Poultry farming business is a lucrative business idea that is already established. The economy of most countries especially in Africa is heavily dependent on the farming or agriculture sector.
In Nigeria for instance, Poultry farming can play an essential part in the overall national earnings of the nation and fulfill the yearly nutritional demands.
So, in a nutshell, poultry farming business is simply the breeding of domesticated birds (chicken, turkey, geese, duck, etc.) for commercial and industrial purposes and/or for personal consumption.
This has actually been a common practice in Africa especially Nigeria for such a long time that it has become an important part of the farming and agricultural system.
Some report reveals that, commercial poultry farming business has actually made many people millionaires over the years.
So, if you are a newbie and wish to begin poultry farming business in Nigeria or anywhere around the world then try to learn more and more about poultry nurturing.
Read a lot of educational materials on poultry and also visit farms for practical experience as much as possible to acquire some demonstrable knowledge.
Poultry farming business could be considered as one of the most profitable agricultural business ideas in Nigeria today. It does not require huge capital to begin as you can start from the convenience of your home if you have enough land area that can actually take your desire number of birds.
Poultry farming is a very profitable but delicate business. Profitable in the sense that the intake or consumption of the end product; meat and egg remain in constant demand throughout the country and it happens to be a powerful source of animal protein outside beef, pork and fish.
More importantly, poultry products are in the category of white meat, which is believed to be much healthier for human consumption.
The business is delicate in the sense that farmers are extremely mindful when it comes to taking care of the birds to avoid tragedy which could be as a result of illness or disease infecting the birds.
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A good example of the kind of disease that can contaminate the birds is “bird flu” which can eliminate the whole birds in a matter of days.
Nigeria is a very huge market for poultry products because people naturally tend to favor poultry products over red meat because of the health benefits it is thought to give.
Some of the illness impacting mostly the senior individuals such as cholesterol, high blood pressure and heart related diseases are said to be related to red meat.
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Poultry Farming In Nigeria.
Chicken is the No. 1 protein source that are consumed in the United States. Americans eat more chicken meat than anyone else in the world – around 93 pounds per capita yearly. Americans also eat 95 million dozens of eggs annually.
According to the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association, the combined value of production from broilers, eggs, turkeys, and the value of sales from chickens in 2018 was $46.3 billion.
In Nigeria, the demand for livestock products, which includes poultry, is expanding faster which is also the case in Ghana and across Africa as a result of increase in urbanization and population growth.
Poultry farming is also one of the fastest growing sectors in the Agricultural market industry in Nigeria. According to The Sun Newspaper, which was also reported by Business Post. Nigeria’s poultry market industry is worth over N1.2trn yearly
From a market size point of view, Nigeria’s egg production is the biggest in Africa followed by that of South Africa.
Chicken importation (with the exception of day-old-chicks) was prohibited by Nigeria in 2003, which spurred growth in domestic poultry production.
The Nigerian poultry sector is very fragmented with the majority of the chicken raised in ‘yards’ or on poultry farms with less than 1,000 birds.
Amongst all type of poultry farming (chickens, geese, turkeys, and ducks), chicken is the most common one as farmers get a multitude of chickens frequently either the egg for food or the farming meat.
The high usage of the end product; chicken and egg are in consistent demand in the market and even at various homes in Nigeria today and this makes poultry farming extremely profitable as it appears to be a powerful source of animal protein outside pork, beef, and fish.
Why Poultry Farming Business is Profitable
There are numerous reasons of beginning poultry farming business in Nigeria. Below are the primary benefits of poultry farming business.
- Poultry farming business is a very profitable business opportunity for individuals and Entrepreneurs.
- Commercial poultry farming business produces excellent employment opportunities for the job seekers.
- The desire for white meat over red meat makes the demand for poultry products an ideal choice of business for many individuals.
- Poultry farming is such an excellent business that can never ever dry up.
- Domestic poultry farming business can meet up the family nutrition demands. On the other hand, industrial poultry raising is a terrific earnings and employment source.
- The market is readily available for these products since everybody, young and old, rich and not so abundant eat poultry products
- The business commands Quick return on investment Investing in a day old chick, in forty-five days has the possible to bring in high profit.
- Poultry birds offer us eggs and meat that is terrific source of healthy and nutritious food.
- You do not have to over-think the marketing process if you want to start poultry farming business. Because there is already an appropriate market for poultry products from the ancient time.
- The initial capital is low compared with some other investments. With as little as #50,000.00, you can start with about 100 day old chicks and in less than two months, you are selling totally grown chickens or you are selling eggs.
- There are no tribal, local or spiritual taboo about consuming poultry products like eggs and meat. Almost every people likes poultry eggs and meat.
- There are numerous poultry breeds available. You can pick any according to your choice of production
- Excellent business idea with great ROI ratio. Anybody can begin raising poultry in commercial and domestic purpose.
However, the drawback of poultry farming business you must be fully aware of include:
- The poultry farm may experience disease outbreak, if the disease is not controlled rapidly it might be disastrous
- The feeds might be of low quality which may lead to poor nutrition of the birds
- Theft by workers of the poultry farm cannot be eliminated.
6 Steps Process To Starting A Poultry Farming Business
Are you preparing to start your own poultry farm? If so, then you must enter the business well prepared by considering all of its elements.
Right from setting up some fundamental equipment to raising the birds and marketing your service, you have to take every step carefully.
Poultry farming is of various types such as duck rearing, raising chicken, turkey, emu, quails, broiler, etc. However, the practices and principles underlying are the same.
Below are the 6 basic steps you are required to follow to start a lucrative poultry farming business in Nigeria or anywhere in the world.
Step 1 – Select The Type Of Poultry Breeds To Rear
Prior to you kick-starting your poultry farming business endeavor, it is necessary to have a clear picture of what kind of poultry breeds to farm.
There are three kinds of breed which are very ideal for commercial poultry farming business. You can select any for your farm.
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Modern poultry breeds are extremely productive and commercial raising is also very profitable. Modern layers produce much more eggs than traditional types and broilers grow faster than ever.
Choosing the correct breeds for commercial production depends upon you. Before beginning, determine the kind of item you want to produce.
The 3 common and commercial poultry types are brief discussed below.
Broilers: Broiler poultry are very fast growing poultry breeds. Typically, they get butchery weight within an extremely short time by taking in specific quantity of food.
And they are utilized for commercial meat production. They grow from a hatch weight of 40 g to a weight of approximately 1.5 to 2 kg within 6 weeks only
Layers: Layer poultry types of breeds are utilized for industrial and commercial egg production and after that slew for meat. Layer chickens are raised from one-day old.
They start laying eggs at the age of 18-19 weeks and continue up until they are 72-78 weeks of age. If you want to produce eggs commercially, choose a highly efficient and productive layer type of breeds.
Cockerels: Cockerels are another type of meat productive poultry breeds. Just like the broilers, cockerels are also for meat production and have a special demand for some people however then, its growth is extremely slow, unlike the broilers that grow extremely quickly.
However extremely durable and can make it through and adopt themselves in almost all types of environment.
select correct and proper type of breed according to your desired production. Each type of poultry breeds requires unique type of care and system of management.
So, choose a proper breed and take good care of your birds to be successful in the poultry farming business.
Step 2 – Select A Right Location for the Farm
The main point required for setting up poultry farming business is a piece of appropriate land. Where your poultry farm is positioned or situated is really crucial for your business.
To start poultry farming, you require farmland. The size of the poultry farmland will definitely be determined by the number of birds you want to rear.
The size of land depends upon the variety of birds you want to raise and the farming system. Getting land for your farming business is the most expensive part of any commercial poultry farming business.
It’s always much better to begin little if you have sufficient land at your backyard and can’t manage to obtain a new site. You can start with what you have but make it a top priority to get a better farm as quickly as you can purchase it.
Ensure the farmland is a little away from the town or big cities. Select a fresh environment and location free of pollution. If you can purchase the land in a rural area, it will be better.
Because land and labors are highly offered at a more affordable rate in rural areas. Establishing a poultry farm in a leased land is absolutely a bad idea.
Nevertheless, while choosing land, keep in mind some important facilities like a source of water, free from all types of animals and predators, a market near the farm, ease of transportation facilities, etc.
Step 3 – Provide Good Housing And Shelter For The Birds
When it pertains to poultry farming, good housing is the next essential element after acquiring a farm land. A proper poultry housing is essential for the protection, security and survival of your commercial poultry birds.
The Housing system you pick completely depends on the poultry breeds and farming method. housing style differs in accordance with various types of poultry raising techniques.
The housing to be developed should be large enough to allow totally free motion and running of the birds. shelters need to be raised properly to prevent the threat of flooding.
It needs to be large enough to allow free movement and running of the birds. In addition, the shelter should be effectively ventilated and safeguarded from sunshine.
Follow the suggestions pointed out below while constructing a suitable house for your poultry birds.
- First thing first, the poultry house should be well ventilated. Well ventilation system keeps the bird healthy and productive.
- Make a suitable system for mesmerizing adequate amount of fresh air and light inside the house.
- Ensure the house north to south faced.
- In case of making various houses, the distance between each should be around 40 feet.
- Before bringing the chick inside the farm, tidy the house and whole farm area properly.
- Make deep liter tidy it regularly.
- You can use some inexpensive materials like wood or rice bran for making liter.
- Keep the feeding and watering devices in proper distance from each other according to the number of birds and farming systems. And constantly clean all types of equipment routinely.
- Make sure that, your birds are devoid of all types of animals, pests or predators inside the house.
- Your faming house should be sited in quiet and calm area away from noise and pollution.
- Your housing setup should have all essential facilities for poultry birds as this is one of the key settings for success with poultry faming business.
Step 4 – Feeding and Medication OF The Poultry Birds
For your commercial poultry products production; good quality, extremely healthy and nutritious food is a must. Neat and quality feeds keep the birds healthy constantly and extremely productive.
The feed needs to be kept clean and dry always, as contaminated feed can infect poultry. Fresh quality and nutritious food is the essential factor to success in poultry farming business.
Clean water must be available at all times for your birds. Your birds require not absence water. The absence of an adequate water supply system can restrain their growth.
So good and high quality food keeps the bird healthy and highly productive. Good quality healthy and fresh food is the key to success in poultry farming business as earlier mentioned.
Constantly provide the appropriate quantity of food according to the number and age of poultry birds. Along with feeding excellent foods, constantly supply enough amount of clean and freshwater according to the day-to-day needs of poultry.
Appropriate medication and vaccination can avoid lots of poultry diseases. As a commercial poultry farmer, you need to have a veterinary medical professional that can come run a look at your birds when the need arises.
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There are different routine medications and vaccinations that assist in the healthiness of your birds to keep them safe from viruses and bacterial infections, peradventure they catch a transmittable illness.
Step 5 – Care and Management System
Poultry birds are extremely sensitive and may easily contact diseases. Normally, they suffer by different kinds of viral, bacterial, fungal, parasitic and nutritional diseases.
Correct vaccination should be in place for keeping your birds’ free from disease, productive and healthy.
So, immunize the birds promptly. If by chance, diseases occur in the poultry farm then meet a veterinarian physician as soon as possible and listen to his guidance.
Step 6 – Marketing and Sales of the farm products
Poultry farming is a lucrative business and the utmost desire of every poultry farmer is to make good sales after every harvest. So you are requiring to pay close attention to the marketing element of the business.
Do not be caught up in the operational aspect of your business venture so much that you disregard the sales aspect.
The Easiness to market the poultry products is the primary advantages of poultry farming business. There is already a readily available market for poultry products such as eggs and meat with substantial demand.
So, you do not need to over-think the marketing process of your products. You can offer your poultry products to both big malls in cities and local markets.
According to the above conversation, poultry farming business in Nigeria or anywhere in the world is really a lucrative and profitable business idea. As it is currently an already established business model.
And with all the necessary facilities, so all you need to get started is some capital and practical and demonstrable understanding for starting poultry farming business in Nigeria or anywhere in the world.
However, the following ideas can assist you in the marketing and sales of your poultry products; taking your business online, selling to the hospitality entities like hotels, motels, lounges, restaurants, etc., promoting your products through various advertising medium, engaging marketers, and doing home delivery, etc.
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Farming Systems
According to the weather condition and environment of Nigeria, there are 3 rewarding systems of raising poultry.
- Extensive system,
- 2.Semi-intensive system and
- Extensive poultry farming system.
Cost of Starting A Poultry Farming Business
Numerous brand-new businesses require a large capital outlay, which is not within reach of many business owners. A normal start-up business venture also takes a very long time to produce a return on your investment.
By contrast, a small-scale poultry business has a reasonably low start-up expense and rapid returns on investment.
You can begin with as low as N50,000 (which is essentially to covers the cost of purchasing the day-old chicks and feeding them) and get a 100% return on your capital investment within six months.
And because chicks take just 21 days to hatch, you can begin creating an income just three weeks after beginning. No other business can supply such a fast turn-around.
Conclusion
Industrial poultry farming business in Nigeria has actually produced and still producing profitable business opportunities for individuals and Entrepreneurs and can be a fantastic source of employment for job seekers.
A lot of business owners prefer to produce day-old chicks and sell them to growers, as this alternative is easier and less dangerous. The decision, nevertheless, is up to you.
