Turkey Hatchery ISSN: 1949-1964 Released January 12, 2026, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Eggs in Incubators on January 1 Up 2 Percent from Last Year Turkey eggs in incubators on January 1, 2026 in the United States totaled 25.1 million, up 2 percent from January 1, 2025. Eggs in incubators were up 1 percent from the December 1, 2025 total of 24.9 million eggs. Poults Hatched During December Up 2 Percent from Last Year Turkey poults hatched during December 2025 in the United States totaled 20.9 million, up 2 percent from December 2024. Poults hatched were up 3 percent from the November 2025 total of 20.2 million poults. Net Poults Placed During December Up 2 Percent from Last Year The 19.4 million net poults placed during December 2025 in the United States were up 2 percent from the number placed during the same month a year earlier. Net poult placements were up 4 percent from the November 2025 total of 18.7 million. Eggs in Incubators and Poults Hatched by Month - United States: 2024-2026 [Blank data cells indicate estimation period has not yet begun] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ :Eggs in incubators first of month: Percent of : Poults hatched entire month : Percent of Month :---------------------------------: :---------------------------------: : 2024-2025 : 2025-2026 : previous year : 2024-2025 : 2025-2026 : previous year ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ------ 1,000 eggs ----- percent ----- 1,000 poults ---- percent : September ........: 24,729 24,658 100 20,276 20,522 101 October ..........: 25,083 25,461 102 21,059 21,410 102 November .........: 24,822 23,985 97 20,899 20,235 97 December .........: 24,518 24,903 102 20,400 20,863 102 January ..........: 24,676 25,114 102 21,315 February .........: 25,058 19,826 March ............: 24,256 21,060 April ............: 24,947 20,087 May ..............: 24,718 21,260 June .............: 24,230 20,637 July .............: 23,865 20,119 August ...........: 24,891 20,521 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Net Poult Placements by Month - United States: 2024-2026 [Includes imports and excludes exports. Blank data cells indicate estimation period has not yet begun] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Total all breeds : Percent of : Cumulative total : Percent of Month :---------------------------------: :---------------------------------: : 2024-2025 : 2025-2026 : previous year : 2024-2025 : 2025-2026 : previous year ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ----- 1,000 poults ---- percent ----- 1,000 poults ----- percent : September ........: 18,030 18,179 101 18,030 18,179 101 October ..........: 19,510 19,684 101 37,540 37,863 101 November .........: 19,235 18,740 97 56,775 56,603 100 December .........: 19,086 19,412 102 75,861 76,015 100 January ..........: 19,680 95,541 February .........: 18,033 113,574 March ............: 19,424 132,998 April ............: 18,956 151,954 May ..............: 19,884 171,838 June .............: 19,818 191,656 July .............: 19,946 211,602 August ...........: 19,766 231,368 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Statistical Methodology Survey Procedures: Data for turkey hatchery estimates are collected from all known turkey hatcheries. Individual NASS regional field offices maintain a list of all known turkey hatcheries and use known sources of hatcheries to update their lists. Approximately 30 hatcheries in 17 states are contacted each month. All known turkey hatcheries hatching 15,000 or more poults annually are mailed a questionnaire as close to the first of the month as possible. Adequate time is given to respond via mail, fax, or electronic data reporting. Those that do not respond are contacted by phone. Care is exercised to ensure that all hatcheries are accounted for in the estimate. Estimating Procedures: Sound statistical methodology is employed to derive the estimates from reported data. All data are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own past operating profile and to trends from similar operations. Data for missing operations were estimated based on similar operations or historical data. NASS regional field offices prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and historic trends. Individual State estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness. Individual hatchery data are summed to State, regional, and United States totals. Only United States level estimates are published due to the limited number of hatcheries involved. The Net Poult Placement data include imported poults and exclude exported poults. Cumulative net poult placements beginning on September 1 and ending on August 31 are shown in the monthly Turkey Hatchery report. This time period corresponds with the placements of poults which will reach maturity and be available for slaughter during the calendar year. Revision Policy: Revisions are generally the result of late or corrected data. Revisions to the previous month are published in the monthly Turkey Hatchery report, while annual revisions are published in the Hatchery Production - Annual Summary report in April. Reliability: Turkey hatchery estimates are based on a census of all known operating hatcheries and therefore, have no sampling error. However, estimates are subject to errors such as omission, duplication, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. While these errors cannot be measured directly, they are minimized through strict quality controls in the data collection process and through a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. To assist in evaluating the reliability of the estimates in this report, the "Root Mean Square Error" is shown for selected items in the following table. The "Root Mean Square Error" is a statistical measure based on past performance and is computed using the differences between first and final estimates. The "Root Mean Square Error" for turkey eggs in incubators on the first day of the month over the past 24 months is 2.4 percent. This means that chances are 2 out of 3 that the final estimate will not be above or below the current estimate of 25.1 million eggs by more than 2.4 percent. Chances are 9 out of 10 that the difference will not exceed 4.1 percent. Reliability of January Turkey Hatchery Estimates [Based on data for the past 24 months] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Root mean : 90 percent : Difference between first and latest estimate :square error : confidence : : : : : : : level :------------------------------------------------------ Item : : : : : : Months : : : : : :--------------------------- : : :Average :Smallest:Largest :Below latest :Above latest ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : percent percent -------- 1,000 ------- ---- number ---- : Eggs in incubators ................: 2.4 4.1 445 12 2,081 10 11 : Poults hatched ....................: 1.4 2.4 230 1 722 6 15 : Net poult placements ..............: 1.7 2.8 233 10 774 10 12 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to nass@usda.gov. Travis Averill, Chief, Livestock Branch................................................ (202) 692-0069 Sherry Bertramsen - Livestock Slaughter............................................. (202) 690-8632 Tiffany Byrne - Dairy Products...................................................... (651) 440-7789 Ryan Cowen - Cattle, Cattle on Feed................................................. (202) 720-3040 Kim DaPra - Milk Production......................................................... (202) 720-3278 Fatema Haque - Poultry Slaughter, Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised................... (202) 720-3244 Derron Martin - Catfish, Census of Aquaculture, Egg Products, Mink, Trout........... (202) 690-3237 Ralph Mondesir - Hogs and Pigs...................................................... (202) 720-3106 Suzanne Richards - Cost of Pollination, Honey, Honey Bee Colonies, Sheep and Goats.. (202) 720-4448 Shulonda Shaw - Capacity of Refrigerated Warehouses, Cold Storage................... (202) 720-3240 Autumn Stone - Layers, Eggs......................................................... (202) 690-3676 Takiyah Walker - Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery................................. (202) 720-6147 Access to NASS Reports For your convenience, you may access NASS reports and products the following ways: All reports are available electronically, at no cost, on the NASS web site: www.nass.usda.gov. The national specific reports are available via a free e-mail subscription. To set-up this free subscription, visit www.nass.usda.gov and click on "National" in upper right corner above "search" box to create an account and select the reports you would like to receive. Economics, Statistics, and Market Information (ESMIS) - National Agricultural Library (NAL) website houses NASS's and other agency archived reports at https://esmis.nal.usda.gov. 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