How would you like your eggs? 566 billion eggs were produced in China last year, almost 40 percent of the world's total! This 5th episode of our explainer series explores #HowChinaCan do this with its egg-cellent modern production techniques! #NewChina70Years
BEIJING, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- China produced more than 31 million tons of eggs in 2018, which is equivalent to about 566 billion eggs. That is the largest production of eggs in the world. How can China do this?
China is the world's largest producer and consumer of eggs. The production accounts for almost 40 percent of the world's total. Eggs in China have barely increased in price over the past 5 years. Eggs are hugely popular in China.
How does China produce eggs?
The key to mass egg production is layer poultry farming. China now has more than 900 million stock laying hens. China's largest layer poultry farming center can hatch 60 million chicks per year. The process is almost entirely automated, reducing workers by nearly 80 percent compared to old hatcheries.
The automatic separator can divide 60,000 eggs into two sizes per hour to facilitate feeding according to the size of the chicks. Breeding gene chips with independent intellectual property rights can discover high-quality chickens at the egg stage, which greatly improves the quality of hatched layers.
How is China increasing its amount of layer chickens?
China's egg production base is becoming more modern. Temperature, humidity, feeding, watering, and defecation are all controlled by computers. Automatic weighing and stirring of layer feed reduces manual intervention.
In China, many poultry farms with more than 100,000 chickens only need one farmer. It is also common to see robots monitoring these farms.
A conveyor belt is fitted under each chicken cage layer to dispose of manure. An automatic drying system then kicks in to dry and ferment the manure to prevent the spread of disease. Eggs are also automatically sent out of the hatchery
What happens before eggs in China go to market?
When an egg leaves the hatchery, it goes through a complicated process: cleaning, drying and ultraviolet sterilization.
More than 100,000 eggs can go through this process per hour. The "bad eggs" can be detected during the process. Eggs are also struck by 24 tiny 'hammers' in different directions. The tapping sound is detected and analyzed by a computer, which helps to determine the quality of the eggs. Certain sounds can help the computer pick out the 'bad eggs.'
After repeated screening, the eggs are finally sprayed with a gel film. It not only blocks bacteria but also ensures ventilation, thus prolonging the preservation time of eggs. Finally, the production process is completed through automated grading packaging.■
