I hear that it is labor intensive and time consuming, even if you hire people to run the farm for you, which leaves little time to market the product effectively.

Thoughts? Can anyone outline a typical day in the life of a poultry farmer, or at least a poultry farm manager?

Best,

Hill

@Hunderwear
First let me commend you for starting this thread. I just started
rearing layers a year ago and up to now challenges especially feed prices
have kept me thinking and researching all over, especially in the net.

Feed Prices and Quality
Currently the feed has become expensive and also the quality has gone down because of the maize shortage. Chicken feed without enough maize is not good and will lead to low egg production.

Egg Prices
Secondly as you have said the price of eggs is not increasing to reflect the new feed prices. I believe the normal price at the moment should be 260 per crate when selling to wholesalers. However i only manage to convince a few to buy at 240; and they are complaining every day. Two months ago I could sell 10 trays at 230each and buy a 70kg of feed at 2300. Now the same feed costs 2600! And best egg-price I get is 240.

Mixing Own Feed
I just tried mixing my own feed to cut down on the production cost and my egg production went tumbling down; am now back to buying the commercial feeds. Mixing own feed is tricky but saves a lot of money if you get the formula right. Am thinking that my formula didn’t have the right quantities of each ingredient s esp. Protein after I came across the following link on how to calculate required chicken feed protein using PEARSON'S SQUARE:
http://www.lionsgrip.com/protein.html
Am currently trying it on one of my flocks to experiment and am hoping it works. This can cut the cost of production by even 20%.

Layers vs. Broilers
I am on layers and find it more comfortable with them than broilers. Egg market is wide. If you drive around the estate with 20 crates of eggs you are most likely to get a buyer. Again you can comfortably hoard your eggs for sometime as you look for appropriate market. I have a colleague who tried broilers and gave after after struggling to sell his first batch.

Labour
Starting up is not a joke. You need to be dedicated to the job especially when chicks are small. You may need to visit the farm every day to ensure chicks are kept well especially under correct temperature and that they sleep well without suffocating each other etc. You need to have adequate clean water. You need to train you employee(s) well on taking care them.
After the chicks are 8 weeks or older, the hustle reduces. You just need to provide feed, water and med.
Marketing is a hustle when starting up.. Like selling your initial eggs. However after a while you get to know several buyers and only the price will determine who you do business with.

Way Forward
• Let share as much info as we can esp:
o On how to get/make quality and cheaper feeds
o Where to get better market
• I expect Feed prices to drop and quality to increase after imported maize arrives

Cheers all

This is a great thread! reason being Poultry and Stocks have one thing in common,it calls for patience.

I did poultry about 6years ago but concentrated on semi-Freerange layers.
Semi because they were confined in a mesh yard but fed on my prescribed feeds e.g omena to supliment proteins.
I had a ready market from my immediate relatives with hotels and friends with retails shops but they warned me against dissappointments since they had ready clients who insisted in freerange eggs, just the way I do today.
The returns were handsome because I was doing it in person wit one helper and would collect a minimum of 5crates from 100 layers,some were giving 2/day.

I was in it for close to a year while on employment break to raise kekelet but the day I delegated the running of the farm to employees I lost it.
But wil do the Freerange layers again!

Yes, anybody with a tested feed formula for layers pls share..

@ TD
I thought I missed to enter my kukus in the guinness book until I read from other farmers in Google who have experience/d the same..!
Young Freerange layers when happy can surprise.

@IDP,

Feed making may not be feasible as a project for individual small scale farmers. The best they can do is form a group and then set up a feed mill so as to enjoy economies of scale. They can then invest in a mill grinder, mixer, necessary mix-ratios of all the inputs and they are home and dry!

@ Gathige
i requested you for the feed formultion to no avail.
please share with us for the chicken,.

@ PATTIE,

I will share it soon. Am out of the country at the moment and once am back end of this month will do so hopefully on this forum.

@ njung'e - freerange chicken is the kukus you let fend 4 themselves on open grounds, mostly kienyeji but u can also keep the kuku mzungu as freerange albeit with a few more challenges than the local. I.e the mzungu is more susceptible to diseases than the local but with good planning - regularly administering meds - they do fine.

@ Guka,yes.You can confine them the Kenchic way but provide the what they usually eat while roaming.including insect/worms if you can trap them