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Show the ENTERPRISE Fassios II. Since then, they have honed their operations to near Other egg farmers in Utah may be scrambling for a piece of the action in todays marketplace, but Fassio Farms, d already producing a full of the eggs sold within the state, is finding Utah fertile ground for growth. Come autumn, Fassio will increase production by 30 percent. Fassio hens accounted for more than 50 million eggs sold in Utah last year, according to general manager Dick Fassio. He currently counts 390,000 chickens as egg producers and the addition of 120,000 hens in October will definitely escalate the farms production and its sales. Housing the newcomers at Fassios Erda farm will be a $350,000 henhouse under construction by F. C. Stangl. The family owned business will also spend another $300,000 in coops and automatic egg retrievers. The hens one-thir- alone will cost $240,000, Fassio said. Save on labor The expansion comes in anticipation of Utahs growth, Fassio said. "And expansion will enable us to move from hand gathering to automation. It will be quite an expense, but five years down the road, it will have greatly saved us on labor costs. The hens average a 65 percent efficiency rate, or 65 percent of the stock produces eggs on a daily basis. The rate varies, sometimes as high as 93 percent, Fassio said. At the Herriman farm, two million investments for birds $1 by Sheri Poe Enterprise Staff Writer peak efficiency, claims Fassio. family affair, Fassio Farms has risen to the top of A wholly the pecking order among Utah's egg farmers. And like other success stories in a depressed agriculture industry, the Fassios have made way for computers in their daily routines. A Fresno, Calif., company called Diamond Shamrock has computerized feed requirements for Fassio hens, and regularly provides computer print-out- s detailing the cheapest methods to meet vitamin requirements for the prolific chickens. The computers service doesnt come cheap, but Fassio explained feed accounts for 70 percent of the farms total costs. During an average week, Fassio watches the gobble more 300 tons of feed. The feed than costs about $120 per ton, so in a months time, at least $150,00 has slipped down the gullets of Fassios feathered friends. egg-laye- rs Chicken before the egg For their keep, the chickens em- ployees gather up to 50,000 eggs apiece during their eight-hou- r shift. The Fassios began their business with 700 chickens in the years following World War are expected to prodcue an egg every 26 hours, remain healthy and serve the farm for two years. At Fassios, the chicken comes before the egg, arriving at the farm as a day-ol- d chick with a 39 cent price tag. The chick will require $2 in feed, care and innovations before being put into service, which usually begins at 20 weeks. For the remainder of the hen's stay with Fassio, it will produce nearly daily for all but 16 weeks. The time off is divided into two molting seasons, where the hens go without food for ten days, take a rest and replace old feathers while living through an articially induced winter season. This will both increase production and create a higher frequency of firm, uniform-size- d shells, claims Fassio. Less than 50 percent of the egg farmers nationally molt their chickens, yet Fassio swears it is a sure-fir- e method to increase productivity at the farm. At two years, the hens are sold to Campbells Soup for four cents a pound, or an Check eggs, detected during a oil for protection, sized and packaged in one of 24 brand candle process where the eggs are screened above bright lights, are sold to "breaking plants" for abut 30 cents a dozen. The breaking plants then pasteurize the eggs to create a commercial "liquid egg sold to bakeries. About six percent of all eggs collected are rejected during the candling process. The good eggs, however, are cleaned with soapy water, sanitized, dipped in mineral average of 16 cents per chicken. By this time, the hen is well into middle age, and should have produced about 400 eggs. egg cartons at the Fassio plant. A USDA inspector, consigned by Fassio egg distributor Nulaid, is on hand fulltime at the plant. "Nulaid pays for the inspector to insure the eggs are top quality," Fassio explained. "Otherwise, more money would be spent, on grocer recalls than on the inspector. continued on page 10 COMPLETE EMPLOYMENT PLACEMENT SERVICES . Going Rate . Also sold to defray costs is bird manure, Fassio said. Some 15,000 tons per year are sold to farmers and mushroom . . plants as fertilizer. The. manure has been discovered to be a cheap and nutritional substitute for cottonseed meal and is used in cattle feed at some farms. The going rate for chicken manure is $2 per Helping you to determine your needs and achieving your employment goals. 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