Are you looking forward to start poultry farming business? Poultry farming business can be done from both your backyard as well as medium and large integrated contract farming business.
Read this post to know why and how to start your own poultry farming business.
Poultry farming worldwide has transformed into a techno-commercial industry from the status of backyard farming since three decades. Poultry farming is the fastest growing sector in agriculture and farming business globally. The annual growth rate is 8-10% in egg and 12-15% in the broiler industry. Because of the increasing population and worldwide demand for food protein, people are now beginning to realize the potential of providing food protein as a basic need.
Many countries have adopted poultry farming business as a micro, small or medium enterprise with women empowerment as a model for rural economic sustainability. Poultry farming includes the activity of raising various types of domestic birds commercially for the purpose of meat, eggs and feather production. The most common and widely raised poultry birds are chicken.
The chickens that are raised for eggs are called layer chicken, and the chickens that are raised for their meat production are called broiler chickens. The UK and the USA consume more meat and eggs of chicken than any other countries of the world. Among the livestock ventures commercial poultry farming requires only less capital investment and it is same time has in added ensuring quick returns.
Benefits Of Commercial Poultry Farming
Commercial poultry farming business has several benefits. Size does not matter and being small has its own advantages.
- The major benefit is poultry farming business does not require huge capital to start with.
- Poultry farming does not require huge space. Yes, it requires space. You can also raise birds in your own backyard with one or numerous coops or cages.
- ROI of commercial poultry farming is very high. Within very short period profit can be generated.
- Almost all types of poultry birds are domestic. You will not need to obtain any major licenses.
- Broilers intake of feed is comparatively very low while it produces the maximum possible amount of food.
- Marketing is very simple. Apart from fresh chicken, you can also establish chicken processing unit.
- Poultry farming is a continuous source of income. It is not seasonal and can produce income for the entire year. While chickens lay eggs between 6 to 8 months, broilers take only 6 to 10 weeks to bring in income.
- Poultry droppings are rich in nitrogen and organic material and hence, are considered valuable as fertilizers.
- Almost all banks and financial institution approves the loan for commercial poultry farming project.
Different Methods Of Poultry Farming
Worldwatch institute described that, “about 74% of total poultry meat and 68% of total poultry eggs produced from intensive poultry farming method”. Intensive poultry farming method is a highly efficient system which saves, land, feed, labor and other resources and increases production. In this system, the poultry farming environment is fully controlled by the farmer. So, it ensures continuous production throughout the year in any environment and seasons. Here we put some methods of profitable commercial Layer Poultry Farming and Broiler Poultry Farming.
Deep Litter Poultry Farming
In the deep litter system, the pullets are placed on a bare floor that has been covered with sawdust.
Careful consideration is given to the method applied in feeding the birds. Removing the dropping usually poses no problem. You can either pack off the entire sawdust with the dropping or cover the dropping with fresh saw dust. Normally, the day-old chicks are housed using the brooder method before they grow up. They can be transferred to the battery cage when they approach their egg-laying period or left in the deep litter floor.
Careful consideration is given to the method applied in feeding the birds. Removing the dropping usually poses no problem. You can either pack off the entire sawdust with the dropping or cover the dropping with fresh saw dust. Normally, the day-old chicks are housed using the brooder method before they grow up. They can be transferred to the battery cage when they approach their egg-laying period or left in the deep litter floor.
Battery Cage Poultry Farming
The battery cage housing allows for the droppings to fall on a separate platform directly under the cage. It is uniquely constructed to make feeding and drinking quite easy for the birds. The birds feed on a marsh, which has been properly compounded. The marsh should be given according to an expert’s advice. In some cases, inappropriate feeding can lead to excess fat, which can result in mortality. In fact, defective feeding can lead to low egg production. In fact, it has been experienced in the past where a whole stock of birds produced no egg, due to wrong feeding.
Poultry Farming Business Plan
Developing an effective business plan is the most important part of your operation in poultry farming. The poultry industry is a broad niche and it has many sub-sectors like egg production, meet production and hatchery. You will need to choose your area of specialization according to the capital investment and technical know-how. The basic consideration should be financial viability and technical feasibility. You will need to have a detailed project report. How much area of land is required for the setup? What would be the investment in fixed capital? What kind of birds are you going to choose? What equipment are required? How your are going to market the products?
Skills For Poultry Farming
Technologies training including theoretical and practical both are essential for poultry farming business especially when you are directly dealing livestock. You need to be very careful about the feed, disease, and entire farm environment. Getting properly trained before starting poultry farming business is highly advised. Going into poultry farming without a practical knowledge of the venture is a direct invitation to failure. It is very important for the would-be entrepreneur to know how to keep and maintain the chicken or birds in an acceptable manner.
Compliance For Poultry Farming
Another important is to comply with regulations. You have to make sure that the operations of your farm and the treatment of your chickens comply with regulations. Check your local government agencies regulating laws and regulations for poultry farms.
Poultry Farming Care & Management
You should be a qualified person with a wealth of experience in poultry management. The management of the farm must be able to plan ahead its activities and be able to compare actual performance with the drawn plan in order to apply control measures whenever a deviation from the original plan is observed.
It must not be an armchair management that cares less about what may be happening to the birds at any given time. The management should be sensitive to the conditions on the farm and be in firm control of all situations.
Always take good care of your birds. Learn more about various types of poultry diseases, symptoms, and treatment. Vaccinate the birds timely. Provide them nutritious feed and clean water. Clean their house on a regular basis.
One of the critical factors that account for the success or failure of poultry farming is the way the health of the birds is handled. To ensure continuous production of chicken and eggs, your chickens should be regularly checked by veterinaries to ensure their health.
If the source of the day-old chicks or the foundation stick is compromised, or the necessary drugs are not properly administrated, poultry farming can turn into a nightmare.
Poultry Farming Insurance
There are many external and internal issues like extreme weather and disease that could lead to significant poultry losses. So it is important to protect the investment you have made in your poultry operation with the right insurance solution.
Poultry Farming Market Opportunities
The market for poultry products is quite enormous. You should be able to identify both the immediate and potential markets for the products before starting the business otherwise the management might not be able to sell the products at the appropriate time.
You need to find the ways to reach your customers and this would be done by employing the suitable marketing techniques. Before you start the business, you should really consider the marketing strategy that you would use to break into the market.
Poultry Farming ROI
A prudent poultry farmer must keep a close watch over the cost of running the farm. You must avoid unnecessary spending, which tends to eat away his profit. The labor, feeds, drugs and other input costs must be in line with standard farm requirements, otherwise such expenses should be ignored. All forms of wasteful spending must be eliminated, no matter how insignificant the amount may seem to the management.
Keep up with records and accounting of your business and operation so that you can always be sure you are making money or not. The normal incubation period of the birds is 21 days and full maturity is reached between 20-24 weeks. The payback period of a poultry farming business is between 3-4 years.
