Poultry Processing Business

By BrokenSphere,, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Apart from beef, poultry is the number one source of protein in most countries. The product is popular and highly sort in homes around the world.

It has domestic, food and industrial applications and is found in many products. The primary source of poultry meat is chicken however we get meat from turkey, pigeon, ostrich and dock.

 There are many small business ventures based on poultry products. However the four major areas are egg production, meat production, equipment manufacture and supply.

Every section is highly lucrative especially small scale poultry meat processing.  The business is competitive and the demand far outweighs the supply.

The rural areas account for 60% of small scale poultry production in developing countries. You can start small scale poultry processing plant with moderate investment.

All you need to do is downsize the production based on available funds. Before you start your enterprise there are certain provisions you need to meet such as company registration and permits.

Other important issues include public health, bird handling, hygiene and production output. Things to consider are equipment, staff, design of processing plant and location.

It is important to factor transportation, effluence disposal, plant maintenance including fixed and working capital. Other aspects are sourcing the birds, plant efficiency, packaging and marketing the product. Let’s look at what it entails to start a small scale poultry processing business

Small Scale Poultry Processing Business

To start your enterprise you need a business plan. Write a business plan and carry out a feasibility study.

Lease a factory for your abattoir, staff quarters, packaging and storage. Apply for bank loans and provide collateral and part of the startup funds.

Register the business as a sole proprietorship or limited liability company. Make sure you follow strict government guidelines on poultry meat processing.

Purchase equipment to carry out poultry processing and hire competent staff. Source your products from local farmers and formulate an effective marketing strategy.

• Write business plan
• Carry out feasibility study
• Lease factory space
• Apply for Bank Loans
• Register your business
• Purchase Equipment, Birds
• Hire Staff
• Marketing Strategy

Poultry Bird

Select specie of bird that have high meat ratio and purchase from reputable broiler farmers in your locality. Another method is growing the birds yourself in a farming environment. However this requires a deferent facility, veterinary services, heat and feeding.

Operational Procedure for Bird Processing

While setting up the poultry processing plant you need to determine the operational capacity. Knowing how many birds could be processed per day gives a framework on output.  

You need to choose the best bird species for meat production. Then provide adequate provisions for movement of the bird too and from the factory. 

Other important aspects of the production are evisceration, packaging, branding, and refrigeration. The number of birds processed in a small scale plant starts at 50-200 birds a day. Larger plants process 350 birds an hour using either air chilling or cold water chilling.

The business model for 50 birds involves stunning, slaughter, de-feathering then refrigeration. The model for 250 birds a day is stunning, de-feathering, evisceration, cooling, grading and refrigeration.

Model three involves 350-400 birds an hour processing through stunning, slaughter, de-feathering, evisceration, cooling, cutting, packaging and refrigeration.

Flow Chart of Poultry Processing

Health inspection of the Bird-Stunning-Slaughter-De-feathering-Evisceration, cooling, Packaging, Grading –Refrigeration

50-100 Birds/Day	200-300 Birds/DAY	300-400 Birds/Hour
Stun the Bird	Stun the Bird	Stun, Slaughter
Slaughter the Bird	Slaughter the Bird	De-feather
De-feathering	De-feather	Scalding
Packaging	Evisceration	Eviscerating
Refrigeration	cooling	Cooling
	packaging	Cutting, Packaging
	Refrigeration	Refrigeration

Hygiene

Poultry hygiene and factory maintenance are very important requirement to run a successful factory. The birds need to pass regular health inspecting before and after slaughter.

Adequate provisions should be made for staff welfare and safety. You need effluence treatment protocols, good sanitation and regular maintenance.

Factory Facilities and Location

The location for your business should conform to zoning requirements. The building specification includes external reception area for the birds, loading and slaughter hall.

You need an evisceration room, cold room, packaging area and dispatch. Other requirements in your facility are offal room, staff quarters including effluence treatment area.

Marketing the Birds

There is a huge market for poultry birds so selling the product is easy. However you need to create adequate awareness to attract patronage.

 Use product branding on package and sell to frozen food dealers, restaurants, hotels, food plants and residents. Focus on mode of transportation, harvesting method and sales methods.

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