Latest news with #chickens
The Independent
2 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
One of the nation's largest egg producers has lost 95% of its chickens to bird flu. It could spell price hikes
Arizona's largest egg producer has lost 95 percent of its chickens due to the bird flu, signaling a potential price increase for eggs. On Monday, the Arizona Department of Agriculture announced a third commercial farm had tested positive for bird flu in Maricopa County. At the same time, Hickman's Egg Ranch, which is Arizona's largest egg producer and one of the nation's top 20 producers, has had to destroy the chickens at three of its four farms due to the bird flu. "All of our layer flocks have been on the west side of town, have been determined to be positive. We're in the act of depopulating those farms and removing the chickens and trying to start the cleanup process," Glenn Hickman, the president and CEO of Hickman's Egg Ranch, told Fox 10 Phoenix. Hickman expressed his frustration at the three-year-long flu forcing him to destroy egg-laying chickens. "You know, since this outbreak started in February of 2022, we've lost 170 million birds and that's just got to stop," he said. According to Hickman, it will take 20 months to fully repopulate his farms. The company is trying to get by in the meantime with help from other farms. "Thankfully, we have some other farmers that we are cooperative with, and some of those have had some extra eggs. So we've been able to kind of reshift and reprioritize where those eggs are going," he said. While egg prices have been lowering around the country since they spiked earlier this year, a supply chain expert told Fox 10 Phoenix that there is a chance that egg prices in Arizona will increase. "Hickman's supplies about 80 percent of Arizona's egg production. You are reducing about 80 percent of Arizona's supply chain from about 2.2 billion to 450 million eggs," Hitendra Chaturvedi, an Arizona State University Professor of Practice for the department of supply chain management told the broadcaster. Hickman disagreed, and said the impact of losing his chickens on the market will be "pretty nominal." Arizona's egg struggles are playing out as White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is singing President Donald Trump 's praises for a reduction in egg prices. She blamed the spike in egg prices on former President Joe Biden 's administration. "I remember my very first briefing, I was asked about the cost of eggs, the reporter tried to insinuate this administration was at fault, even though he had only been here for a few days or weeks," Leavitt said. "It was a result of the previous administration's terrible polices and in record time, this president has fixed that problem he inherited from Joe Biden, and prices have dropped 61 percent since this president took office." According to Trading Economics data, white, large shell eggs are around $2.52 per dozen nationally. On January 21, the same carton would have cost approximately $6.49, nationally. According to analysts at Clarify Capital, the price drop is partially a result of Americans buying fewer eggs due to their spike in prices — thus creating more supply — and a lull in new bird flu cases. Reuters also reported in April that the U.S. has increased its egg imports from Turkey, Brazil, and South Korea to help bolster supply and bring down prices. Since the outbreak began in 2022, the bird flu has affects more than 166 million birds, including 127 million egg laying birds.
The Sun
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Carrie Underwood shares rare photo of massive Nashville farm with full chicken coop after fleeing LA & American Idol set
CARRIE Underwood has shared a rare photo of her Nashville estate backyard, with a full chicken coop, after fleeing LA and the American Idol set. The country music singer, 42, made a "surprise" announcement after returning to her Nashville farm following the American Idol grand finale on Monday last week. 5 5 Carrie, who looked "unhappy" with the Idol finale result just mere days ago, took to Instagram to make her very exciting announcement. "Surprise! We've got another new life around the farm," she penned in the caption of a sweet snap. She showed off an adorable lamb, and she's since been sharing photos from her Nashville estate - including a full chicken coop. Taking to her Instagram stories, the 42-year-old wrote: 'I've got an injured girl in the mini coop. Today they were all on top of it. Weird.' Carrie showed her 13.4million followers what she meant, as she photographed all the chickens standing proudly on top of the coop. It's not the first peek we've had inside Carrie's Nashville home. Earlier this month, the singer took to social media as she gave fans a behind the scenes look at her kitchen. Her large cooking area contains what looks like a pantry nook with white cabinets with grey counter tops with gold coloured handles. An open arch with wooden panels opens up to a separate area with more matching wooden cabinets. Carrie proudly showed off her culinary creation as she held a clear jar filled with Greek-style cheese. As her dog Charlie looked on, she captioned the snap: "Made my own feta cheese! Yay!" She added: "Charlie approves" Carrie's peek at the hens comes after viewers of American Idol slammed the country music icon and former Idol winner for her reaction as Jamal Roberts was announced as this year's champion. CARRIE LOOKED 'UNHAPPY' During the live broadcast of the finale, fans noticed something odd about Carrie's body language and how she failed to stand up when Jamal crooned his song a final time after winning. Reacting to Carrie not standing up when Jamal won, one fan speculated that she might have been asked by show bosses to stand. "Not Carrie Underwood sitting down and probably being told to stand up when Jamal won," said one person on X. Another added: "Carrie underwood is not happy that Jamal won America Idol." "Carrie hating until the very end I see. CONGRATULATIONS JAMAL," penned a third. A fourth then said: "Carrie Underwood's face when Jamal won!" 5 5
The Independent
26-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
Wild chickens face turf war with bad-tempered peacocks after taking over Miami
A new turf war is breaking out in Miami. The city's wildlife is famously diverse, from flamingos and pelicans to herons and parrots. But in recent years, a new feathered resident has taken center stage: the chicken. Roosters, hens, and their chicks are increasingly common, not just in residential areas like Little Havana, Little Haiti, and Wynwood, but also among the downtown high-rises and government buildings. While some find their crowing disruptive, many Miamians have embraced these birds as an unofficial city mascot, a quirky symbol of the city's vibrant and untamed spirit. Paul George, the resident historian at HistoryMiami Museum, said the chickens are closely connected to the people who have moved to Miami over the decades. For a long time, the domesticated birds were mostly kept in backyards, but George began to notice their feral cousins wandering in public areas about 20 years ago. He said the chickens have a cultural connection to people who grew up in rural areas of Cuba and other parts of Latin America: 'They've always had these hens and roosters around.' Wild chickens can be found in many Florida communities, from Key West to Tampa to St. Augustine, along with other large cities throughout the U.S., like New Orleans, Houston and Los Angeles. But Miami's Little Havana truly adopted the birds as a symbol in 2002 when 6-foot (2-meter) fiberglass rooster statues began appearing outside shops and restaurants along Calle Ocho, which is Spanish for 8th Street, as part of a campaign to celebrate the area's culture. More than two decades later, dozens of the colorfully painted statues, designed by the late artist Pedro Damián, continue to attract tourists seeking fun photo opportunities. Owner Jakelin Llaguna of Little Havana Visitors Center, a souvenir shop along Calle Ocho, said the community is largely fond of the avian inhabitants, which forage around local businesses and parks. 'The neighbors have welcomed them,' Llaguna said. 'So they don't mind if they're in their backyard or in their front lawn. Nobody messes with them, they're our mascot.' Llaguna said the roosters' crowing at sunrise symbolizes renewal. 'The Cubans came to Little Havana when the revolution came into Cuba,' Llaguna said. 'They settled in this neighborhood, so they had a new beginning in Little Havana.' Llaguna's store is filled with rooster merchandise, including shirts, hats, glasses and magnets. 'Everybody wants a rooster,' Llaguna said. 'They want to take home a memento. They want have a memory of a fun time. And the rooster has turned into that.' As the feral roosters spread, they might soon face competition from the invasive peacocks that have taken over neighboring communities like Coconut Grove and Coral Gables. 'The peacocks have very bad tempers,' George said. 'They're pretty ill-mannered, and they tend to be a lot bigger than the chickens, and they make a lot of noise.' But George is more concerned that development and gentrification in older neighborhoods could eventually lead to the disappearance of their feathered residents. When 50-year-old houses are replaced with brand new condos, George isn't sure whether people spending over $1 million for a home are going to tolerate the loud birds. 'Even with hurricane windows, I just don't think a lot of these people are gonna put up with it as the neighborhood becomes richer.' George said. 'And I think they're gonna really lean on the city's code enforcement for it.' The legal status of the roosters and chickens is somewhat murky. Both the city of Miami and Miami-Dade County have ordinances that either strictly regulate or completely ban live poultry in residential areas. Meanwhile, the birds freely roam downtown among offices, public parks and courthouses. Asked about the birds, both city and county officials described their presence as a code compliance issue. Little Havana resident Donato Ramos Martínez enjoys having the roosters and chickens around and even feeds them near the Bay of Pigs Monument, off Calle Ocho. 'The rooster is the perfect animal for someone to wake up, because they begin to crow at about 4 a.m., from 4 to 5 a.m.,' Ramos Martínez said in Spanish. 'And it is an attractive animal that tourists, both young and old, are excited about, and they take their picture, you know what I mean?' 'And so I don't understand,' he added, 'why there are some — excuse my language — some idiots who don't want roosters or chickens or chicks on the street.'
Washington Post
25-05-2025
- General
- Washington Post
At this school, chickens and students are growing up together
On a sunny morning in a small courtyard at Walt Whitman Middle School, a 14-year-old with a purple buzz cut cradled a plump chicken in her arms. 'Her name is Betsy,' Maicy Nealy, an eighth-grader at the Alexandria school, said as the animal's eyes softly fluttered shut in her lap. Nealy used to be afraid of chickens as a young child. Now she spends hours after school collecting their eggs and cleaning the coop for the school's five hens. And though she says she was never an outdoorsy type, she feeds them their worm meals as well.
CBS News
23-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Thousands of chicks found abandoned in USPS truck have been adopted
Camden, Del. — Thousands of chicks found abandoned inside a postal service truck for three days have gone to new homes, according to the Delaware shelter that had cared for them, with the last batch picked up on Thursday morning. All the surviving chickens - estimated as more than 5,000 - it was too hard to get a specific count - and some others like turkeys and quails were adopted mainly by local families, rescues and farms, according to First State Animal Center and SPCA. The chicks were part of a 12,000-bird shipment left unattended in a truck at a Delaware mail distribution center. Trapped in high temperatures without food or hydration, thousands died, according to the state Department of Agriculture. The U.S. Postal Service has said it is investigating the "process breakdown" that occurred. Chicks mill around a stall at First State Animal Center and SPCA in Camden, Delaware, May 16, 2025. Mingson Lau / AP For more than two weeks, the surviving birds had been cared for at an overwhelmed First State Animal Center and SPCA, said John Parana, executive director. As a no-kill operation, the shelter wouldn't accept adopters planning to use the birds for meat, Parana said. Some of the adopters took hundreds at a time, hoping for egg-laying hens, while others took them as pets. In a statement posted on Facebook, the shelter hailed the adoptions as "GREAT NEWS !!" saying, "ALL of these thousands of babies will live out their natural lives. WE THANK EVERYONE for your kindness, donations and care for animals. Our staff has worked relentlessly to make this happen, between the care, the adoption screening, and long hours. ... We are still asking for donations to help recoup the revenue loss from other shelter operations, materials, feed and overtime paid out for the past 3 weeks. Dear Friends, we could not do this without you. We "Thank You" so, so much!" Stephanie Bruzdzinski adopted a handful of chicks after her daughter learned about their situation. "She was very upset and wanted to help out," said Bruzdzinski, who was similarly shocked when she heard the news. "She doesn't like when things aren't getting taken care of." The birds originated from Pennsylvania-based Freedom Ranger Hatchery's weekly bird shipment to clients around the country and the hatchery couldn't take the chicks back due to biosecurity concerns, a company spokesperson said.
