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B531: Sources Of Maine Poultry Meat And Market Outlets, W. E. Pullen, W. E. Savage

Bulletins

No episode in the history of Maine's agriculture was as spectacular as the rapid growth of the poultry meat industry. The leading role in this expansion was played by broilers. Within the 15-year span from 1938 to 1952, the number of broilers produced increased more than 50-fold, from less than 400,000 birds in 1938 to more than 23 million in 1952. Gross farm income from broilers increased even more rapidly, from about $200,000 in 1938 to nearly $24,000,000 by 1952. This expansion in commercial broiler production made the poultry industry jump from its usual third-place position as a source of …