Cooper Farms has announced their intention to increase turkey production by 500,000 birds annually. The company is currently ranked seventh among major turkey integrators with an annual production estimated at 300 million pounds live weight in 2022 and approximately five percent of total U.S. RTC production. Based on the projected annual increment of 500,000 birds, and assuming the USDA average live weight of toms and hens combined of 30 lb. per bird, Cooper’s would produce an additional 12 million pounds of RTC annually. The company intends to add 39 production barns operated by contractors in northwest Ohio.
Gary Cooper, COO of the family-owned company, stated, “We are always thinking strategically about where our company can grow and how we can be a better supplier for our customers.” He added, “With a huge expansion like this it is important to recruit the right people to join the team.” Bill Staugler, Live Production Manager for turkeys, stated, “It makes us feel good that a lot of our current growers want to expand.”
Cooper Farms is headquartered in Oakwood, OH., with pork and egg production facilities located in a relatively limited area of operation. Northwest Ohio was not severely affected by the 2022 HPAI epornitic with losses confined to a single, large egg complex in 2022. The addition of an extra 40 growing barns should not materially increase the consequences of an outbreak that would be a function of virus shed by migratory birds counteracted by the effectiveness of structural and operational biosecurity.
In the turkey segment of the poultry industry that has demonstrated contraction in recent years, it is encouraging to observe the confidence demonstrated by Cooper Farms in their intention to expand production.