29 C.F.R. §§ 780.210–780.214

As stated in § 780.127, the typical hatchery is engaged in “agriculture,” whether in a rural or city location. Where the hatchery is engaged solely in procuring eggs for hatching, performing the hatching operations, and selling the chicks, all the employees including office and maintenance workers are engaged in agriculture (see Miller Hatcheries v. Boyer, 131 F. 2d 283).

It is common practice for hatcherymen to enter into arrangements with farmer poultry raisers for the production of hatching eggs which the hatchery agrees to buy. Ordinarily, the farmer furnishes the facilities, feed and labor and the hatchery furnishes the basic stock of poultry. The farmer undertakes a specialized program of care and improvement of the flock in cooperation with the hatchery. The hatchery may at times have a surplus of eggs, including those suitable for hatching and culled eggs which it sells. Activities such as grading and packing performed by the hatchery employees in connection with the disposal of these eggs, are an incident to the breeding of poultry by the hatchery and are within the scope of agriculture.

The work of hatchery employees in connection with the maintenance of the quality of the poultry flock on farms is also part of the “raising” operations. This includes testing for disese, culling, weighing, cooping, loading, and transporting the culled birds. The catching and loading of broilers on farms by hatchery employees for transportation to market are agricultural operations.

In some instances, hatcheries also engage in the produce business as such and commingle with the culled eggs and chickens other eggs and chickens which they buy for resale. In such a case that work which relates to both the hatchery and produce types of activities would not be within the scope of agriculture.

In some situations, the hatchery also operates a feed store and furnishes feed to the growers. As in the case of the produce business operated by a hatchery, this is not an agricultural activity and employees engaged therein, such as truckdrivers hauling feed to growers, are not agricultural employees. Also office workers and other employees are not employed in agriculture when their duties relate to nonagricultural activities.