Poultry Slaughter ISSN: 1949-1581 Released January 23, 2026, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Ready-to-Cook Weight Up 5 Percent from Last Year December 2024 contained 22 weekdays (including 1 holiday) and 4 Saturdays. December 2025 contained 23 weekdays (including 1 holiday) and 4 Saturdays. Poultry certified wholesome during December 2025 (ready-to-cook weight) totaled 4.52 billion pounds, up 5 percent from the amount certified in December 2024. The November 2025 revised certified total at 4.05 billion pounds, was down 1 percent from November 2024. The November revision represented an decrease of 12 million pounds from last month's preliminary pounds certified. The preliminary total live weight of all federally inspected poultry during December 2025 was 5.95 billion pounds, up 5 percent from 5.68 billion pounds a year ago. Young chickens inspected totaled 5.40 billion pounds, up 5 percent from December 2024. Mature chickens, at 57.9 million pounds, were down 6 percent from the previous year. Turkey inspections totaled 485 million pounds, up 2 percent from a year ago. Ducks totaled 13.9 million pounds, down 2 percent from last year. Young chickens slaughtered during December 2025 averaged 6.60 pounds per bird, unchanged from December 2024. The average live weight of mature chickens was 6.89 pounds per bird, down 3 percent from a year ago. Turkeys slaughtered during December 2025 averaged 33.1 pounds per bird, down 1 percent from December 2024. Ante-mortem condemnations during December 2025 totaled 13.0 million pounds. Condemnations were 0.22 percent of the live weight inspected, as compared with 0.21 percent a year earlier. Post-mortem condemnations, at 26.0 million pounds, were 0.57 percent of quantities inspected, as compared with 0.59 percent a year earlier. Poultry Slaughtered, Total Live Weight, and Average Live Weight by Type - United States [Federally inspected only] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : : : December 2025 as % of : January : : : : :-----------------------: to December :2025 as Commodity : December : November : December : December : November :---------------------------:percent : 2024 : 2025 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 :of 2024 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ------------ 1,000 head ----------- --- percent --- ------ 1,000 head ------ percent : Slaughtered : Chickens : Young ............: 777,360 720,230 818,424 105 114 9,460,458 9,578,682 101 Mature ...........: 8,660 7,456 8,415 97 113 113,785 105,607 93 Light ..........: 2,430 2,629 2,794 115 106 31,278 32,877 105 Heavy ..........: 6,230 4,827 5,621 90 116 82,507 72,730 88 Total ............: 786,020 727,686 826,839 105 114 9,574,243 9,684,289 101 : Turkeys : Young ............: 13,976 15,336 14,457 103 94 196,149 189,086 96 Old ..............: 134 104 187 140 180 1,845 1,887 102 Total ............: 14,110 15,440 14,644 104 95 197,994 190,973 96 : Ducks ..............: 1,961 1,800 2,019 103 112 24,802 24,428 98 : : ----------- 1,000 pounds ---------- --- percent --- ----- 1,000 pounds ----- percent : Total live weight : Chickens : Young ............: 5,133,653 4,780,863 5,397,684 105 113 62,137,081 63,432,900 102 Mature ...........: 61,620 50,348 57,938 94 115 807,572 733,343 91 Light ..........: 8,418 9,145 9,852 117 108 108,195 113,977 105 Heavy ..........: 53,202 41,203 48,086 90 117 699,377 619,366 89 Total ............: 5,195,273 4,831,211 5,455,622 105 113 62,944,653 64,166,243 102 : Turkeys : Young ............: 469,676 467,952 479,063 102 102 6,385,471 6,032,264 94 Old ..............: 4,015 3,263 5,504 137 169 56,714 57,392 101 Total ............: 473,691 471,215 484,567 102 103 6,442,185 6,089,656 95 : Ducks ..............: 14,154 12,550 13,894 98 111 176,896 171,024 97 : Other 1/ ...........: 194 176 150 77 85 3,252 2,918 90 : Total ..............: 5,683,312 5,315,152 5,954,233 105 112 69,566,986 70,429,841 101 : : ------------ pounds ----------- --- percent --- ------ pounds ----- percent : Average live weight : Chickens : Young ............: 6.60 6.64 6.60 100 99 6.57 6.62 101 Mature ...........: 7.12 6.75 6.89 97 102 7.10 6.94 98 Light ..........: 3.46 3.48 3.53 102 101 3.46 3.47 100 Heavy ..........: 8.54 8.54 8.55 100 100 8.48 8.52 100 Total ............: 6.61 6.64 6.60 100 99 6.57 6.63 101 : Turkeys : Young ............: 33.61 30.51 33.14 99 109 32.55 31.90 98 Old ..............: 29.96 31.38 29.43 98 94 30.74 30.41 99 Total ............: 33.57 30.52 33.09 99 108 32.54 31.89 98 : Ducks ..............: 7.22 6.97 6.88 95 99 7.13 7.00 98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Includes geese, guineas, ostriches, emus, rheas, and squab. Chilled and Frozen Pounds Certified by Type - United States [Ready-to-cook weights] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : : : December 2025 as % of : January : : : : :-----------------------: to December :2025 as Commodity : December : November : December : December : November :---------------------------:percent : 2024 : 2025 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 :of 2024 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ----------- 1,000 pounds ---------- --- percent --- ----- 1,000 pounds ----- percent : Chilled : Chickens : Young ............: 3,638,893 3,272,487 3,806,748 105 116 43,919,453 44,671,545 102 Mature ...........: 42,045 34,094 40,361 96 118 562,419 508,082 90 Light ..........: 4,452 4,842 5,282 119 109 57,462 60,601 105 Heavy ..........: 37,593 29,252 35,079 93 120 504,957 447,481 89 Total ............: 3,680,938 3,306,581 3,847,109 105 116 44,481,872 45,179,627 102 : Turkeys : Young ............: 238,360 251,842 236,918 99 94 3,219,357 3,008,833 93 Old ..............: 2,170 2,396 3,875 179 162 39,702 40,690 102 Total ............: 240,530 254,238 240,793 100 95 3,259,059 3,049,523 94 : Ducks ..............: 3,275 2,869 3,361 103 117 43,791 38,633 88 : Other 1/ ...........: 119 108 106 89 98 1,439 1,436 100 : Total ..............: 3,924,862 3,563,796 4,091,369 104 115 47,786,161 48,269,219 101 : Frozen : Chickens : Young ............: 243,469 353,276 277,178 114 78 3,074,252 3,327,646 108 Mature ...........: - 492 30 (X) 6 - 775 (X) Light ..........: - - 30 (X) (X) - 35 (X) Heavy ..........: - 492 - (X) (X) - 740 (X) Total ............: 243,469 353,768 277,208 114 78 3,074,252 3,328,421 108 : Turkeys : Young ............: 134,820 121,576 144,467 107 119 1,858,694 1,791,688 96 Old ..............: 920 84 282 31 336 3,476 2,867 82 Total ............: 135,740 121,660 144,749 107 119 1,862,170 1,794,555 96 : Ducks ..............: 7,075 6,411 6,912 98 108 85,786 87,110 102 : Other 1/ ...........: 16 - - (X) (X) 739 461 62 : Total ..............: 386,300 481,839 428,869 111 89 5,022,947 5,210,547 104 : Chilled and frozen : Chickens : Young ............: 3,882,362 3,625,763 4,083,926 105 113 46,993,705 47,999,191 102 Mature ...........: 42,045 34,586 40,391 96 117 562,419 508,857 90 Light ..........: 4,452 4,842 5,312 119 110 57,462 60,636 106 Heavy ..........: 37,593 29,744 35,079 93 118 504,957 448,221 89 Total ............: 3,924,407 3,660,349 4,124,317 105 113 47,556,124 48,508,048 102 : Turkeys : Young ............: 373,180 373,418 381,385 102 102 5,078,051 4,800,521 95 Old ..............: 3,090 2,480 4,157 135 168 43,178 43,557 101 Total ............: 376,270 375,898 385,542 102 103 5,121,229 4,844,078 95 : Ducks ..............: 10,350 9,280 10,273 99 111 129,577 125,743 97 : Other 1/ ...........: 135 108 106 79 98 2,178 1,897 87 : Total ..............: 4,311,162 4,045,635 4,520,238 105 112 52,809,108 53,479,766 101 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (X) Not applicable. 1/ Includes geese, guineas, and squab. Ante-Mortem Condemnations by Type - United States [Federally inspected only] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : : : December 2025 as % of : January : : : : :-----------------------: to December :2025 as Commodity : December : November : December : December : November :---------------------------:percent : 2024 : 2025 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 :of 2024 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : --------- 1,000 pounds --------- --- percent --- ---- 1,000 pounds --- percent : Live weight : Chickens : Young ............: 9,682 10,360 10,472 108 101 116,193 125,310 108 Mature ...........: 700 637 743 106 117 9,318 9,498 102 Light ..........: 59 59 72 122 122 589 808 137 Heavy ..........: 641 578 671 105 116 8,729 8,690 100 Total ............: 10,382 10,997 11,215 108 102 125,511 134,808 107 : Turkeys : Young ............: 1,573 1,271 1,611 102 127 20,817 20,513 99 Old ..............: 26 30 32 123 107 504 415 82 Total ............: 1,599 1,301 1,643 103 126 21,321 20,928 98 : Ducks ..............: 85 77 100 118 130 1,119 1,201 107 : Total 1/ ...........: 12,066 12,375 12,958 107 105 147,954 156,944 106 : : percent : Percent of live : weight condemned 2/ : Chickens : Young ............: 0.19 0.22 0.19 100 86 0.19 0.20 105 Mature ...........: 1.14 1.27 1.28 112 101 1.15 1.30 113 Light ..........: 0.70 0.65 0.73 104 112 0.54 0.71 131 Heavy ..........: 1.20 1.40 1.40 117 100 1.25 1.40 112 Total ............: 0.20 0.23 0.21 105 91 0.20 0.21 105 : Turkeys : Young ............: 0.33 0.27 0.34 103 126 0.33 0.34 103 Old ..............: 0.65 0.92 0.58 89 63 0.89 0.72 81 Total ............: 0.34 0.28 0.34 100 121 0.33 0.34 103 : Ducks ..............: 0.60 0.61 0.72 120 118 0.63 0.70 111 : Total 1/ ...........: 0.21 0.23 0.22 105 96 0.21 0.22 105 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Includes geese, guineas, and squab. 2/ Pounds condemned as a percent of live weight pounds inspected. Post-Mortem Condemnations by Type - United States [Federally condemned and establishment sorted and removed] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : : : December 2025 as % of : January : : : : :-----------------------: to December :2025 as Commodity : December : November : December : December : November :---------------------------:percent : 2024 : 2025 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 : 2024 : 2025 :of 2024 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : --------- 1,000 pounds --------- --- percent --- ---- 1,000 pounds --- percent : Carcass and parts : Chickens : Young ............: 18,386 16,128 18,332 100 114 217,118 216,478 100 Mature ...........: 1,549 1,108 1,327 86 120 21,120 16,165 77 Light ..........: 369 395 423 115 107 4,607 4,734 103 Heavy ..........: 1,180 713 904 77 127 16,513 11,431 69 Total ............: 19,935 17,236 19,659 99 114 238,238 232,643 98 : Turkeys : Young ............: 5,361 5,345 5,981 112 112 75,448 72,353 96 Old ..............: 131 119 163 124 137 1,972 2,251 114 Total ............: 5,492 5,464 6,144 112 112 77,420 74,604 96 : Ducks ..............: 152 150 177 116 118 2,264 2,619 116 : Other 1/ ...........: 4 3 3 75 100 43 53 123 : Total ..............: 25,583 22,853 25,983 102 114 317,965 309,919 97 : : percent : Percent of : weight condemned 2/ : Chickens : Young ............: 0.47 0.44 0.45 96 102 0.46 0.45 98 Mature ...........: 3.55 3.10 3.18 90 103 3.62 3.08 85 Light ..........: 7.65 7.54 7.38 96 98 7.42 7.24 98 Heavy ..........: 3.04 2.34 2.51 83 107 3.17 2.49 79 Total ............: 0.51 0.47 0.47 92 100 0.50 0.48 96 : Turkeys : Young ............: 1.42 1.41 1.54 108 109 1.46 1.48 101 Old ..............: 4.07 4.58 3.77 93 82 4.37 4.91 112 Total ............: 1.44 1.43 1.57 109 110 1.49 1.52 102 : Ducks ..............: 1.45 1.59 1.69 117 106 1.72 2.04 119 : Other 1/ ...........: 2.88 2.70 2.75 95 102 1.94 2.72 140 : Total ..............: 0.59 0.56 0.57 97 102 0.60 0.58 97 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Includes geese, guineas, and squab. 2/ Pounds condemned as a percent of pounds certified plus post-mortem condemnations. Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause and Type - United States: November and December 2025 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Commodity : Tuberculosis : Leukosis : Septicaemia :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Chickens : Young ...........: - - 202 173 35,841 37,172 Mature ..........: - - 7 11 63,078 70,640 Light .........: - - 7 11 56,376 65,146 Heavy .........: - - - - 6,702 5,494 Total ...........: - - 209 184 98,919 107,812 : Turkeys : Young ...........: - - 13 1 5,158 3,810 Old .............: - - - - 407 1,053 Total ...........: - - 13 1 5,565 4,863 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Commodity : Airsacculitis : Synovitis : Tumors :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Chickens : Young ...........: 49,037 54,957 803 854 565 361 Mature ..........: 4,070 2,634 10 7 15,024 13,862 Light .........: 4,068 2,633 10 7 15,010 13,849 Heavy .........: 2 1 - - 14 13 Total ...........: 53,107 57,591 813 861 15,589 14,223 : Turkeys : Young ...........: 1,866 1,057 90 45 36 16 Old .............: 627 1,045 6 18 356 386 Total ...........: 2,493 2,102 96 63 392 402 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Commodity : Bruises : Cadaver : Contamination :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Chickens : Young ...........: 1,913 1,915 451 754 33,698 23,672 Mature ..........: 4,821 4,745 92 105 15,567 18,295 Light .........: 4,817 4,732 90 103 15,564 18,284 Heavy .........: 4 13 2 2 3 11 Total ...........: 6,734 6,660 543 859 49,265 41,967 : Turkeys : Young ...........: 126 104 330 185 860 487 Old .............: 23 25 7 11 131 151 Total ...........: 149 129 337 196 991 638 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Commodity : Overscald : Miscellaneous 1/ : Unknown 2/ :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Chickens : Young ...........: 1,606 1,287 73,400 58,949 1,951,355 2,132,213 Mature ..........: 156 85 49,522 31,459 35,861 49,236 Light .........: 150 85 49,518 31,448 - - Heavy .........: 6 - 4 11 35,861 49,236 Total ...........: 1,762 1,372 122,922 90,408 1,987,216 2,181,449 : Turkeys : Young ...........: 52 11 4,119 2,715 78,869 77,860 Old .............: 10 16 16 108 124 147 Total ...........: 62 27 4,135 2,823 78,993 78,007 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Represents zero. 1/ Includes any portion of the carcass affected by an inflammatory process, plant rejected carcasses, missing viscera, or ascites fluid preventing proper inspection of the carcass. 2/ Birds condemned with no cause given by federal inspectors and establishment sorters. Young Chickens Slaughtered, Total Live Weight, and Average Live Weight - States and United States: November and December 2025 [Published States do not add to United States total to avoid disclosure] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Slaughtered : Total : Average : : live weight : live weight State :------------------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- 1,000 head ---- ---- 1,000 pounds ---- ---- pounds --- : Alabama .........: 90,481 100,961 505,284 561,367 5.58 5.56 Arkansas ........: 77,551 87,420 580,340 643,124 7.48 7.36 Delaware ........: 28,215 32,908 217,831 255,440 7.72 7.76 Georgia .........: 96,638 113,513 594,941 706,270 6.16 6.22 Illinois ........: 40 57 256 357 6.43 6.32 Iowa ............: 783 772 4,480 4,197 5.72 5.44 Kentucky ........: 21,834 24,537 152,499 168,471 6.98 6.87 Louisiana .......: 14,273 16,222 96,779 112,746 6.78 6.95 Maryland ........: 10,753 12,404 66,477 76,950 6.18 6.20 Mississippi .....: 55,722 61,783 371,162 410,607 6.66 6.65 : Missouri ........: 25,148 28,162 137,778 157,118 5.48 5.58 New Jersey ......: 208 264 1,133 1,365 5.45 5.18 New York ........: 3,008 3,406 15,518 17,393 5.16 5.11 North Carolina ..: 71,629 80,916 604,573 674,248 8.44 8.33 Ohio ............: 9,777 11,362 45,449 53,848 4.65 4.74 Oklahoma ........: 7,905 8,873 65,519 71,171 8.29 8.02 Pennsylvania ....: 13,185 16,917 75,639 93,146 5.74 5.51 South Carolina ..: 22,881 23,640 168,625 170,317 7.37 7.20 Tennessee .......: 28,720 33,422 176,656 205,565 6.15 6.15 Texas ...........: 56,461 64,282 397,968 440,381 7.05 6.85 : Vermont .........: 46 56 304 369 6.65 6.61 Virginia ........: 20,797 27,178 129,827 170,669 6.24 6.28 : United States ...: 720,230 818,424 4,780,863 5,397,684 6.64 6.60 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Young Chickens Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations - States and United States: November and December 2025 [Published States do not add to United States total to avoid disclosure] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-mortem condemnations :Total chilled and frozen :----------------------------------------------- State : pounds certified 1/ : Carcass and parts : Percent 2/ :------------------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----------------- 1,000 pounds ---------------- ---- percent ---- : Alabama .........: 388,478 431,934 1,238 1,401 0.32 0.32 Arkansas ........: 442,187 490,461 1,781 1,625 0.40 0.33 Delaware ........: 174,603 204,352 800 1,175 0.46 0.57 Georgia .........: 450,211 535,971 1,934 2,584 0.43 0.48 Illinois ........: 191 266 - - (X) (X) Iowa ............: 3,262 3,029 82 89 2.47 2.85 Kentucky ........: 115,947 127,382 865 717 0.74 0.56 Louisiana .......: 70,392 81,823 763 889 1.07 1.07 Maryland ........: 49,645 57,413 647 640 1.29 1.10 Mississippi .....: 278,563 301,967 780 737 0.28 0.24 : Missouri ........: 100,640 113,407 298 234 0.30 0.21 New Jersey ......: 838 1,003 17 24 2.04 2.30 New York ........: 10,643 10,936 93 106 0.87 0.96 North Carolina ..: 465,866 518,297 1,097 1,268 0.23 0.24 Ohio ............: 34,155 40,421 126 179 0.37 0.44 Oklahoma ........: 49,298 53,616 230 244 0.46 0.45 Pennsylvania ....: 52,670 65,662 1,035 1,260 1.93 1.88 South Carolina ..: 127,106 127,952 886 942 0.69 0.73 Tennessee .......: 130,474 151,740 404 565 0.31 0.37 Texas ...........: 305,146 335,553 634 723 0.21 0.22 : Vermont .........: 229 278 - - (X) (X) Virginia ........: 97,413 130,222 190 241 0.19 0.18 : United States ...: 3,625,763 4,083,926 16,128 18,332 0.44 0.45 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Represents zero. (X) Not applicable. 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of pounds certified plus post-mortem condemnations. Young Chickens Condemned Post-Mortem by Cause - States and United States: November and December 2025 [Published States do not add to United States total to avoid disclosure] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : Tuberculosis : Leukosis : Septicaemia :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Alabama ...........: - - - - - - Arkansas ..........: - - - - 345 384 Delaware ..........: - - - - - - Georgia ...........: - - - - 2,354 2,016 Mississippi .......: - - - - - - North Carolina ....: - - - - - - Texas .............: - - - - 186 230 Virginia ..........: - - - - - - : United States .....: - - 202 173 35,841 37,172 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : Airsacculitis : Synovitis : Tumors :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Alabama ...........: - - - - - - Arkansas ..........: 191 178 7 7 - - Delaware ..........: - - - - - - Georgia ...........: 1,011 2,026 - - 144 122 Mississippi .......: - - - - - - North Carolina ....: - 1 - - - - Texas .............: 10 29 - - 3 10 Virginia ..........: - - - - - - : United States .....: 49,037 54,957 803 854 565 361 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : Bruises : Cadaver : Contamination :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Alabama ...........: - - - - - - Arkansas ..........: 8 2 - - 86 75 Delaware ..........: - - - - - - Georgia ...........: 57 65 15 17 430 396 Mississippi .......: - - - - - - North Carolina ....: - - - - - - Texas .............: 29 58 16 11 14 42 Virginia ..........: - - - - - - : United States .....: 1,913 1,915 451 754 33,698 23,672 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : Overscald : Miscellaneous 1/ : Unknown 2/ :----------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : head : Alabama ...........: - - - - 173,589 199,446 Arkansas ..........: 2 1 130 83 142,599 139,214 Delaware ..........: - - - - 82,829 117,422 Georgia ...........: 120 147 3,764 6,455 189,466 243,167 Mississippi .......: - - - - 124,330 113,517 North Carolina ....: - - - - 179,270 154,433 Texas .............: 6 2 79 1,166 47,629 59,945 Virginia ..........: - - - - 195,768 188,122 : United States .....: 1,606 1,287 73,400 58,949 1,951,355 2,132,213 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Represents zero. 1/ Includes any portion of the carcass affected by an inflammatory process, plant rejected carcasses, missing viscera, or ascites fluid preventing proper inspection of the carcass. 2/ Birds condemned with no cause given by federal inspectors and establishment sorters. Young Turkeys Slaughtered, Total Live Weight, and Average Live Weight - States and United States: November and December 2025 [Published States do not add to United States total to avoid disclosure] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Slaughtered : Total : Average : : live weight : live weight State :------------------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- 1,000 head --- --- 1,000 pounds --- ---- pounds ---- : California ......: 83 30 1,485 766 17.91 25.33 Illinois ........: 21 1 593 42 28.03 28.75 Indiana .........: 1,533 1,729 62,218 73,091 40.59 42.28 Iowa ............: 1,003 916 46,081 41,614 45.95 45.44 Michigan ........: 334 295 13,759 12,470 41.23 42.32 Minnesota .......: 3,438 3,026 91,010 92,013 26.47 30.41 North Carolina ..: 1,726 1,768 65,724 71,982 38.08 40.72 Ohio ............: 626 516 26,305 23,243 41.99 45.05 Pennsylvania ....: 863 648 22,121 19,092 25.63 29.44 South Carolina ..: 436 511 19,617 23,632 44.99 46.26 : Vermont .........: 48 10 1,406 326 29.21 33.12 Wisconsin .......: 4 (Z) 123 1 28.47 24.94 : United States ...: 15,336 14,457 467,952 479,063 30.51 33.14 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (Z) Less than half of the unit shown. Young Turkeys Pounds Certified and Post-Mortem Condemnations - States and United States: November and December 2025 [Published States do not add to United States total to avoid disclosure] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Post-mortem condemnations :Total chilled and frozen :----------------------------------------------- State : pounds certified 1/ : Carcass and parts : Percent 2/ :------------------------------------------------------------------------- : November : December : November : December : November : December ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---------------- 1,000 pounds --------------- ---- percent ---- : California ......: 1,231 609 4 4 0.36 0.63 Illinois ........: 454 31 - - (X) (X) Indiana .........: 50,572 59,328 632 961 1.23 1.59 Iowa ............: 36,295 32,666 530 485 1.44 1.46 Michigan ........: 10,665 9,664 149 144 1.37 1.46 Minnesota .......: 73,049 73,530 852 818 1.15 1.10 North Carolina ..: 51,477 56,366 279 327 0.54 0.58 Ohio ............: 20,705 18,402 311 285 1.48 1.52 Pennsylvania ....: 17,578 15,021 447 637 2.48 4.07 South Carolina ..: 14,657 17,742 616 560 4.03 3.06 : Vermont .........: 1,112 257 - - (X) (X) Wisconsin .......: 98 1 (Y) - (X) (X) : United States ...: 373,418 381,385 5,345 5,981 1.41 1.54 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Represents zero. (X) Not applicable. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ Ready-to-cook weights. 2/ Pounds condemned as percent of pounds certified plus post-mortem condemnations. Terms and Definitions Used for Poultry Slaughter Estimates Ante-Mortem Condemnations: Birds federally condemned prior to entry into the slaughter plant which includes Dead-On-Arrival (DOA) and condemned for other causes. Average Live Weight: The weight of the whole bird, before slaughter. Excludes post-mortem condemnations. Certified Ready-to-Cook: The weight of poultry certified wholesome by inspection after post-mortem condemnation pounds are removed. Ready-to-cook represents poultry meat ready for the marketing channel. Dressing Percent: Usually expressed as a percentage yield of frozen and chilled carcass in relation to the weight of the live bird. Ducks: Includes all ducks regardless of age and weight. Federally Inspected (FI) Plants: Plants that transport meat interstate must employ federal inspectors to assure compliance with USDA standards. Mature Chickens: Fowl from breeder and market egg flocks and stags and cocks. Number of Head: Includes post-mortem condemnations. Old Turkeys: Fully matured birds held for egg production, usually over 15 months of age. Plant, Slaughter: An establishment where birds are killed and butchered. Post-Mortem Condemnations: Carcasses or parts of birds condemned includes federally inspected and establishment sorted because of disease or mishandling and removed from the slaughter line and destroyed. Slaughter: Killing and butchering of birds primarily for food. Total Live Weight: The total weight of live birds, before slaughter. Excludes post-mortem condemnations. Young Chickens: Commercially grown broilers-fryers and other young immature birds such as roasters and capons. Young Turkeys: Young birds grown to a matured market age, and other turkeys such as fryers/roasters and young breeders. Statistical Methodology Data Sources: Data for poultry slaughter estimates are collected by inspectors of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), USDA for all Federally Inspected plants. Over 99 percent of the total United States slaughter for any species is under Federal Inspection. The number of head slaughtered daily, by species and class, as well as condemnations and total live and dressed weights are obtained by shift for each plant. Approximately 361 plants slaughtered poultry in the United States under Federal Inspection in 2024. Young chickens were slaughtered in 38 States, young turkeys in 30 States. Revision Policy: Data for the previous month and year-to-date totals are subject to revision the following month after the initial monthly estimates are published. Final data are published in the annual summary released in February and include any revisions made to current and previous year's published data. Revisions are generally the result of late reports or corrections received by FSIS from plants and are usually less than one-half of one percent. No revisions will be made to the previous year's data after publication of the annual summary in February. Procedures and Reliability: Plant inspectors submit data electronically for each shift a plant operates. An edit provides checks for the detection of errors such as invalid plant information, duplication, and erroneous data. Data are accumulated to monthly totals for this release. Data for major slaughter plants with missing reports are adjusted prior to publication to assure that all plants slaughtering a significant portion of a specific class are included. Estimates for missing shifts are made only after verifying that the plant was in operation. Adjustments are based on a shift determined to be similar to the one missing. Late reports replace imputed data as they become available. While there is a varying degree of incompleteness from month to month, it has only a minimal impact on the published totals. Poultry slaughter estimates are based on a census of operating plants and, therefore, have no sampling error. However, they may be subject to errors such as omissions, duplications, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. These errors are minimized through strict quality controls in the edit and summarization process, and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. 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, 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. All email subscriptions containing reports will be sent from https://esmis.nal.usda.gov. To receive the reports via e-mail, you will have to go to the website, create a new account and subscribe to the reports. You should whitelist notifications@esmis.nal.usda.gov in your email client to avoid the emails going into spam/junk folders. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Agricultural Statistics Hotline at (800) 727-9540, 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, or e-mail: nass@usda.gov. If you have specific questions you would like an expert to respond to, please visit our "Ask A Specialist" website at www.nass.usda.gov/Contact_Us/Ask_a_Specialist. In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible Agency or USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English. To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027, found online at How to File a Program Discrimination Complaint and at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by: (1) mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; (2) fax: (202) 690- 7442; or (3) email: program.intake@usda.gov. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.