To prevent the spread of disease, the plant is almost entirely sealed off from the outside world. Pipelines carry the feed from mixing tanks to the henhouses, and conveyor belts carry the freshly laid eggs to a pickup site for shipping. Robotic arms similar to those in an automobile factory load the eggs onto trucks. Everything is controlled by computer.
Excrement from the birds is used as organic fertiliser in nearby fruit fields, and chickens that have become too old to produce eggs are processed for meat or used as feed for raising crocodiles. Reusing resources in this way protects the surrounding environment and at the same time reduces our operating costs.
There is no shortage of labourers in the farming village, but the plant employs less than a few dozen people.
Instead of putting them to work in the factory, we made around 5,000 of the neighbouring farmers de facto shareholders in the company that operates it. We have arranged for the plant's profits to be distributed among these farmer-shareholders, and we guarantee to pay them a rental fee regardless of whether the plant is running at a profit or at a loss.