CHICKENS

Ron and Allison Abta hold hens in front of their backyard chicken run in Ross, Calif., Dec. 15, 2020. Businesses that sell chicks, coops and other supplies say they have seen a surge in demand since the pandemic took hold in March and health officials ordered residents to stay home. Allison and Ron Abta of Northern California's Marin County had for years talked about setting up a backyard coop. “These chickens are like my favorite thing, honestly,” said 12-year-old Violet, holding a dark feathered hen in her woodsy backyard. “Without question, the resurgence in raising backyard poultry has been unbelievable over the past year,” said Podgwaite, who keeps a flock of roughly 100 birds.

PASCO COUNTY, Fla. – A fire early Thursday killed an estimated 250,000 chickens at a Florida farm operated by one of the nation’s largest egg producers. According to Pasco Fire Rescue, crews were called around 12:30 a.m. Thursday for a two-alarm fire at Cal-Maine Foods at 41040 Simpson Farm Lane. The company says on its website that it is the largest producer and distributor of shell eggs in the United States. The farm, one of many Cal-Maine operates, is about 40 miles north of Tampa. The company has more than 50 million chickens nationally and sells over a billion eggs annually, about 20% of the country’s production.