Agriculture is one of the oldest professions in the world that never go extinct this is because people have to eat. In Nigeria, everyone is suddenly waking up to this reality and it is becoming a profession people are engaging as the main source of income or just an additional side business.
Bird meats such as Chicken, Turkey and more are one of our favorite meat in the country so poultry farming is a good venture but it is good if you know what you are doing. Apart from the meats, there is also the eggs.
Poultry farming is one of the most lucrative livestock farming in Nigeria. It involves the rearing of birds but most Nigerians opt for chicken because of how easy it is to sell the end product.
To start a poultry farming like other investment require a lot of time to think and a lot of things to consider. We will be discussing some of them in this article.
Seek Professional advice
Like every venture, seeking professional advice before embarking on poultry farming is golden. Professional advice can be acquired from several means which include, reading books about poultry farming, online articles, and firsthand poultry farmer. All have their advantages but the best is to get from firsthand professionals around you because they will be able to direct you to do the needful in order to achieve your desired success.
Business Plan
Now that you have acquired sufficient professional advice from several sources the next thing to do is to prepare a business plan.
According to Wikipedia, a business plan is a formal written document containing business goals, the methods on how these goals can be attained, and the time frame that these goals need to be achieved.
A well-prepared business will ease up the way you will handle your poultry business, it will cover your capital, future expenditure, staff, and future income. It describes what you plan to do and how you plan to do it. You have to pay very much attention to your business plan as this is how you will achieve your goals.
Feasibility Study
This is the process of assessing the practicality of your plans. You need to do this in order to understand the market you are getting into. E.g. Broiler niche of chicken poultry farm should be targeted towards a festive period in order to get early profit for further investment. It takes 10 weeks for a broiler chicken to be mature for selling then you should target 10 weeks before the next festive period.
Another example is the Layers niche which requires a means of transportation from your farm to the market, it is advisable to have a truck if you are going into this form of chicken poultry farming.
Temperature can also determine the type of poultry farming you should go into. Because of the extreme heat in Northern Nigeria, Guinea Fowl is the best for that region.
Put all these studies together then you decide your area of interest.
Area of Interest
Poultry farming is in several forms such as Chicken, Turkey, Duck, Guinea Fowl. The most lucrative of all is Chicken farming. Even chicken farming are in different niches. Some of the available niche in chicken poultry farming in Nigeria is;
Layers: this involves the breed of chicken that lay eggs, this type of farming is for egg production.
Broilers: this involves meat production, live chicken sale.
Hatchery: this involves the hatching of chicks from eggs.
Poultry feed: this involves the production of feed in bulk for resale to other poultries.
You can pick any of these niches and you also have the choice to go for more than one depending on your plans. Your choice can be determined by your feasibility study report.
Location
The location of your farm can be either in a rural or in an isolated place close to an urban area. The distance will be determined by closeness to market or availability of a means of transportation. It is advised to be close to your clients/market. Another reason why you have to pay attention to your location is the temperature of the environment.
Land
This is the space you set up your poultry. How wide your land would be is determined by your business plan. It is advisable to get a land that can accommodate a small apartment for you and maybe an assistant.
Pen/Cage
As stated this is where you will house the chicken. This would be as big as you have in your business plan.
Feeding
This is an important part of the farming, you have to figure this out in your business plan. How well you feed your chicken determines the end product. A well-fed broiler chicken cost more than a chicken that is not well fed. Feeding determines the numbers of egg that would be laid by the layers too.
Time
A poultry farm needs constant attention and that requires a lot of time. There should be someone at the farm at all times for feeding and general inspection once in a while. If you won’t be available then hire an assistant or a farm manager depending on your business plan.
Treatment
Treating your poultry animals is an important part of poultry farming, it is advised to get a veterinary doctor for regular checkup and vaccination.
Transportation
You will have to move items in and out of your poultry every now and then, you have to get a means of transportation for moving chicks or feeds into your farm and moving your end product to the market.
These are some of the things you need to consider before starting a Poultry farming business.
Other things you can considerares prospective customers of your end product and how to dispose the waste from your poultry.
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