HatchTech Incubation Technology has been selected by China’s Huayu Agricultural Science and Technology Co. Ltd. to lead development of a major new hatchery in China. HatchTech will construct and equip the new parent stock hatchery, which is being developed by Huayu in Handan, Hebei province, for the production of Hy-Line poultry layer genetics.

Due to start production in the third quarter of 2020, the new hatchery will ensure a constant supply of Hy-Line poultry layer genetics, with an estimated capacity of 10 million parent layers a year. The project will further boost Hy-Line’s approximately 60% market share of China's total layer market, which produces more than 700 million birds annually.

In addition to the highest-quality incubation equipment, HatchTech will also supply cooling, heating and ventilation equipment to the hatchery, together with a full-service package of technical and biological support, according to the announcement.

The new hatchery is the second collaboration between HatchTech and Huayu, following the successful outcome of a commercial layer hatchery project. Opened in July 2018, the Handan-based layer hatchery is the world’s largest, with an annual production capacity of 60 million day-old chicks.

“The international layer hatchery we built together with HatchTech is delivering excellent results,” said Wang Lianzeng, chairman of Huayu Agricultural Science & Technology Co. “Our customers demand superior chick quality and top-notch biosecurity, so we once again selected HatchTech to construct this important parent stock hatchery. Supported by an excellent team of technical and biological support from HatchTech’s offices in Beijing [China], we are confident that this new project will deliver success to all stakeholders.”

Antonio Paraguassu, managing director at ILD/EW Group, parent company of Hy-Line, said, “It is important that Hy-Line continues to develop its Chinese distribution operations. We strongly believe that, to support our market-leading position, we need to invest in the best possible production facilities to provide our customers with the superior quality they demand and expect.”