Expert Guide How to Start a Poultry Farm in Nigeria

The demand for poultry products is increasing over time and sometimes the supply is not even enough.

Poultry farming is the process of raising various domestic birds like geese, chicken, emu, turkey, ducks etc. for their meat or eggs. The practice has been popular in the world even before civilization and is becoming more mechanised and easy with advancements in technology.

Poultry products are rich in carbohydrates, protein, minerals and vitamins. This post is on how you can start a profitable poultry farm in Nigeria. I will try to make it as short as possible and we\’re working on a PDF document as well for people who\’ll be interested.

Benefits of Poultry Farming in Nigeria

Some of the benefits you stand to achieve from poultry farming include:

• Source of income.
• Provision of food.
• It will also provide employment for your workers.
• The poultry business doesn\’t require much capital to begin.
• Profit margin is high.
• It doesn\’t need lots of space.
• Acquiring the licence is very easy and most farmers don\’t even get one.
• You can easily access loans and grants because the business model is clear.
• Marketing is very easy.

Equipment for Poultry Farming in Nigeria

Asides from the land and building, some of the equipment necessary for the launching of your poultry farm include:

• Feeding equipment
• Water supply equipment
• Chicken cage
• Heating equipment
• Ventilation equipment
• Manure removal equipment

Other things you might need include incubators, fly traps, laying nests, egg scales, egg washers and infra-red bulbs.

Is Local Poultry Farming in Nigeria Profitable?

Local poultry farming is profitable in Nigeria, but definitely not as profitable as the modern one. Modern-day poultry farms make use of equipment that makes rearing the birds easy and you use minimal effort to get huge results.

5 Steps To Starting a Poultry Farm in Nigeria

If you want to launch a successful poultry farm in the country, here are three things you need to put into consideration;

Choose the type of birds you want to rear

There are different types of birds – geese, chicken, emu, turkey, ducks etc and you have to pick what you want to be working on. Asides from that, there are also different types of different birds, for instance, chickens will have broilers, layers and cockerels to choose from.

They are all reared for different purposes like eggs, meat and reproduction and some grow faster than others, while some serve better for different purposes.

Get a suitable location

You need to get a place that\’s well accessible to the road and free from flood and dangerous animals like snakes. The place should also be away from the noise and air pollution and the size of your location will be dependent on the number of your birds.

Provide good housing and shelter

You need to provide good housing and shelter for your birds. Proper poultry housing is very necessary for the protection and survival of your poultry birds.
It should also be spacious enough to allow for easy movement of the birds.

Rearing of the birds

After doing these, you can now bring in the birds. Take careful consideration into their feeding and medication too because one breakout disease can send you six months behind everything you worked for.
The birds shouldn\’t lack water also and the feed must be clean and dry always.

Marketing of the products

After producing the birds and eggs, you will either take them to the market or contact buyers to come to the poultry themselves.
You can take your business to churches, schools, hotels and fast food depots. The markets are also a great choice and you can contact cold rooms.
Cold rooms however buy at bulk purchase and might not give you the best value for your products.

Cost of Starting A Poultry Farming Business in Nigeria

The cost of starting your poultry farm depends on the size. Assuming you have the housing and equipment ready, you can launch with as little as ₦100,000.
This will take care of the chickens, feed and medication for the first few weeks.

Conclusion

Chickens, eggs and other poultry products are things people will never stop consuming no matter how hard the economy gets. It has provided jobs for many people and you can even decide to be selling only the day-old chicks to growers.

Also, there are no religious or cultural restrictions to the products except maybe in the care of vegetarians, and even the wastes are being sold to crop farmers.
Before you launch fully, however, I recommend you do your own research properly and make sure the market is very good in your area.