Small Chickens Are Big Business in Mississippi - and the Eggs Are Too

These young chicks at Zion Farms will be somebody's dinner in just a few months.

Mississippi’s known for its crops like cotton and sweet potatoes. But new census data shows that the Third Congressional District leads the nation in poultry production. MPB’s Cari Gervin has more.

Ron Brandon is feeding the chickens on his farm outside Pontotoc.

“These birds here, they’re Cornish-cross – that’s what the whole entire chicken industry anywhere in the nation, you know as far as meat birds, this is just the bird that’s raised.”

Brandon’s operation, Zion Farms, might be small. But the poultry industry in Mississippi is big.

“Poultry is our largest agricultural commodity.”

Mark Leggett, president of the Mississippi Poultry Association:

“And it’s just over half of all the agricultural production in the state. So it’s about $2.4 billion - and that’s just what’s at the farm level. The total for the state is $4.88.”

Again, that’s 4.88 billion dollars for the state economy. But it’s not enough for Mike Kidd.

Kidd is the head of poultry science at Mississippi State University. It’s one of only six programs in the country. Kidd says the department is in the middle of raising the funds for a $30-million-dollar federal research center that will lead the nation in poultry science technology.

“We want Mississippi companies to be viable, we want them to be profitable. So we need to make sure the industry has the tools to be on the cutting edge.”

Although its ground has yet to be broken, the center has already received close to $4 million this year, including recent stimulus funds from the US Department of Agriculture.

For MPB News, I’m Cari Gervin.