Have you ever wondered why is poultry farming often considered an excellent business opportunity? How does it earn the farmers with considerable profit amount?
According to a report, the global production of poultry meat was around 9 to 133 million tonnes from the year 1961 to 2020. The number of egg production was around 15 to 93 million tonnes. Asian countries are particularly the largest meat and egg production countries in the world.
Farming of poultry birds is the foundation of a nation’s economy, especially for those who rely heavily on agricultural practices. So, let’s learn about it in detail and find out the advantages and drawbacks. Analyzing the different aspects of this poultry farming technique will help you know if it is right for you or not.
What Is Poultry Farming All About?
It is a crucial aspect of animal husbandry. It raises different types of domesticated birds. Mostly poultry farmers raise chickens, turkeys, ducks, and others for the purpose of egg and meat consumption. According to a reliable report, people consume around 60 billion poultry animals, especially chicken in a year.
Different countries raise different types of poultry birds depending on the geographical climate, market demands, and popularity. Chicken is the most common type of poultry animal reared for dual purposes. Other poultry birds include ducks, turkeys, geese, guinea fowl, squabs, pheasants, quails, and ostriches.
Chickens like red and gray jungle fowls are commonly reared in Southern India. Some of the other chicken species include Rhode Island Red, Wyandotte and Orpington, etc.
Types of Poultry Farming: Intensive Vs. Extensive
Farming can be done on two different scales. Depending on the land requirement, production rate, cost involved, and welfare concern, it can be classified into two sections.
Intensive farming is done for increased production of meat and eggs. It involves less human labor, chemical farming inputs, and capital investment. This farming practice requires small farmland. It involves a systematic & well-planned housing system and vertical space for increased production in smaller areas.
Extensive farming requires a large space. The poultry birds can lay the eggs at any place while roaming around freely. They can utilize the floor and the ground outside their houses for laying eggs. Also, this farming method involves less amount of farming inputs and human labor. It is generally an organic and free-range poultry item production system.
How Does The Poultry Farming Work?
It is a methodical process. It involves a few steps for the production of poultry items. Let’s learn about the processes one by one.
Chicken Coop
It is the house for the fowl or chickens, structured to keep them safe with perches and boxes. Chickens need good air quality and light for better health. These coops are sometimes designed with a high-ventilation system.
According to some farmers, chickens get sicker in outdoor weather conditions. They aim to provide them with a more controlled cooping environment. The chicken coops can be with wide openings available or closed houses with a minimal ventilation system.
Egg-Laying
Hens usually start to lay eggs at 16 to 21 weeks of age. Once they reach 25, their production gradually slows down. In most countries, poultry farming practitioners slaughter chickens of 72 weeks or more due to zero egg production capacity.
Also, in some countries, farmers withdraw food for one to two weeks and water for an extended period of time. It can rejuvenate their reproductive tracts and the egg production rate slightly increases. This is known as forced molting. The process is done once the egg production rate decreases.
Egg production generally occurs in warmer months. Hens can produce more than 300 eggs annually.
Free Range
Free range is a great alternative to the intensive farming method. It involves the usage of clean drinking water, nationally-approved medications for disease prevention, and good-quality feed. The chickens can roam around freely with this technique during the daytime. At night, farmers confine them in sheds to protect them from wild predators.
The demand for eggs in the market produced through free-range farming techniques increases day by day. According to a report by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, UK, free-range chickens produced almost 41% of eggs in the year 2010.
The chickens can develop and practice natural behaviors like foraging, scratching, and exercising outdoors.
However, free-range poultry farming systems demand good drainage systems and protection from natural calamities and predators. Since the farmers can not always keep a check on the feed, it results in unpredictable productivity.
Free Run
This farming technique allows the birds to roam around freely within a barn. They can rest in nestling boxes at night. According to some farmers, this type of housing is better for the health of the poultry animals.
However, the rapid movement of the animals might cause elevated dust levels and air pollution. It can affect the health of the poultry birds resulting in less production.
Organic Method
Organic poultry farming is mostly popular in countries like the United States. It requires organic farm management and organic feed for the animals for their nutrition. The farmers should provide the birds with good health care, and a better living environment.
Processing and recordkeeping are two crucial aspects of organic farming. In the United Kingdom, the soil association standards have fixed a definite number of poultry birds to be raised at a time. The farmers in the UK can raise 1000 birds in one hectare and 2000 hens in a particular poultry house.
The Different Systems for Poultry Farming
The housing systems of poultry birds can be of different types. Let’s discuss the different systems of farming poultry birds.
Yarding
It is slightly different than free range farming process. In this system, a hutch is combined with an enclosed area outside. There is often no fence or distant fencing visible in free-range poultry farms.
In yarding, poultry animals can move inside an enclosed area. Smaller farms are prevalent mostly in the North-Eastern United States.
The farmers release them daily from the hutches. They lay their eggs on the floor or baskets provided by the farmer. Farming roosters with this technique is complicated due to their aggression.
Battery Cage
Battery cages are the most common housing process of poultry farming. However, it is banned by the European Union Council Directive. They advise farmers to avoid caging poultry birds due to animal welfare concerns.
These are small metal or mesh cages with 3 to 8 hens inside. The sloppy floor prevents their feces from dropping through and the conveyor belt collects the eggs. The hens get water through overhead nipple systems and food at regular intervals through a mechanical system.
A single barn consists of several floors with battery cages arranged in long rows. A single cage shed might contain around ten thousand hens. This type of confinement restricts the development of their natural behaviors like venting and feather pecking. They might develop abnormal behaviors detrimental to their health. However, the produced eggs are usually clean.
Furnished Cage
It is a specialized housing system for hens considering their comfort and welfare. DEFRA has defined the measurement for furnished cages. It should have at least 750 cm^2 of cage for proper movement of hens. The usable area should be at least 600 cm^2.
Also, the height of the cage should be 20 cm and the total area should be at least 2000 cm^2. The cages should have a nest, litter for pecking and scratching, and 15 cm perches. They should be given proper feed and the area should be at least 12 cm.
In furnished cages, the hens can spread their wings. The nest boxes and dust baths are useful for roosting and scratching. Farmers can also make some minor modifications to furnished cages for better bone quality.
So, What’s The Better Poultry Farming System?
Usually, housing systems like furnished cages and battery cages can result in decreased aggression among poultry animals. However, they often suffer from bone issues like osteoporosis and a weaker skeletal system.
These can be solved by free-range and free-run systems. Belgium, Germany, and Austria are already planning to ban furnished and battery caging systems completely by the year 2025.
The Different Aspects of Poultry Farming for Meat
This farming technique also produces meat for human consumption. Depending on the processes, meat-producing farming can also be categorized into a few sections.
Indoor Broilers
Poultry farmers raise these broilers on floors of indoor housings. They raise them in open and large structures called Grow Out houses, instead of cages. The farmers provide them with feed and water from day one. They use bedding materials like rice hulls, wood chips, and peanut shells to cover the floors. The indoor housing system comes with a proper climate-controlling and ventilation system.
The farmers usually send poultry chickens to slaughterhouses at 5 to 9 weeks of age. In these indoor systems, broilers grow up to 300% of their actual body size. At around nine weeks, hens weigh around 3.2 kg and roosters weigh approximately 4 to 5.5 kg. They feed on soybean and corn meal, vitamin and mineral supplements.
A traditional flock of poultry farming broilers includes around 20000 birds. Their length is around 400-500 feet and they are 40-50 feet wide. Most of the modern housing systems provide more space to the animals and include more birds. The broilers are less aggressive due to a lack of sexual maturity. Also, farmers do not inject steroids or hormones into their bodies.
Free-Range Broilers
In this case, the broilers are free to roam around. Each chicken should have at least one square meter of space to move around. They can develop natural behaviors like scratching, pecking, foraging, etc. Also, their leg and heart health is also better than other broilers. They usually grow slower than the indoor broilers. They are slaughtered at around 8 weeks.
Organic Broilers
Organic broilers can roam freely but with some restrictions on their feed, water, and medicine supply. They can roam in around 2 to 10 square meters of outdoor spaces. They grow slower compared to indoor broilers and farmers usually slaughter them at 12 weeks of age. According to the Soil Association standards, one hectare can include 2500 birds and 1000 broilers only in a poultry house.
The Popularity of Dual-Purpose Poultry Farming
Dual-purpose chickens are raised for both egg and meat production. In primitive days, people used to raise poultry livestock for both purposes. The distinction came into existence with the concept of industrial farming.
Modern egg-laying breeds of poultry birds can not cater to the ever-increasing demand for meat. Also, the mass poultry bird killing due to influenza and other diseases also restricts the number of poultry birds for consumption.
This issue is solved by raising dual-purpose chicken farming. Another solution includes sex analysis of the embryo in the egg before hatching it. The selection of the breed is done by Lohmann layers. The Lohmann breeders are planning to launch the experiment on 5000 poultry farms.
The hens will produce around 250 smaller eggs in a year. Ramon Gander, the coop spokesperson says that the dual-purpose chickens satisfy the demands of the population for chicken and egg.
How to Start Poultry Farming?
If this sounds interesting to you; it might be a great source of income for you! But before starting this, you should have an idea of how much you should invest and a proper funding system. Let’s look into the details.
Research
A thorough research about the best chicken breeds, how to care for them and the market demand is a must.
Find the Right Branch
Decide the particular branch of poultry farming in which you want to invest in. You can invest in egg production, broilers for meat, or dual-purpose breeds. The choice should depend on your resources, market demands, and goals.
Business Funding
You should have proper funding to carry out the farming operations and set up the farm with the right ventilation and protection. Calculate the initial cost of investing in land, housing, chicks, feeds, water resources, farming equipment, etc. Also, you need to invest in proper hygienic management and disease prevention systems.
5 Tips to Manage Funding for Poultry Farming
Managing the funds for this farming process is crucial. For increased profitability and sustainability of farming, you need to sort out the initial capital investment. Here are some tips to consider:
- Make a rough budget for the initial costings, You need to purchase chicks, invest in housing systems & feed, healthcare, and human labor.
- You can purchase feed in bulk and invest in cooperative arrangements along with other farmers.
- You should invest in energy-efficient lighting, housing, and ventilation systems.
- Consider adopting some sustainable farming practices like using poultry waste as crop fertilizers.
- You can look for government subsidies and grants.
Strategic planning can definitely help you in minimizing the overall cost of the farming process. The reduction in farming costs is crucial for the long-term benefit and success rate of farming.
6 Benefits of Poultry Farming
Farming poultry birds can offer you several benefits. The poultry items like eggs and chicken are in high demand in the market. Let’s quickly have a look at the benefits of the farming technique.
No Need for Big Farm
Birds do not require a large or special space for growing. You only need to provide them with a proper housing system so that they stay protected from wild predators.
Less Capital Investment
You need less funding just for purchasing the chicks, their feed, land, and farming equipment. If you have a basic setup suitable for poultry farming, you can earn profits by farming on a large scale.
High Marginal Profit
It is one of the best profit-making agro-businesses. It is a cost-efficient process and you can start it with just a few poultry birds and extend gradually.
Low Maintenance
Birds can take care of themselves to some extent. You just need to protect them from harmful diseases by investing in preventive medicare. Maintaining proper hygiene and cleanliness in poultry farming is crucial.
License, Not Mandatory
You do not need any authorization from the government mandatorily to start this practice. If you want to start on a small scale, you do not need a license. But if you are planning to do it on a large scale, you can easily get government authorization.
Income Opportunities
Due to the increased demand for poultry products, you will get better profits and a high Return On Investment (ROI). You can also create employment opportunities for yourself and others in your locality.
Major Issues with Poultry Farming
The farming practice might have some drawbacks to consider and most of them are related to animal welfare.
Compromised Animal Welfare
The poultry industry might affect the health of the poultry birds negatively. Starting from the factory farm conditions to the methods of transport can adversely affect their health.
Often the male chicks are destroyed after getting hatched because they do not produce eggs and grow slower. An alternative to solve this issue might be “in-ovo” sex determination.
Low-atmospheric pressure and inert gas asphyxiation techniques can be used to stun them before slaughtering instead of using electric shock in a water bath or carbon dioxide.
Carrying them by the legs is absolutely inhumane according to animal charities. Also, beak trimming causes them chronic pain. The poultry farming practices should be more humane in nature.
Use of Antibiotics & Growth Hormones
Poultry farmers inject antibiotics and growth hormones into the poultry birds to grow them 50% faster. It is also done for increased egg production, lower mortality rate, and illness. In countries like the United States and Australia using growth hormones is illegal. These can result in unnatural growth of the chicks and behavioral changes.
Consumption of Unsteriilized Meat
In some poultries, the feed contains arsenical antimicrobial drug elements to promote the poultry birds’ growth. Consumption of this meat might cause neurological issues in children and adults.
USA Consumer Report says more than 1.1 million Americans get sickened due to the consumption of undercooked chicken a year. Also, 99% of the chicken meat available in supermarkets might cause health issues due to the non-sterilized slaughtering process.
Health Issues
Chicks in poultry farming often suffer from influenzas and dermatitis that spread quickly. Consuming an infected chicken can cause severe health issues.
Proper Waste Disposal
The manure of poultry birds should be properly disposed of to keep the farm clean and hygienic. It can be done through wet and dry combinations. Having access to fresh water is very important to clean the floors.
Dry litter-like sawdust can be used for dry management. The wet manure can be used as organic fertilizers in local farms. Also, the carcasses should be properly disposed of to avoid infection and spread of disease.
Market Price Fluctuations
Commodity price can affect the costs associated with the poultry farming practice and the profit margin. The poultry birds are the major consumers of corn and soybean feed. A rise in the corn price can put a lot of pressure on large-scale chicken farming practices.
The Increasing Demand for Poultry Farming
Farming poultry birds not only creates earning opportunities but also, maintains food security in a nation. Poultry birds supply the market with a reliable and continuous protein and nutritional source, especially in areas with fewer food resources.
It is a highly profitable farming practice. Even entrepreneurs can also set up their own poultry farms if they have the basic idea of how and what to invest in. It is a great way to create new employment opportunities in the locality.
Poultry farming also supports other businesses like veterinary services, feed production, and much more. Sustainable farming practices like rotational grazing, natural pest control & fertilization can preserve natural resources.
Marketing Poultry Items With The Latest Technology
To earn your share of the profit, marketing the poultry items efficiently is highly important. You should come up with an effective marketing strategy to put your products at the top of this competitive world market.
To earn more profit, you can focus on niche marketing like free-range or organic poultry farming products. However, for that, you should have a clear idea of the local demands and regulations or certifications for added market value.
You can take the help of modern technologies like social media platforms or connect to local farming markets. This is effective in retaining a solid customer base. Also, stay updated about the latest farming studies and research findings.
Attend industry workshops and build proper networking through modern-day gadgets to collaborate with other farmers. You can join popular training institutions to get insights, support as well as knowledge about poultry farming resources.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Ans: Poultry farmers can start their farming process with different types of poultry birds like ducks, geese, turkeys, etc. However, chickens are the best poultry birds to start with due to high market demands.
Ans: This farming technique does not need a lot of space. Small-scale commercial farms usually require less amount of farmland.
Ans: It can be done organically. You need organic feed for raising the poultry birds. Also, you need to use natural farming techniques instead of using artificial growth hormones and antibiotics.
Ans: This particular farming practice is highly profitable. However, there are some drawbacks associated with this farming technique. Those include inconsistent feed supply, disease prevention and management, and high market competition.
Ans: You will initially need to invest INR 6 to 15 lakhs to set up a poultry farm with 1000 birds approximately. The cost varies depending on the scale of farming. Additionally, you might need to invest in purchasing land and other farming equipment.
Ans: Egg-laying hen and broiler production both can be profitable. Though raising broilers requires comparatively less capital. You can sell broilers within 35 to 40 days and earn a profit. With egg layers, you need to invest in the proper farming equipment, infrastructure, and quality feed for better-quality egg production. You can sell them only after 20 weeks or around 140 days.
Ans: To start a poultry farm, you need to research a lot & have the right knowledge about market demands.
You need to select a particular branch of poultry farming to invest in. Draft the right business plan to set up the farm. It is essential to purchase good-quality chicks and provide them with the right medical care.
So, depending on the scale of production, around INR 50K to 2 Lakhs should be adequate for starting a poultry farm.
Ans: Broilers consume approximately 1.5 to 2 Kilograms of feed for up to 6 weeks. For 1000 broilers, you need around 1500 to 2000 kilograms of feed during the first six weeks.