Hy-Line International
Hy-Line International or Hy-Line is an American-owned multi-national genetics company that raises and sells commercial/industrial laying chickens. The firm has subsidiaries in the US, the UK, Brazil and Japan, and 60 distributors in more than 50 countries worldwide.[1]
Private | |
Industry | Hatchery |
Founded | West Des Moines, Iowa (1936) |
Headquarters | West Des Moines, Iowa, U.S. |
Key people | Jonathan Cade, President |
Website | Hy-Line.com |
As part of its international expansion, in 2008, the company launched a UK division called Hy-Line International UK, that handles production and distribution in the UK, Europe and other areas worldwide.[2]
Corporate
The firm is privately owned. Its president is Jonathan Cade; Thomas Dixon serves as the firm's director of international sales and marketing[3]
Operations
Hy-Line directly operates subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Italy, Brazil, South Africa[4] and Australia (Hy-Line Australia). Many of its subsidiaries were formerly distributors bought out by Hy-Line, including Hy-Line Italia (formerly Valversa) and Hy-Line South Africa (formerly Hy-Line Chicks).[5] In several companies it has instead signed exclusivity deals with distributors. In India, Amrit Group distributes Hy-Line chickens since July 2014 when a new 'poultry hub' was established as part of plans to capture 30% of the Indian egg-laying market by 2017–2018.[6][7] Sales in Vietnam are exclusively licensed to the Ba Haun Company since 2013.[8]
Products
Products of the company include the Hy-Line W-36, Brown, and Silver Brown lines.[9]
Criticism
Hy-Line International came under fire in September 2009 from animal rights group Mercy for Animals following the release of a video alleged to have been filmed inside of a Hy-Line hatchery, showing male chicks being ground up alive. The video went viral in the aftermath and received widespread media attention across the English speaking world. However it is a generally accepted practice and considered a humane method of dispatching.[10][11][12][13]
Hy-Line Australia was sued in 2013 for unsafe practices at its chicken hatchery at Huntly near Bendigo, VIC after a fire in one of its sheds in April, 2009 left an employee trapped due to lack of fire exits. The man escaped by breaking through floorboards. The case was settled out of court two days later for an undisclosed sum.[14][15]
Sponsorships
Hy-Line Australia is the name-sponsor of the Hy-Line Australia Oval, which is a home ground of the Heathcote District Football League.[16] It also sponsors the Hy-Line International Research Award of the Poultry Science Association.[17]
See also
- American Veterinary Medical Association
- American Association of Avian Pathologists
- Poultry Science Association
- ISA Brown
References
- http://www.hy-line.com/aspx/links/links.aspx?navid=9 Archived 2011-07-12 at the Wayback Machine Hy-Line website, links
- http://www.fwi.co.uk/Articles/2008/06/04/110702/hy-line-international-launches-uk-organisation.html Farmers Weekly Interactive, Hy-line international launches UK organisation April 6, 2008
- http://www.thepoultrysite.com/poultrynews/17068/leadership-changes-at-hyline-international Poultry Site, leadership changes at Hy-Line
- "Hy-Line's South African success story" (PDF). PositiveAction Magazines. PositiveAction Magazines. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Hy-Line Acquires Italian Egg Layer Distributor Valversa". PoultrySite. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Amrit Group to foray into 'Hy-line' layer breed chicken". India Times. 30 June 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Amrit Group to set up poultry hub in Bengal". Hindu Businessline. 4 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Ba Huan to supply US quality chicken". VietnamNews. 3 August 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- Product Information. Hyline 2014. (self-published source). Accessed August 2014.
- "Baby Chickens 'Cooked Alive' At Hatchery, Animal Rights Group Contends". Huffingtonpost Canada. 15 April 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Chicks 'ground alive' by poultry producer". Herald Sun. 3 September 2009. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Chicks Being Ground Up Alive Video". Huffington Post. 17 September 2009. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Baby chicks ground up alive: animal rights video goes viral". BoingBoing. 1 September 2009. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Trapped worker sues Hy-Line chicken farm". Bendigo Advertiser. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Trapped man's case over as Hy-Line settles out of court". Bendigo Advertiser. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Hy-Line Australia Oval, Huntly". FoxSportsPulse. FoxSports. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
- "Poultry Science Association Announces Award Winners". PoultrySite. 3 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.