Poultry production in Nebraska is bigger than you think
By Bill Bevans | 10/19/2007

While Nebraska is known around the world as “The Beef State”, there is also a thriving poultry industry here. Nebraska produces some 90 million pounds of broilers, 60 million pounds of turkey, and more than 3 billion (that’s a “b”) eggs annually.

Thriving egg industry
It surprises many people that Nebraska has a major commercial egg industry. Nebraska ranks seventh in the nation in egg production, with approximately 12 million laying hens. The industry contributes about $95 million to Nebraska’s economy each year. Those 12 million laying chickens consume approximately 11.6 million bushels of corn and 81,000 tons of soybeans!

Although Nebraska’s commercial egg industry produces more than 3 billion eggs annually, none of those eggs are sold as shell eggs like the ones you buy at the grocery store. All Nebraska eggs are used in further processed egg products, which includes pasteurized refrigerated liquid eggs and frozen, dried and specialty products. These products are used primarily in commercial and foodservice operations to reduce labor, ease of portion control and for storage convenience. Egg products like these are used in many retail market items such as frozen breakfast foods, frozen quiche and most bakery items.

There are two companies in Nebraska that process eggs. They are referred to in the industry as “egg breakers”. Michael Foods is located in Wakefield and Henningsen Foods is located in David City. Michael Foods has contract producers who provide eggs to their production facility, as well as their own egg production. Henningsen Foods relies entirely on their contract producers for their egg supply. Nebraska has enjoyed having families continue in contract egg production for several generations. It’s a good life.

Nebraska’s egg industry employs about 1,300 persons, with the majority of these people living and working in rural communities. Many other Nebraska businesses benefit from the egg industry. The production process — getting the chick from the hatchery, to the grains the birds consume, to the equipment necessary for egg production, to equipment and materials needed to process the eggs and deliver them to domestic and international markets — is a huge enterprise. Nebraska’s egg industry is on the move.

Turkey industry has roots
The turkey industry in Nebraska has a long history. During the early settlement of the state and on through the depression years, many families had turkeys on their farms. Some hatcheries started promoting larger scale turkey production in the 1930s and the depression inspired a look at alternative crops by Nebraska farmers. As a result, the Nebraska Turkey Growers Cooperative was established in 1936 and incorporated in 1938. While there have been other turkey processing companies in the state in the past, since 1970, the cooperative has been the sole processing company in Nebraska.

The Nebraska Turkey Growers Cooperative currently has 12 active turkey growers in 15 locations spread across the state. These growers raise more than 4.6 million turkeys per year. They are processed and packaged at the co-op’s processing plant in Gibbon. The birds are sold under the Norbest label, which is owned by the co-op together with another turkey processing cooperative in Moroni, Utah. The co-op produces whole birds, bone-in-breasts, smoked and oven roasted (cooked) products and commodity meats. These products are sold throughout the U.S. and even into foreign markets.

The economic impact of the turkey industry in Nebraska is substantial. The farms employ about 60 full time people and the plant has a professional staff of 20 people, about 200 line workers and another 30 support staff. These are desirable and good paying jobs in all respects. In addition, the turkeys consume approximately 88,000 tons of processed feed per year, which keeps several feed mills busy. That translates into approximately 26,000 tons of soybean meal and 2.1 million bushels of corn, and substantial sums of other feed ingredients.

As with the egg industry, the process that gets the food from the farm to the fork is a huge endeavor that involves many people and allied industries to get the job done. These people take great pride in their work and like the egg producers, turkey growing families tend to continue the enterprise through several generations.

Broiler sector one-of-a-kind
Nebraska has a very unique broiler industry. All the broilers in the state are “Smart Chickens”. That’s the brand name of MBA Poultry, the broiler company that is becoming the envy of the broiler industry. The company produces air chilled fresh chicken that is antibiotic and animal byproduct free. It also produces air chilled fresh organic chicken. MBA is a relative new kid on the block, having started operations in Tecumseh in 2000. Its organic production began in 2003.

The company uses air to chill the birds during processing, instead of cold-water baths that are the industry standard. Air chilling is common in European chicken plants, but is still a novelty in the U.S. In fact, MBA Poultry is the only U.S. company that uses the process exclusively.

Smart Chickens are fed either an all-vegetable diet or an all-vegetable organic diet. The birds consume 1.6 million bushels of corn and 925,000 bushels of soybeans annually, while the organic birds eat 500,000 bushels of organically grown corn and 300,000 bushels of organically grown soybeans each year.

The company has its primary processing facility in Tecumseh, which was the former Campbell’s plant. It has recently opened a further processing, packaging and distribution center in Waverly, along with an office building.

Farmers in the Tecumseh area raise birds on contract for MBA Poultry, and the company also has its own farms. The company emphasizes the production of “All Natural” and “Organic” birds as it strives to promote a premium product that consumers will pay a premium price for. By all accounts, the company has been successful. MBA Poultry sells product across the U.S. in direct competition with the major chicken integrators. Most said it couldn’t be done.

Adding value in the state
Together, the egg, turkey and broiler industries make up a substantial poultry industry in Nebraska, an industry that has a huge economic impact on the state, much of which is directed toward our rural communities. The poultry industry is the number one consumer of soybean meal and number two consumer of corn in the Nebraska.

Processing and further processing poultry and other meat products is the natural value added activity for Nebraska. Poultry processing takes our abundant grain crops and converts them into high end food products right here in the state. The dollars multiply again and again during food processing.

Nebraska’s poultry industry creates many high quality jobs. It provides opportunities for young people in rural communities. It pays taxes to support the schools and communities it works in and is a good neighbor. All this as it goes about its business of producing, processing and distributing wholesome, nutritious and delicious products for its neighbors and customers far away. Nebraska’s poultry industry is a proud and energetic industry that will continue to grow and serve the growing need for quality proteins. It’s not just about beef in Nebraska!

Bill Bevans of Waverly, Nebraska, heads Bevans Enterprises Inc., a family-owned and operated turkey production business that originally started in the early 1940s. He is also a past president of the Nebraska Poultry Industries.