Day 092 - 27 Feb 95 - Page 44


     
     1        not have a demand.
     2
     3   Q.   So, if there is a sudden surge in demand, more eggs are
     4        brought from another part of Tysons to the McDonald's
     5        dedicated section of Tysons?
     6        A.  That is correct.
     7
     8   MS. STEEL:   How are the chicks transported?
     9        A.  They are transported in buses, they are really school
    10        buses that are pretty much covered in boxes, about these
    11        carton boxes that are covered with holes.
    12
    13   Q.   Right, what stacked on top of one another?
    14        A.  Yes.
    15
    16   Q.   What happens when they arrive at the broiler unit then?
    17        A.  Then they are unloaded by hand into the heating units.
    18        There are heating units or brooding areas where the chicks
    19        go by.  There is water available for them too.
    20
    21   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  How are they debeaked in these vast numbers;
    22        just what happens to them?
    23        A.  Well, manually, just a little clip.
    24
    25   Q.   So they are picked up one by one?
    26        A.  Yes.
    27
    28   Q.   And their beaks are clipped?
    29        A.  Yes.
    30
    31   Q.   It is not done by a machine in some way?
    32        A.  No.
    33
    34   MS. STEEL:  They are put against a hot blade or something, are
    35        they?
    36        A.  The blade could be hot, it could not; it depends on the
    37        equipment.
    38
    39   Q.   Is it a concrete floor in the broiler house?
    40        A.  No, no, it is environment/index.html">litter or bedding.  That bedding usually
    41        is made of, depending on the availability of raw materials,
    42        could be usually a source of wood.
    43
    44   Q.   Wood shavings?
    45        A.  Wood shavings, could be alfafa, could be rice holes,
    46        depending on what is available in that particular area.
    47
    48   Q.   How many chickens would be put in a shed?
    49        A.  Usually, you have to make general statements, around
    50        20 to 25,000 chicks. 
    51 
    52   Q.   Are the males put in with the females or are they kept 
    53        separately?
    54        A.  Usually, we try to keep them separately but there are
    55        going to be some of them that will be there, mixed.
    56
    57   Q.   What size are the sheds?
    58        A.  Usually, around 20 feet in the front by 200 feet long.
    59
    60   Q.   How do the chickens get water?

Prev Next Index