In the previous articles, we have discussed how you can start your poultry farming in Kenya as a farmer where you are buying chicks from the hatcheries and then giving them tender loving care so that they can survive and mature into adult birds that you can sell for profits. But there is another lucrative side to poultry farming in Kenya that can also be a great revenue generator if you do the right things and get it right so that you can realize a great hatch rate.
Unlike other poultry farming businesses in Kenya, hatchery requires a little specialized knowledge which is why it is generally carried out by only a small subset of farmers in the country. If you are planning to go into poultry hatchery, I would strongly advise you to start with the small commercial hatcheries first before you scale up to the larger hatcheries as you build your poultry farming expertise. The small scale commercial incubators will have a capacity of 500 or less and are generally ideal for those small to medium scale business entrepreneurs who are interested in starting their own hatcheries.
If you start small, the capital requirements are generally very small and you can easily run a highly profitable business. Some of the companies selling the commercial charities will also offer you all the required training as well the information pack to help you run your hatchery successfully. If you are planning to buy an incubator, one of the most important factors that you should verify is whether the incubator supplier offers training and support. This is always true of most suppliers in Kenya. This will smoothen the way for you as you set up an incubator that will generate money for you over the longer term.
During your business planning stage, you must decide on the best incubator suppliers in Kenya that you plan to work with. There are numerous of these companies in Kenya and you have to decide which of these will best suit your needs. Most of the incubators sold in the Kenyan market are imported from China. Some may be of good quality while some are not. Some are assembled in Kenya according to your specifications while some are manufactured in South Africa.
Why the Hatchery Business is a Good One in Kenya
The most obvious reason why should invest in a hatchery is that it is one of the most profitable businesses in the country. You can buy eggs cheaply and after 21 days, sell them as one day old chicks for Ksh.100 and above. If you have a good hatch rate which comes from knowing what to do and having a good incubator, you can get very good results and good money from your hatchery. There is a high demand for one day old chicks in Kenya, particularly of the improved kienyeji variety but also the layers and the broilers so as long as you market your products smartly, you can always have a very good cash flow when you run your hatchery business.
How Much Do You Need to Start a Hatching Business?
Fortunately, not much. You can start hatching your chicks with very little money and then as you make the profits, you can expand your hatching capacity over time. You can even start with an incubator that hatches 48 or 96 eggs and then move up slowly as your business grows.
How the Weekly Hatching Production Works
The incubation process involves two main procedures. There is the SETTING Phase. During this phase, the eggs in the incubator turn automatically or are turned manually depending on the incubator type. This takes place during the first 18 days inside the setter incubator. The next phase after the SETTING phase is the HATCHING phase. This occurs in the last three days of your incubation cycle, from day 18 to day 21. The eggs will lay still on the hatcher for the 3 days until they have hatched on the 21stday. There are certain incubators that have been designed in an innovative way so that you can load them with the eggs after every 9 days so that you can hatch your eggs on a continuous basis and maintain a continuous cash flow for your business.
A Simple Overview of The Process of Hatching Your Chicks:-
- Buy Fertile Eggs from a Reliable Supplier
- Place the Fertile Eggs in the Incubator
- Incubator Produces Chicks
- Sell Day Old Chicks and Start Making Money