Fertilized Eggs (Broilers)

The fertilized eggs are incubated for 21 days. At this point, the eggs have all been hatched from and the resultant chicks are removed from the incubators. For broilers, once removed from the incubator, chicks are dispatched to farms where they are grown for about seven weeks before being slaughtered.

Fertilized eggs are not like the ones you get at the grocery store. The grocery store eggs are unfertilized and come from hens raised specifically to lay eggs for human consumption. Fertilized eggs that hatch into chicks raised for meat production are called broiler hatching eggs.

Eggs come from hens raised specifically to lay eggs, but chickens that are raised for meat are called “broilers.” These chickens are typically white and are bred specifically for optimal health and size to produce a quality product for the consumer.

Broiler chickens are raised in large, open structures called houses, where they roam, explore, eat, and commune with other chickens. Some (including free-range chickens) have varying access to the outdoors, based on farmer preference.

Broiler chickens arrive at the farm at the same time, from the same hatchery, to maintain biosecurity on the farm.