FAQ

Starting a chicken farming business requires some preperation. Follow these steps:

1. First of all, get some information about running a chicken business from any of your nearest chicken farms, institutions, or organizations like iShamba and Budget Mkononi.
2. Then, select a good location for your chicken farm. The house should not be too close to a residential area or a town.
3. Build a good house in the area you have
4. Buy all the needed chicken equipment once you have built the
5. Think about why you are keeping the chickens, is it for meat, eggs, or both?
   1. Find out what people want to buy in your
   2. Find out what the market needs (nearby markets, contractors).
   3. Generally, both meat and eggs have good demand in
      • For meat- Broilers
      • Eggs- Layers
      • Both for meat and eggs- Improved Kienyeji like Kenbro among others
   4. Buy birds from reliable suppliers or breeders around your
   5. Feed your birds with high-quality
   6. Ensure your birds have fresh and clean drinking Change this daily.
   7. Keep good contact with a vet in your
   8. Keep a record of total costs and income from your business. Keeping records is very important for running a successful chicken farm.

• The Rhode Island Red Chicken is considered the best egg-laying chicken breed.
  • In one year, it gives about 250
• There are also some hybrids and improved Kienyeji chicken which are very good for egg production too.

This depends on the breed, method of rearing and age.

• Generally, the average feed intake for a chick is 20-35 g while for growers, you need 70-100 g per bird and mature birds need 90-130 g per day.

The exact amount depends on various factors. Start with a small number of birds (e.g., 50 chicks) and expand slowly.

• This depends on a number of things including how much you expect to make by the end of the production period. Consider:

• The selling price of your
  • If you’re selling live birds, you are likely to get a better
• Your input costs (feed, chicks, labour, electricity, fuel, loan repayments and so forth).
  • The lower these costs, the better your profit
• Do thorough market and supplier research in your area and then create a simple business plan and outline the expected cash This will give you a good idea of how many chickens you will need to keep in order to meet your goals.

• Roosters are not a must-have for the hens to lay
• But you will need roosters if you want to produce fertile eggs for
• One rooster/cock is enough for around 10

• Yes, but the conditions and amounts can vary depending on your location. Please contact a bank in your area for more information.

• Broilers need 1 square foot per bird while layers and improved Kienyeji need 1.5 square feet per bird.

• If eggs are well kept in a refrigerator, they should stay good and remain safe to eat for about 6 weeks.
• If you keep them in a carton, most eggs can stay good for up to 4
• That means they may be sold up to four weeks after they are placed in the carton and the consumer will still have plenty of time to use them.