FCR and EPEF in broiler cultivation

Performance is quite important in broiler cultivation. There are many calculation methods around the world applied to determine performance. The mostly used performance criteria in broiler cultivation are FCR and EPEF values. Performance is calculated and efficiency is evaluated according to these values that are deemed significant by many companies all over the world.

Companies offer chick, feed and other services to cultivators and make payment to them according to their performance at the end of a period. FCR and EPEF are quite important factors in the assessment of this performance. So, what are FCR and EPEF? Let’s take a brief look into these criteria.

What is FCR?

FCR is the abbreviated form of Feed Conversion Rate. Beside broiler cultivation, it is also used in certain other areas. However, we will talk about its effect on broiler cultivation. FCR or, in other words, feed conversion rate is the proportion between given feed and animal weight as the name suggests.

FCR Formula: Total Given Feed / Obtained Animal Weight

The formula is as indicated above. It is the rate of total given feed to the total weight of the animal. Below is an example to this formula.

Example: Let’s assume that there is a broiler enterprise with a capacity of 20,000 broilers, and the total amount of given feed during the period is 79,000 kg. On the other hand, the total weight of the animals at the end of the period is 48,000 kg. If we incorporate these values in the formula;

The FCR Value concludes: 79,000 / 48,000 = 1,645…

The important points while calculating FCR value are given feed amount and obtained animal weight. Although it may considered that values such as mortality rate, average cutting age and average weight do not directly affect FCR, they actually have an indirect effect.

Low FCR value is the desired outcome in production. We can claim that the more the total animal weight compared to given feed, the better the performance. Reduced feed amount or increased animal weight decreases FCR which is desirable.

What is EPEF?

EPEF is the abbreviation for European Efficiency Productivity Factor. EPEF is one of the key values in broiler cultivation. Actually, this is a criterion which came into question when it was found out that FCR value does not offer a satisfactory calculation for productivity.

FCR did not consider certain criteria such as average animal weight, average cutting age and mortality rate when making calculations. As a result, a producer who had 1,600 FCR and 1,750 kg of animal weight was being more productive compared to another producer who had 1,700 FCR and 2,450 kg of animal weight. On the contrary, the latter was actually more productive although the FCR value may seem higher. On the other hand, mortality rates and average cutting age were also important aspects to consider. As a result, EPEF came out in consideration of all these.

EPEF Formula: [(Total Animal Weight x Total Animal Weight) / (Number of Incoming Chicks x Average Cutting Age x Total Given Feed)] x 10000

Below is an example to clarify the formula.

Example: Let’s continue with the foregoing example. Let’s assume that we have a broiler enterprise with a capacity of 20,000 broilers and gave 70,000 kg of feed but obtained 48,000 kg animal weight. The animals are cut at the age 40. If we incorporate these values in the formula;

The EPEF Value becomes: [(48.000 x 48.000) / (20.000 x 40 x 79.000)] x 10000 = 364,5…

In production, the higher is the EPEF value, the better is the performance. There are many factors that may affect EPEF value.