Here are the factors that determine the cost to start a poultry
farm:
1. Land
First, you would need to purchase a good plot of land that would be
suitable for farming. Farm lands are usually cheaper than lands in residential
areas, so you may be lucky to get a very sizable plot at a very good price.
2. Construction
costs
The next stage after purchase of land is construction. You would
have to build a cage
to keep the birds in. There are different types of cages and with varying
cost implications.
When you have decided on the most suitable one for you, then you can
call in experts to give you a quote. You may also need to construct some
building like stores for keeping equipment and supplies and maybe a security/ farm
house for farm labourers.
3. Chicks
The next thing you would have to spend on is getting chicks to start
your farm with. As a beginner, you wouldn’t have chicks of your own yet so you
would have to buy from other poultry farmers. The number of chicks you would
need depends on the size of your farm and the capacity of the poultry housing
you have constructed.
The price would also depend on the size of the chicks. Day old
chicks are usually very cheap. You may even get them far cheaper but you have
to be careful when handling day old chicks because they are usually at a high
risk of dying.
4. Poultry equipment
This is yet another thing that is dependent on the size of your
poultry farm and the nature of your business. If you want to hatch and sell
chicks for instance, you would have to buy hatchery equipment. If you want to
process meat for sale, you would also need meat processing equipment. The same
thing goes for if you want to produce your own poultry feed yourself.
So as for cost of equipment, you would really have to sit down and
decide on the nature of poultry farming you want to do and find out the type of
equipment you would need.
5. Vaccination
Your birds must be given the necessary medical attention so that
they can grow properly and produce efficiently. You have to include the costs
of vaccination
in your business plan. This cost would also include costs of drugs and payment
to the medical consultant that would be called upon to give the birds the
required medical attention.
6. Feeding
This is like the most important expense you would undertake in this
business. Feeding is very important because the growth and productivity of your
birds would depend on how well you feed them. There are different types of
poultry feeds for different stages in the bird’s lives.
There is the starter for when they are little chicks, there is the
grower for optimal growth and strength and there is the finisher for when they
are getting close to the selling stage. You can budget to use commercial feeds
but if you want to cut costs of feeding, you can consider producing your own
poultry feed. Although this may cost you a lot of money for a start, it would
save you a lot of money in the long run.
7. Cost of labour
If you are setting up a commercial poultry farm, it is unlikely that
you would be capable of handling all the tasks yourself. You may have to employ
people to assist you and you would need to pay them.
8. Other expenses
You should also make out a budget for electricity, transportation,
advertising, security, insurance as well as selling and distribution expenses.
To get a detailed and accurate cost of setting up your poultry farm, it is
advisable for you to carry out your own feasibility study.
This is where we will be ending our
discussion for today. Remember to
share your comments, views and opinions.
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