Matt Barman

Cooper FarmsFt. Recovery, Ohio: 

Cooper Farms Ft. Recovery, Ohio Animal Sciences Internship Matt Barman

Background of Cooper Farms: 

Background of Cooper Farms Started by Virgil Cooper in 1938 near Oakwood, Ohio Started raising turkeys in Ft. Recovery, OH in the 1960’s Purchased Hartwigg Processing in 1965 near Ft. Recovery By the late 1960’s raising and hatching own poults

Divisions of Coopers Today: 

Divisions of Coopers Today Oakwood, Ohio Main Offices Turkey Breeder Flocks Hatchery Sow Herds Ft. Recovery, Ohio Live Production Turkey Grow Out Swine Grow Out Feed Mills St. Henry, Ohio Harvest Plant Some Ready to Cook Processing Van Wert, Ohio Further Processing Heat and Serve Clean Room Slicing Luncheon Meats

Oakwood : 

Oakwood Home to the breeder flock and hatchery that produce 14 million poults yearly Sow herd of approximately 9600 sows Main Offices

Fort Recovery: 

Fort Recovery Turkey Grow Out produces 4.5 million “Heavy Toms” yearly Swine Grow Out producing some 250,000 market hogs yearly 1.6 Million Layers and ~1 million replacement pullets Some custom broiler growing

St. Henry: 

St. Henry Harvests about 17,500 heavy toms five days a week Some Ready to Cook items produced here like Bob Evans Slow Roasted Turkey Live Production responsible for toms until they “Cross the Wall”

Van Wert: 

Van Wert The curing, smoking, and production of ready to eat products occurs here Only ISO certified Clean Room Slicing facility in the United States

Projects During the Internship: 

Projects During the Internship

Fuel Usage: 

Fuel Usage All barns are heated with propane that Cooper Farms pay for Wanted to see if there was an approximate average for fuel used during each month by starter barns and finishers

Barn Surveys: 

Barn Surveys All of the turkey barns are supposed to be the same Barn ages ranged from 1940’s to 2002 Compile information for a data base

What I Looked At: 

What I Looked At Dimensions of barns Size of bulk bin Type of ventilation Curtain size Open or closed ceiling Type of waterers Phone alarms Disposal of mortality Other livestock Water systems* Generator* Anything out of the ordinary

Water Systems: 

Water Systems Three basic types None Iron remover with chlorine and poly Iron remover with 20% hydrogen peroxide Important to know for the use of vaccines and medications

Standard Operating Procedures: 

Standard Operating Procedures Shavings delivery Truck washing Trailer washing Loader washing Traffic flow Rendering Barn Poult delivery Live haul Night load out Live hang Meat hauling Servicing barns Shocking wells

Assisting Servicemen: 

Assisting Servicemen Observe and learn flock management practices at different farms Help with vaccination of flocks Observe and learn different diseases that affect turkeys

Water Tests: 

Water Tests Check level of chlorine in water prior to vaccination Check cleanliness of water with an ORP meter Both may have effects on turkey health

Night Load Out: 

Night Load Out Load toms the night prior to their harvest Load approximately 1,000 toms per hour on a five man crew Birds are handled to minimize stress and bruising

Fear in Layers: 

Fear in Layers Student from University of Melbourne, Australia Count and watch heads of layers to attempt to detect the level of fear in the bird

Assist Hog Servicemen: 

Assist Hog Servicemen Learned and observed different management practices at different farms Helped treat and vaccinate the hogs Learned and observed different hog diseases