POULTRY IMPROVEMENT

Chronicle (Levin), 20 September 1946, Page 4

POULTRY IMPROVEMENT

PLAN FOR ACCREDITATION A scheme known as the New Zealand poultry flock improvement plan, 1946, has been circularised among poultry keepers by the New Zealand Poultry Board and the Department of Agriculture. It is for the a'ccrediting of all flocks of members, who subscfibe to the plan voluntary. Any registered poultry farmer owning not less than 40 breeding females for each breed accredited, any person owning' a hatchery where all eggs hatched are drawn only from accredited flocks, and any person conducting custom hatching in addition to owning- a poultry breeding flock may have the latter accredited provided the hatching eggs from his accredited breeding flock are hatched in a separator incubator or in a hatching compartment containing no eggs accepted for custom hatching unless such eggs are ^lso from an accredited flock, are among the conditions of membership. Health, constitution, weight and time of weighing, types, faults, blood testing for Pullorum disease, breeding from pullets, size of eggsfor hatching, marking eggs for hatching, the sale of hatching eggs, day-old chicks and stock, sanitation and management are the conditions which applicants are required to conform to. Under the conditions laid down for operating the plan in 1946 it will be necessary for the accrediting body to visit each applicant's farm twice before accrediting a breeding flock. Poultry farmers are notified that they must make an initial seleetion of their prospective breeding flock offered for accreditation prior to the arrival of the accrediting officers. Two visits will be made a year and any hen which, in the opinion of the inspecting body, has become unfit for breeding since the first visit, must be taken out of the breeding flock and have the leg band removed.