A PRACTICAL MANUAL/GUIDE

ON

ESTABLISHMENT OF A SMALL SCALE POULTRY

FARM

BY

JIMOH USMAN OLA

October 2018
PROPOSED SMALL SCALE POULTRY FARMING

The importance of meat for health has been established and supported for a number of
reasons. Meat comes to offer various healthy nutrients to us including proteins, zinc,
vitamins and much more.

WHITE MEAT AND ITS BENEFITS

 White meat can obtained from fish, various forms of chicken and other domesticated
animals. The reasons for this can be the fact that it mostly comes from the poultry source
due to which is also named as whit poultry meat.

 It is quite lean in comparison to the red meat

 Its fat content is also less in comparison to the meat communing from the
large size mammals which is referred to as the red meat
 The reasons for which it is very often preferred by health experts is because it
has a low concentration of fat and dietary cholesterol
 Although the difference in the fat content between the two meat forms is not
so much, still it is enough to matter for some patients whose suffer from
various digestion problems and issues

FORMS OF WHITE MEAT

 Light Meat
 Dark Meat: The colour of this meat is dark because of the presence
of myoglobin

RED MEAT AND ITS DISADVANTAGES

The meat that is obtained from some large sized mammal is referred to as red
meat. The concentration levels of myoglobin have a chief role to play in this
regards. These levels are quite high in mammals in comparison to animals grown
up in the poultry settings.

 The first disease in line is the colorectal cancer which occurs due to
some more than normal red meat intake.
 Diabetes, obesity and various cardiovascular diseases also occur due
to varied consumption of the red meat
 The red meat also contains more saturated and Trans – fat in comparison
to the white meat which is a bit lean.

So, when it comes to some healthy meat options, then you should go for the white meat

Some of the reasons why I considered poultry farming a profitable business include;

 Food is one of the basic needs of man. Regardless of the economic situation, human
being must feed and since domestic birds are consumables; that makes poultry
farming feasible
 Nigeria for instance has a population of over 200 million and growing; bearing it in
mind that a huge population means a huge demand for food (egg and meat).
 With the increased awareness on the health implication of red meat; there’s an
increased demand for white meat and birds are a source of white meat.

STEP BY STEP GUIDE ON HOW TO START THE POULTRY FARMING

 SELECTION OF POULTRY NICHE
 Egg production (Layers breeding)
 Meat production (Broilers breeding)
 Chicken breeding (Hatchery)
 Poultry feed production
 Poultry equipment manufacturing
 Egg and Meat processing, packaging and marketing

TYPES OF BIRDS TO BE FOCUSED ON

 Domestic fowl or chicken (Broilers and layers)

 Turkey
 Guinea fowl

START – UP CAPITAL INVESTMENT

Poultry farming business is capital intensive; depending on the scale, location of the farm and
type of management technology.

A small scale poultry farm is considered since it a sole proprietorship unit which involves
running it behind my house and this require a capital of #300,000 - #750,000. We hope for
future expansion into the medium scale which requires a capital of #900,000 – 2,500,000 and
the large scale capital amounting to #21,000,000 respectively.

According to the figures stated above, the type of scale required is directly proportional to the
capital needed for the production.

POULTRY LOCATION

A good location is vital to the success and profitability of the poultry farm. An ideal poultry
farm should be close to areas with high population density

HOUSING THE BIRDS

The three (3) most commonly used methods are:

 Extensive system: Range and Fold unit

 Semi intensive system: Standard semi – intensive unit and straw yard
 Intensive system: Deep litters, wire and slated floor, battery cage unit

Since the poultry farm is intended for commercial purposes and getting the best out the
business with respect to high birds’ productivity and efficiency, so the intensive system has
been fully researched on and considered for maximization of profit.

ADVANTAGES OF BATTERY CAGE UNIT

 Greater number of birds is reared per unit area

  Facilitates correct maintenance of records
 Helps in identifying poor producers and prompt culling
 Helps in production of clean eggs
 Easy control of parasitic diseases like coccidiosis and worm infestation
 Prompt steps to control feed wastage
 Egg production of caged layer was reported to be more than those kept in deep
litter system
 Feed efficiency and egg weight were better in caged birds than the laying flock
under deep litter system

DISADVANTAGES OF BATTERY CAGE UNIT

 Incidence of leg problem, cage layer fatigue, fatty liver syndrome, flies
and obnoxious gases in the house will be on increase
 Hysteresis of chicks

Cage fatigue is considered to a physiological derangement of mineral electrolytes

imbalance

Leg weakness is common among caged birds which heals with time

Proper ventilation, correction of light – intensity, temperature, ideal environmental

conditions and maintenance of comfort in cages will check the conditions of hysteria
of chicken in cages.

POULTRY EQUIPMENT AND APPLIANCES

 Feeders
 Drinkers
 Crates
 Waste disposal systems
 Nests
 Perches
 Lighting system
 Incubators

PROJECTED RETURN ON INVESTMENT

The incubation period of the domestic fowl is 21days. Birds can be sold off as early as 8 – 12
weeks but full maturity is reached between 20 – 24 weeks.

The payback period of a poultry farming business is between 3 – 5 years.

POULTRY FARM STAFFING AND MANPOWER

Operating the poultry farm is not labour intensive if the use of technology is employed. With
respect to staffing, the number of manpower needed is also dependent on the size of the farm.
But for the sake of this poultry farm, the manager oversees the day – day running of the farm
and also doubles as the accountant to cut cost down until future expansion of the business.

MARKETING STRATEGY AND TARGET

 Awareness: Creation of flyers, Small and concise flex banner/ sign post
 Neighbourhood interactions
 Markets available e.g. Office i.e Banks, FRSC, Fastfoods outlet, Retail unit etc.

CHALLENGES OF STARTING THE BUSINESS

 High start up capital

 Longer payback period
 Labour intensive
 Outbreak of diseases
 Pest and predators