Poultry Farming business in Nigeria is probably one of the most lucrative farming business you can do in the world especially when it is set up and managed properly. Currently, the demand in the poultry products is very high and in the next 10 to 15 years the gap will still remain very high because we have very few farmers,
Poultry farming presents one of the finest opportunity for entrepreneurs to make a profit within the shortest period of time. thanks to the quick maturity of chicken.
The market is here waiting for you With over 200 Million consumers in the country who buys poultry products on a daily basis, The demand for eggs is so high that people go about every day looking for where to buy eggs for supply.
This article will cover a lot of ground, and it is written based on personal experience
It doesn’t matter your financial or educational background. You can start at any level and grow as big as you want with time. The most important thing is that you are interested in starting somewhere. Anyone can engage in poultry farming business,
I will focus on how you can start small and grow big which I think will interest anyone with limited financial capacity who wants to start small without involving much risk.
One of the factors that make the poultry farming business ideal is because chickens grow very fast. A chicken can be ready for the market within 8 weeks from birth. That is why it is considered ideal business for loan takers who may actually invest the loan and within months, they may start paying back through the profit realized from the farm. That is if everything goes well as planned.
The super advantage in Poultry Farming Business
1. Chicken Reproduce very Fast
An Average healthy Layer lays egg almost everyday minimum 4 times in a week. Some can lay as much as 325 eggs in a year and take 21 days to hatch depending on the Breed. Technically a Layer is capable of producing another chicken twice in three days.
So, if you have 1000 healthy layers of good breeds (for example California white) they are capable of reproducing a whopping 24,000 chicks within 40 days!
2. Chicken matures Very Fast
Within 21 days, the egg is hatched and within 28 weeks, they are ready for the market. That means a farmer may start making his money in just 34 weeks after successfully setting up his farm and whatever returns he makes could be doubled in a year based on this calculation.
3. Chicken Sells at a good price
A fully grown healthy chicken sells between 2,000 to 2,500 naira in Nigeria. Therefore, if you produce 24,000 chickens on your farm, you will be making N48 million by the time they are completely sold.
4. Egg market in Large too – Apart from the chicken, the egg is another money of its own. A crate of eggs sells for N500 – N550 for smaller eggs and N600 – N650 for bigger ones. Each crate contains 30 eggs. Therefore, if you have 500 layers that produce 12,000 pullets in a month and decides to sell all, you will be making N200,000 to N260,000 monthly.
As you can see, the profit in poultry farming in Nigeria is mouthwatering and the turn over time is fantastic. The big question now is how to get this business started?
What Your Poultry Business Plan Should Look Like
Poultry Farming in Nigeria
Medium scale poultry farm in Nigeria
Draw out your effective business plan. Poultry business plan is like a road map leading you to where you are going in your business. It will help you know where you are at any point in time. Hence your business plan should include:
1. You have to Decide on Type of Poultry Bird
Here you choose Chickens (Layers and Broilers). We choose chicken because that’s what this article focuses on. There are other types of birds that are good for livestock business too, such as Goose, Duck, Turkey, etc.
2. You have to Write Down your Area of Interest
You can’t just be in all aspect of poultry farming in Nigeria. You have to choose your area of interest where you would like to concentrate your business. This will ensure a high level of focus and professionalism. If you can do two areas, no problem. Below are some of the major Niches in Poultry Farming in Nigeria or elsewhere.
Layers Breeding which is egg production by Layers
Broilers breeding which referrers to the chicken meat production by Broilers
Hatchery which has to do with breeding chicken for the purpose of Hatching new chicks
Poultry feed which is producing feeds for other poultry farmers
You may choose to Breed Layers and Broilers at a time or one of them. The hatchery is better done independently just like feed production. So, you choose your area of focus
3. you have to Sort out Location for the farm
This has a direct effect on your startup cost. A location in a very remote rural area will cost far less than the one close to the urban area. Remote rural area with a good road is the ideal location as you will be free from regulatory agencies and drive down the cost of labour too.
As a person new to Livestock business, you don’t want to invest all your capital into buying lands in an urban area which may turn out not being used. Government policy is against setting up a poultry farm near residential/urban areas for health implications.
4. Secure you Poultry Farm Starting Capital
With a location in mind, you now have a clearer idea of the capital required of you. Write down your detailed capital and investment requirements for your poultry farming in Nigeria venture and set out to source for it.
Like every other farming projects, the bigger you plan to start, the more investment required. You need to decide on the level of capital investment you are willing to commit into this business before starting.
(a) Small scale Chicken Rearing (of about 50 birds) kept in cages at the backyard of your resident will take about N70,000 to start.
(b) A medium scale poultry farming that requires land and housing and other materials in 1 – 2 plots of Land takes about N500,000 to N5 Million to start.
(c) Large scale or Intensive poultry farming that requires a high level of sophistication and more careful planning and professionalism, using advance Livestock farming techniques takes from N10 Million.
Setting Up Your Poultry Farming In Nigeria
With your business plan is in place, the next is to proceed to set up your farm without delay! At this point, it is my belief that you already have the money in your hands. So here are the things you need to acquire and put in place.
1. Buy Poultry Farmland
Like we said earlier, look for land in a remote location but make sure it’s not too far from the city. A place like Ijebu Ode, Remo Area, Imota in Ikorodu. These places are perfect if you are in Lagos. Other places like towards Oshogbo after Ibadan isn’t too far too from the major city like Ibadan.
You can get Acre of land there for a cheap price, cost of lands in most cases is determined by the sellers. But we may suggest price during commenting. So drop your comments below and let’s get the discussion going.
2. Build your Poultry Pen Structure
House is very important for chicken rearing and effective keeping and management. Poultry housing are classified according to the scale and the management system. The most common types of poultry housing used for poultry farming in Nigeria are:
• Deep Litter-
• Half litter and half slats –
• Battery –
• Semi-fold –
3. Buy Day Old Chick
Look for good Hatchery where you can get healthy day old chicks to start with. It costs from N140 to N200 sometimes up to N300.
4. Items you Need for Poultry Farm
Feeders, Drinkers, Perches. Nests, Crates, Lighting system, Waste disposal system, Incubator, Heaters or brooders, Egg tray, Cages and coops.
What’s Next…
