greatly enhance the abilities of the
faculty to conduct both basic and applied studies. The customized units will allow sci
entists to control or vary environmental conditions In ways that were not possible In
the past. Visitors tour, on right, the fundamental research building and, at left, the
breeder building.
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Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 20,1M4-A25
measuring less than four pounds, is
the primary bird in the industry,
which can produce nearly 300 eggs
per year. Studies are looking into
feed utilization, since most of the
feed that a hen eats is used to main
tain the body, which takes the big
gest chunk out of feed costs.
“The amount of feed that actu
ally goes into the egg is a small
proportion” of the total bird
intake, according to Leach. “So
they keep trying to breed these
bens smaller and smaller.”
Research to minimize pho
sphorous excretions in layer man
ure is under way.
‘ ‘ln spite of what you hear in the
popular press or some advertise
ments in the supermarket, nobody
has truly come up with a low
cholesterol egg,” said Leach. “All
you hear about is the bad part of
cholesterol—it clogs up your arte-
rics. But cholesterol is a vital part
of your body. It’s in every cell of
your body.”
Trying to remove the cholester
ol from the egg yolk poses funda
mental problems because to make
the embryo, cholesterol if vital.
Without it, “we’d never be able to
perpetuate (the birds),” said
Leach. “There is some kind of a
happy medium there.”
Cage Layer And
Turkey Growout
This building, measuring
12,000 square feet with a capacity
of about 4,500 birds, will soon be
customized with an egg processing
room, fully automated.
The building includes six floor
pens, a cage layer room for 3,000
hens, laboratory, egg cooler, pro
cessing, and storage. Twenty-four
turkey growout pens measure 10
turkey growout pens
measure 10 square feet
each.
Visitors were able to
view polls in specially
heated conditions to
prepare them for
growout
Also, in this building,
quail eggs are used to
study the difference in
cholesterol metabolism
in birds.
Breeder
Building
The breeder house,
measuring about 10,200
square feet, has a capac
ity of 2,200 birds.
Included are large inse
mination cage rooms for
breeders, 48 floor pens,
an egg cooler, and a
laboratory.
Artificial insemina
tion cages measure
16-inches by 18-inches
by 20-inches (females)
and 16-inches by 18-in
ches by 24-inches with
perches (males). Total
capacity with four rows
of cages is about 756
females and 252 males.
Included is an egg
cooler for fertile eggs,
records lab, computers,
and record storage.
Floor pens for single
male natural matings
can be expanded by par
tition removal. All are
free-standing to allow
observations of beha
vior of the birds for
study.
Processing
Building
The processing build
ing and shops, measur
ing 2,800 square feet,
include a slaughter
room with an overhead
door to allow truck
backup, a shackle chain,
and a picker.
For evisceration,
available are stainless
steel tables, benches,
and cabinets.
Included is a process
ing lab, walk-in cooler
and freezer, supply stor
age, and a shop and
garage.
The entire facility is
equipped with diesel
auxiliary power for
backup in the event of
electricity failure.
According to Penn
State, the new facilities
will greatly enhance the
abilities of the faculty to
conduct both basic and
applied studies.