The chicken industry has two sectors egg production and
meat production. The major challenges faced by chicken farmers are feeding,
managing the waste, location and diseases.
Poultry meat is in high demanded and the market is huge. Despite
many large farms and supply chain the demand dwarfs the supply making
investment in this sector lucrative.
Factors that make poultry farming profitable are the
large human population and preference for bird meat. The diverse use for
poultry eggs is another reason for the insatiable demand.
More challenges faced by poultry farmers include
intensive labor, pest and long turn-around period. Others are high startup
cost, adulterated poultry feed and major outbreaks of difficult diseases caused
by parasites, fungal or bacteria.
Starting
a Poultry Farming Business
Conduct
a Feasibility Study
The first thing you need to do is write a feasibility
study to guide the viability of the project. Study your immediate environment
to find a good location.
Chicken are very noisy especially when hungry and they
produce a lot of waste. Managing the droppings and noise is tough so locating
your farm in an urban area is bad.
While working on a feasibility study, write a business plan.
Let the plan focus on goals, funding, business structure, staff strength, and
product including future projections.
You need the business plan to source funds from banks and
identify your niche.
Choose
the Sector you Want to Operate
There are many sub sectors in the poultry industry. Choosing
the market you want to operate is very important because it defines your
business template.
There are other important aspects to poultry farming such
as insurance cover and local government approval to run a poultry farm
Billions of eggs are eating daily or used in one recipe
or the other. Manufacturers have also found different applications for chicken
eggs.
Chicken farmers rely on old or new layers to produce
eggs. Although some are more prolific in laying eggs than others they generally
lay an egg a day.
Layers are fed special concentrates to encourage regular
production.
Chicken
Breeding
Chicken breeding is very lucrative and in high demand. The
breeders concentrate on producing the chicks for farmers. Chicks are bred in
special hatcheries and sold directly to chicken farmers.
Poultry
Feed
Chickens are very ravenous and eat constantly they go
through kilos of feed in days. Without adequate feeding egg production reduces
and lower growth rate.
Feeding chickens take 68% of your entire expenditure. To mange
the effectively you need to control their feeding. Feed them twice a day early
in the morning and before nightfall.
Poultry feed is costly so regulating and supplementing the
feed is necessary. Some farmers produce their own feed by mixing the
recommended ingredients.
To have an idea of the formula used in making chicken
feed look at the label and ingredients. In
subsequent publication we will breakdown the formulation of chicken feed.
Poultry
Equipment
There are different equipment used for poultry production
such as cages and incubators. Some entrepreneurs focus only on making poultry
equipment for farmers.
The system you adapt dictates the equipment you need. You
need cages, a barn or house for the birds. Other common equipment are heaters,
feeders, incubators and drinkers.
More useful equipment's are egg trays, coops, perches,
nests, crates and a good lighting system. You also need an effective waste disposal
mechanize to handle the tons of feces.
Meat
Production
The major aspect of chicken farming is meat producing. The
kinds of chicken farmed for their meat are called broilers they are fast
growing and eat special mesh. The food fed to broilers is called growers mesh.
Poultry
Marketing and Consultancy
Entrepreneurs need lots of marketing and consultancy. Poultry
consultants provide advisory support to help farmers with problematic issues.
Poultry marketers handle the advertisement and visibility
of the farms products. To succeed you need to choose a niche, get
funding and acquire knowledge of your market.
Different
Types of Poultry
Chickens are not the only birds farmed for their meat and
eggs. There are different types of birds you can consider. Common birds farmed are turkey, duck, pigeon
and chicken. Other birds are ostrich, quail and guinea fowl.
Funding
You need lots of funding to start a commercial poultry
farm. You can scale down your farm to reduce cost.
You can source funds from bank loans, personal saving and
friends. Other ways are equity sales, core investor and partnership
arrangement.
Join associations
and cooperatives that provide soft loans to members.
Location
Many chicken farms are located at designated farming
areas. Farm land is cheaper than urban land making them easier to purchase.
It is a delicate balance between ideal location and
closeness to your primary market. Too far and you bare high transportation and
management costs. To near and you face lots of challenges from host community.
Cage
Systems
The chicken farmer decides on egg or meat production. Commercial
chicken farmers need to house their birds for better management and
productivity.
Keeping them in a controlled environment reduces wastage and
allows effective monitoring of the birds. The type of cages you need depends on
the niche you operate.
Deep
Litter System
Chickens farmed for meat are usually kept in an open plan
building. This makes regulating feeding and nutrition easy.
Young chicks are
subject to many dangerous diseases so they need a comprehensive health plan. The
enclosure is fitted with heaters, food and water bowls.
This deep litter system is a building or barn covered
with saw dust on the floor. The dust is changed regularly for cleanliness and
to avoid diseases.
Deep litter system helps the farmer manage a large number
of chicks in a controlled environment.
Battery
Cage System
The equipment used for egg production is different and
called the battery cage system. The birds are confined in cages that allow
feeding and egg lying. The slants of the cages allow eggs roll into a
collection chamber while the droppings fall to the ground.
Different
Housing Systems
The housing systems used by chicken farmers are the
extensive system, semi-intensive and intensive system. They also practice free
range farming that allows the chickens wander around.
List
of cage systems
1. The
Battery Cage System
2. Deep
Litter System
3. Semi-
Intensive
4. Intensive
5. Free
range
6. Extensive
System
Staff
The amount of labor depends on the size of your
operation. Automated farms demand less labor than manually run establishment. Farming
is labor intensive and needs administrative staff, laborers and an accountant.
Secure the farm from thieves and intruders including
dangerous reptiles like snakes. The farmer needs a vet for vaccinations and
healthcare.
Marketing
The business needs lots of marketing especially when you
are ready to sell. Use advertisements in newspaper to reach new customers.
You also need a bus for transportation, branded name and marketers.
Your customer base is restaurants, hotels, private individuals and food companies
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