A home poultry farm is a successful and profitable solution for doing business as a private subsidiary or peasant farm. This type of business is not difficult to organize and can be implemented by one family consisting of two people. The main source of income in this type of farming is egg products, so it is important to initially have an idea of where you can quickly sell egg products. Before investing money in the purchase or rental of premises, in its equipment, in birds and food for them, you should calculate the daily yield of eggs and determine potential places for their sale.
How to open a farm
What does the law say?
When drawing up a business plan for a poultry farm for 1000 chickens, you should include a section on registering business activities. Since the breeding of a large number of birds is carried out for commercial purposes, without official registration of the business, problems may arise in the process of its implementation. They will lead to financial losses and the forced closure of peasant farming.
Floor plan
It is not enough to register a peasant farm, since in order to obtain permission to start work from the authorized bodies, it is necessary to change the status of the land to the commercial category. The implementation of the procedure is possible only if the land property is located at a distance of 300 meters from the nearest residential buildings, since such norms are reflected in legal acts.
If difficulties arise with land registration, it is recommended to organize activities like personal subsidiary plots.
At the same time, it is not recommended to increase the number of birds beyond 1000, since waste from their vital activity can cause conflicts with neighbors who have the right to complain to the authorized bodies about unpleasant odors. Upon complaint, responsible specialists will have to go to the farmer and assess the compliance of the parameters of his private household plot or peasant farm, and in case of discrepancies, take measures to close it.
Organizing a business: step-by-step diagram
When deciding how to open a poultry farm, you need to draw up a detailed business plan and act in stages. First you need to rent or purchase space in rural areas. A small livestock can be kept on a summer cottage, but such proximity may cause objections from neighbors.
It is best to open a farm from scratch on the territory of a former state farm.
It is important to have a working water supply and electrical network.
To house the livestock, spacious, insulated poultry houses are needed. Chickens require perches (height varies by breed). Ducks and geese need access to water and a spacious run. The poultry house is equipped with a double door with a vestibule, lighting, windows, feeders and drinking bowls. Comfortable nests are provided for laying hens. It is necessary to purchase an incubator; it significantly increases the profitability of the farm.
Young animals are purchased from breeding farms that guarantee full compliance with the breed. It is better to purchase young chickens or ducklings that have already been vaccinated. They cost more, but the survival rate is much higher. It is worth taking care of the feed in advance. Poultry needs grain-based feed; it is more profitable to mix it yourself. Chopped vegetables and fruits, chopped herbs, as well as industrially produced mineral supplements and vitamins are added to the food.
Helpers will be needed to maintain a large farm. It is advisable to hire at least one person with a veterinary education.
When deciding how to open a poultry farm, you need to determine its status in advance. A mini-farm on a personal plot does not need to be registered. But for a large farm or retail work, legal registration is necessary. It is possible to register an individual entrepreneur or a farm. The latter option allows registration of several owners and makes it possible to pay a single agricultural tax (6%).
Before starting work, it is necessary to collect permits from the fire inspectorate and other authorities. In the future, you will need to obtain a veterinary certificate for the products; without it, the sale of eggs or meat is impossible.
Where to get money to open a farm
To open a poultry farm, a considerable investment in business is required. What to do if a person has a desire to start his own business, but does not have the financial ability to organize it?
In the absence of start-up capital, it is recommended to use one of the well-known and popular methods of attracting resources.
The state is implementing a program to support farmers, offering them up to 2,000,000 rubles for the development of peasant farming. Under the state support program for beginning entrepreneurs, you can count on an amount of 350,000 rubles. Some banking institutions provide preferential loans for the development of agricultural enterprises at 12 annual interest.
Chicken breeds
Advantages and disadvantages of poultry farming
Poultry breeding is an interesting business that has a number of advantages:
- high profitability, investments pay off within 2 years, in the third year the enterprise begins to generate stable profits;
- on the farm you can raise poultry of different types and breeds;
- profit comes from the sale of eggs, meat, offal, down, feathers and even bird droppings;
- poultry houses can be placed on any plot of land;
- registration is not required for a small farm;
- Demand for products is stable and quite high.
Despite the obvious advantages, the business also has disadvantages that need to be taken into account at the start:
- the cost of feed is constantly rising;
- competition from other private farms and large enterprises;
- a well-thought-out scheme for selling products is required;
- business is suitable only for people with experience in agriculture;
- To avoid degeneration, you will have to constantly buy additional young animals from other farms.
How to open a poultry farm from scratch
Before purchasing chickens, it is recommended to decide on their quantity. In this case, you should focus not only on your financial capabilities and the area of the premises for the birds to live, but also on potential sales channels. Without planning it, you should not start an activity, since it will be doomed to failure in advance. If you are keeping 1000 hens, you should expect to receive 800 eggs from them daily. Several ways to sell products should be considered:
- outbound sales from a vehicle in places specially equipped for these purposes;
- supply of products to public catering outlets, such as cafes, canteens and restaurants;
- agreement for regular delivery with grocery machines and small retail outlets.
When selling eggs or transferring them for sale, the farmer must have a veterinary certificate indicating that the product has been tested and that it complies with regulated standards.
Step-by-step instructions for opening a poultry farm
Here is a general cost estimate for opening a poultry farm. The main expense item will be the preparation of the poultry house.
Table 1. The amount of initial costs for opening a mini poultry farm.
Expense item | Cost, rub. |
Registration | 60 thousand |
Premises rental (200 sq. m) | 25 thousand |
Repair and preparation | 300 thousand |
Equipment and inventory | 800 thousand |
Salary, 7 people. | 180 thousand |
Additional expenses | 200 thousand |
Total | 1.565 million |
Work and sales are expected in a city with a population of 1.5-2 million people. Additional expenses include costs for utility bills, marketing, etc. The amount of tax deductions is not taken into account in the calculation.
What documents should I submit?
First of all, you need to choose a form of doing business - an individual or a legal entity, that is, start working as an individual entrepreneur or LLC (the simplest form of a legal entity).
When registering, the following OKVED codes are indicated:
- 10.12.1 “Production of chilled poultry meat”;
- 01.47.2 “Production of poultry eggs.”
To conduct activities you need to obtain permission from the state. authorities The business is related to the production of food products, so the requirements will be high both for the conditions of maintenance and preservation of the goods. Design documentation and a list of equipment are submitted to institutions, and the facility is inspected. The premises must have a technical passport of the BTI, and the SES must issue a conclusion on compliance with the design documentation.
Premises and equipment
Requirements for peasant farms
When planning the construction of a building or equipping a ready-made building to accommodate chickens, you should adhere to optimal standards. It is recommended to plant 5 birds per square meter. A flock of 1000 chickens requires 200 square meters of free space.
Cages should be placed at a height from the floor surface. They must provide access to perches, nests, drinking bowls and feeders. By arranging the cages in several tiers, you can increase the population to 3000 pieces.
Some farmers are considering an outdoor option for keeping chickens. It is less expensive and optimally suited for a novice entrepreneur.
In this situation, it is enough to pay attention to the equipment of the litter. It is not necessary to erect partitions, since it is possible to keep birds in one room in one flock.
Incubator
To reduce the entrepreneur’s expenses, it is recommended to include in his business plan a section on independent reproduction of the herd. Raising laying hens is much cheaper than buying adult birds.
Initially, you will have to invest in purchasing an incubator and additional equipment for the poultry farm. Chicks should be housed separately because proper heating, ventilation, lighting and feeding are essential for healthy birds to grow rapidly. Investments in incubator equipment and premises for chickens are recouped after the sale of eggs obtained in one season.
A little about the documents
Once your plan is drawn up, you need to start implementing it. To do this, you need to register your business with specific authorities, that is, determine the organizational and legal form. Also, in order for products to be freely supplied, for example, to the market, it is important to obtain certificates from a veterinarian.
It is also advisable to conduct an examination of eggs and meat (the business plan should provide for this). To carry it out, you need to bring a couple of eggs to the laboratory, for example. The procedure is inexpensive, but it will help to obtain quality certificates, therefore, this will make the products in demand. For better sales, you should enter into agreements with local printing - come up with beautiful and informative packaging for your product. It will become an effective advertisement.
Feeding
Requirements for the organizer of a peasant farm
The rate of feed consumption per bird when raising it from birth until the moment when it begins to lay eggs corresponds to 7.5 kilograms. A few weeks before the expected date of receiving the first eggs, chickens should be switched to feed with special additives that stimulate egg production. Its monthly consumption per chicken is up to 5 kilograms. During the egg collection period, the color of the yolk should be monitored. If it is light, then the demand for the product may be reduced, so additives will have to be added to the feed to normalize this parameter.
Income indicators
The profitability of a poultry farm can be determined only after calculations of income and costs. The first revenue will be provided by the sale of eggs. Meat products require time to raise young animals. The first batch of slaughter may take place in a few months if chicks were purchased and not grown-up individuals. We indicate the possible income in the table:
Product type | Number of sales per month, pcs. | Price per piece/kg, rub. | Total revenue, rub. |
Eggs | 15 thousand | 8 | 120 thousand |
Meat carcass | 500 | 75 | 375 thousand |
Total | – | – | 495 thousand |
It is possible that the cost of products and their quantities will differ from those indicated in the plan table, and the amount of revenue may change. But for calculations, let’s take the enterprise’s income of 500 thousand and calculate when the factory will reach self-sufficiency. In the table we will enter the parameters of income and expenditure that the poultry complex assumes:
Indicators | Amount, rub. |
Average monthly revenue | 500 thousand |
Costs of feed, consumables, livestock renewal | 100 thousand |
Funds for salaries and contributions | 245 thousand |
Expenses for veterinary procedures | 15 thousand |
Utility bills | 15 thousand |
Advertising campaign | 15 thousand |
Income without taxation | 110 thousand |
Taxes under the Unified Agricultural Tax system are assessed twice a year after the tax base is determined. Therefore, at the initial stage we will not take taxes into account, because profits and expenses may change. To calculate the expected payback period, we will take the amount of 90 thousand as a basis. Investments amounted to 2.5 million rubles. If the net profit does not increase, then the costs will pay off within two to three years, taking into account the fact that it will be necessary to constantly update the offspring, especially meat chickens. But with proper planning, it won't be difficult.
Breed selection
You should purchase adult birds or eggs for incubation only of an egg-bearing breed.
It is not recommended to choose egg-meat varieties of chickens. Egg birds are small in size, which means minimal costs for providing food. They are characterized by high egg production rates. A novice farmer is recommended to pay attention to chickens whose egg production parameters correspond to 85-95 percent. These birds include the following breeds: chever, leghorn, high line, B-33, and loman brown.
How to choose breeds and determine feeding regimen
The choice of breed is determined by the direction of the future farm. It is necessary to focus on egg and (or) meat breeds of chickens; meat and egg breeds are not recommended for a mini-farm due to slow growth and low productivity:
- Egg breeds of chickens include Leghorn, Hisex, crosses of Loman Brown egg breeds (up to 300 eggs per year). The Kuchinsky Jubilees have proven themselves well. Such breeds begin to lay eggs at 4.5-5 months;
- Meat breeds of chickens include Brahma, Cochin, Cornish, as well as crosses Cobb 500, Broiler 61, ROSS-301, ROSS-708. By the age of two months, broilers reach 3-4 kg of live weight.
The diet of chickens must include grain, feed of plant and animal origin, mineral supplements, bone meal, vitamin and protein supplements. The norm of feed consumption for 1 chicken per month is 4-5 kg. That is, a farm of 200 heads will require 10 tons of feed per year.
It is better to purchase grain in the fall after harvesting, otherwise in winter and spring feed sales are carried out at increased prices. It is advisable to purchase food in reserve. Feeding is two times a day - morning and evening; mixed feed and grain need mineral supplements, premixes, grass, hay, meat and bone meal, shells. Chicks need to be fed 6-8 times a day, and broilers must have 24-hour access to feed and water.
Raising young animals to constantly update the chicken population. Separate room for raising chickens with optimal temperature maintenance, round-the-clock lighting
Expenses for organizational events
A poultry farm for 1000 laying hens requires the entrepreneur to invest 1,100,000 rubles. This amount includes 700,000 rubles for the construction of a room of 200 square meters and its insulation. If you have a finished building, the total costs will be reduced to 400,000 rubles. The purchase of equipment in the form of cages, drinking bowls and feeders will cost 150,000 rubles. To purchase adult laying hens you need to spend 200,000 rubles. When planning to independently hatch and raise chickens, expense items should include the purchase of an incubator at 50,000 rubles and 20,000 rubles for the purchase of hatching eggs.
Purchase and maintenance of chickens
A number of chickens can be purchased at the poultry market, but it is better at a poultry farm, where the chickens are already vaccinated and, moreover, you can be sure that you are buying exactly the breed that you were planning to purchase. Cardboard boxes are suitable for transporting chickens; small ventilation holes are made in the top of the boxes to allow air to enter so that the chickens do not suffocate. At home, chickens are transplanted into larger boxes; the density of chickens is no more than 50 pcs. per 1 m2. A bedding is placed on the bottom, thick fabric is best, and the top of the box is partially covered with fabric.
For heating, you can use 100-watt electric bulbs; they are installed on top of the box so that they do not touch the cardboard walls. The temperature in the boxes in the first week should be maintained at 29 °C, on the 10th day it is gradually reduced to 26 °C, then the temperature is gradually reduced to 18 °C. The chickens are fed millet, small wheat grains, herbs, boiled chicken eggs, and fish waste. The water in drinking bowls must be clean. In warm weather, grown-up chickens are released into enclosures for the day.
As the young animals grow, they are moved to a chicken coop equipped with feeders, drinkers, perches, and nests; the floor should be covered with bedding (sawdust, leaves, chopped hay).
Technology
A poultry farm can specialize in:
- hatching chickens from eggs in an incubator;
- on raising chickens to adult birds;
- in the production of eggs and meat products.
A farmer can specialize in one type of activity or in all at the same time. For successful production, products must be brought to market regularly. To do this, it is necessary to properly organize the work process and purchase poultry of a highly productive breed for it.
Laying hens are kept in windowless poultry houses, since to ensure high egg production rates, constant regulation of daylight hours is necessary. Culling and mortality necessitate the need to replenish the herd. Therefore, the farmer must take into account the statistics and plan to regularly purchase adults or small batches of hatching eggs to complete the flock.
To ensure the productivity of chickens, the temperature of the poultry house should not go beyond 16-18 degrees Celsius, and the humidity should be at 60-70 percent. Good lighting and cleanliness of the poultry house have an important influence on the egg production of chickens. The level of dust in the room affects the general condition of the bird. In summer, it is recommended to install powerful fans to ensure air flow. If the room is not cleared of droppings in a timely manner, as a result of its decomposition, gases are released, the inhalation of which has a negative effect on the bird’s appetite.
Financial plan: profitability and payback
We will draw up a financial plan using the example of a chicken farm, the population of which is 1.5 thousand heads. Meat and egg breeds are presented in equal proportions (750 heads each). The egg category will not be taken into account when calculating. When determining revenue, current average prices for goods are used.
1. Productivity of 1 bird in 20 eggs/month; the farm will produce about 15 thousand eggs per month.
14.5 thousand pieces will be put on sale, the price of 1 egg will be 6 rubles. If you sell all the eggs, you can earn 87 thousand rubles. per month, or 1.044 million rubles. in year.
2. The broiler is ready for slaughter on day 50. 1 bird gives 3 kg of meat. It turns out that in about 2 months you can prepare approximately 2,250 tons of chicken for sale.
The average price of 1 kg of meat will be 150 rubles. This means that for 1 generation of broilers you can earn 337.5 thousand rubles. Annual revenue for meat sales will be 2.025 million rubles.
Under these conditions, the business will reach zero in about 3.6 years.
We will also briefly touch on average prices for other types of poultry.
- duck meat, 1 kg – 180 rubles;
- goose meat, 1 kg – 310 rubles;
- duck egg, 10 pcs. – 140 rub.;
Table 2. Economic justification for the business idea.
Basic indicators | Meaning |
Initial investment amount | RUB 1.565 million |
Monthly expenses for the year | RUB 2.640 million |
Productivity per month | according to calculation |
Annual income | RUB 3.069 million |
Net profit per year | 429 thousand rubles. |
Payback period | 43 months |
Let us remind you that the calculation does not indicate the income that can be received from the sale of feathers and down, bones, offal and droppings.