Poultry Farming Business for Beginners – What Is the Process?

Chicken stew, fried chicken, boiled eggs, and fried eggs. What crosses your mind at the mention of such chicken products? Two words, delicious and yummy, right?

Kenyans love everything about chicken delicacies. They would give an arm and a leg to have chicken delivered to their house from KFC, JAVA, and the like. And, need I mention that eggs have also now become part of every delicacy.

No wonder the poultry farming business in Kenya is now one of the most lucrative ventures today. 

If you begin keeping poultry for the sale of eggs or chicken for meat, you will have discovered a goldmine. It is indeed one of the most profitable businesses to do in Kenya in 2024.

Matters of poultry farming include: – farm location, capital and profit projection, requirements, and many more, all of which we will use in this post to discuss.

Best Location for Poultry Farming Business in Kenya.

It is difficult to get enough space and land to set up a poultry farm in urban areas, but if you can get a plot of about 100m by 50m, then that would be enough for the task.

If you won’t secure such a piece of land in town, resolve to get one in the rural areas of the same size or even bigger depending on the scale of your practice.

A poultry farm in town will be so close to the market as opposed to one in a rural area. However, where you lack space in town, you can still set up a farm in the reserve areas and market your business well by having some kind of online store or website, Facebook and Instagram pages as well as other social media platforms.

Requirements.

There are things you must do to succeed and profit in the poultry farming business. These are what we will discuss under requirements:-

1. Market research is inevitable – you can not rely on rumors to invest in the poultry business. You must do your market research. Gauge how much demand there is, how crowded the business might be, and both capital and profit estimates, among other important issues.
2. To pick a niche or not – you may decide to focus on a specific type of poultry or even take up some or all the types. The possible poultry types to choose from are:

• • Pullets / Layers – these are for egg production. Are the most lucrative but stressful.
  • Broilers – these are reared for meat. They grow faster and are ready for sale 12 weeks after hatching.

Also Read: – How to Start a Profitable Rabbit Farming Business in Kenya.

• • Cockerels – these are also for meat production. Can take up to 24 weeks after hatching before they mature and become ready. They can survive bad weather and other harsh conditions than layers and broilers.

3. Identify a hatchery – you need to know where you will be getting a supply of your day-old chicks. You don’t want to do everything else and lack the most essential thing – the chicks to raise into the chickens. At the hatchery, good quality day-old chicks are produced and you get them at relatively cheap prices as opposed to other sources. So according to the poultry types you want to rear, identify a hatchery where you can get those specific types.
4. Acquire space and land – we said that if you can get a 100m by 50m in town, the better because towns will be so close to the market. If you don’t get in town, get to your reserve home and prepare enough land for poultry farming, 100m by 50m or more. Hiring land in town will cost you about Ksh.20,000 – Ksh.30,000 while the land might be yours in the rural area, so cutting on hiring cost.
5. Set up a chicken Cage – build a chicken cage according to experts’ specifications. It should be spacious enough for the chicken to move around freely, well-ventilated, and safe from toppling. This may cost you about Ksh.30,000 – Ksh.40,000.
6. If your farm is in town, you will need the County Council Single Business Permit which costs Ksh.5,000 – Ksh.10,000 depending on the county.
7. Bring in your day-old chicks – you will buy as many as you have planned and your chicken cage can accommodate so that they are just enough for the cage. You do not want your birds to die of suffocation and disease transmission from others.

8. Provide the following to the chicks:

• • External heat and light source – they tend to be unable to maintain their body temperature.
  • Food using plastic chick feeders.
  • Water and any other thing they need.

9. As chicks grow into young and mature chickens, you need to keep their food and water fresh as well as collect eggs regularly. Most layers begin to lay eggs after 18-22 weeks of hatching.
10. Market your poultry farming business thoroughly:

• • Build connections with hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, and other potential clients.
  • Post everywhere – on your Facebook and Instagram pages and WhatsApp status.
  • Build a website and get it optimized accordingly.
  • Let the whole world know that you keep and sell poultry.

How much capital do you need for your poultry farming business in Kenya?

How much should you set apart for poultry farming business? Let us see:

• Chicks – Ksh.15,000
• Land – Ksh.20,000
• Cage – Ksh.30,000
• Feeders and food – Ksh.10,000
• Marketing and other costs – Ksh.20,000

This means that starting with just about 150 chicks, Ksh.100,000 would be enough to kick off your poultry farming business.

How Profitable is Poultry Farming in Kenya?

A day-old chick costs Ksh.80 – Ksh.100.

You raise it into a grown chicken worth Ksh.1,000. Sell 100 chickens and you already have your invested capital of Ksh.100,000 back. Sell all of them and make Ksh.50,000 more. Repeat with other chicks and continue enjoying the profits.

Alternatively, layers begin to lay at 18-22 weeks and an egg goes at an average Ksh.15. Let each lay 30 eggs a month and sell each egg at Ksh.15 and that makes as low as Ksh.45,000.

In 3 months you have returned your invested amount. 

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