business plan in poultry farm

Poultry Farm Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Poultry Farm Business Plan

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their poultry farms. On this page, we will first give you some background information with regards to the importance of business planning. We will then go through a poultry farm business plan template step-by-step so you can create your plan today.

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What is a Poultry Farm Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your poultry farm as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategy for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.

Why You Need a Business Plan for a Poultry Farm

If you’re looking to start a poultry farm, or grow your existing poultry farm, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your poultry farm in order to improve your chances of success. Your poultry farming business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

Sources of Funding for Poultry Farms

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a poultry farm are personal savings, credit cards, USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans, bank loans, and angel investors. With regards to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to confirm that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business. Personal savings and USDA FSA loans are the most common funding paths for poultry farm.

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How to write a business plan for a chicken farm.

If you want to start a poultry farm or expand your current one, you need a business plan. We detail each section of a traditional business plan for a poultry farming business.

Executive Summary

Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.

The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of poultry farm you are operating and its status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a poultry farm business that you would like to grow, or are you operating poultry farm businesses in multiple locations?

Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan. For example, give a brief overview of the poultry farm industry. Discuss the type of poultry farm you are operating. Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target customers. Provide a snapshot of your marketing plan. Identify the key members of your team. And offer an overview of your financial plan.  

Company Analysis

In your company analysis, you will detail the type of poultry farm you are operating.

For example, you might operate one of the following types of poultry farms:

• Breeder Farms : this type of poultry farm produces hatching eggs for delivery to the hatchery. After the 21 day incubation period, the hatchery then delivers the baby chicks to the broiler houses.
• Broiler Farms: this type of farm produces a 2.5 lb. to 8 lb. bird in 4 to 8 weeks which is processed for various types of retail sale to consumers, grocery stores or fast food chains as whole birds, cut-up breast, wings, thigh, drumsticks, deboned breast meat, or further processed pieces.
• Pullet Farms: this type of poultry farm produces pullets and roosters to be delivered to a breeder hen house at 20-22 weeks old when they are sexually mature to breed and lay eggs.

In addition to explaining the type of poultry farming business you will operate, the Company Analysis section of your business plan needs to provide background on the business.

Include answers to question such as:

• When and why did you start the business?
• What milestones have you achieved to date? Milestones could include the number of chickens and/or turkeys produced, number of production contracts, etc.
• Your legal structure. Are you incorporated as an S-Corp? An LLC? A sole proprietorship? Explain your legal structure here.

Industry Analysis

In your industry analysis, you need to provide an overview of the poultry farm industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.

First, researching the poultry farm industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.

Secondly, market research can improve your strategy, particularly if your research identifies market trends.

The third reason for market research is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.

The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your poultry farming business plan:

• How big is the poultry farm industry (in dollars)?
• Is the market declining or increasing?
• Who are the key competitors in the market?
• Who are the key suppliers in the market?
• What trends are affecting the industry?
• What is the industry’s growth forecast over the next 5 – 10 years?
• What is the relevant market size? That is, how big is the potential market for your poultry farm business? You can extrapolate such a figure by assessing the size of the market in the entire country and then applying that figure to your target market.

Customer Analysis

The customer analysis section of your poultry farming business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.

The following are examples of customer segments: processors, grocery stores, and restaurants.

As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of poultry farm business you operate. Clearly, processors would respond to different marketing promotions than restaurants, for example.

Try to break out your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, include a discussion of the ages, genders, locations and income levels of the customers you seek to serve. Because most poultry farm businesses primarily serve customers living in their same region, such demographic information is easy to find on government websites.

Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can understand and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your customers.

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Competitive Analysis

Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.

Direct competitors are other poultry farm businesses.

Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t direct competitors. This includes producers of other meat such as beef, pork, or fish, as well as producers of meat alternatives. You need to mention such competition as well.

With regards to direct competition, you want to describe the other poultry farms with which you compete. Most likely, your direct competitors will be poultry farms located very close to your location.

For each such competitor, provide an overview of their businesses and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as:

• What types of customers do they serve?
• What kinds of poultry do they produce (breeders, broilers, pullets)?
• What is their pricing (premium, low, etc.)?
• What are they good at?
• What are their weaknesses?

With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.

The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:

• Will you use superior production methods?
• Will you provide services that your competitors don’t offer?
• Will you provide better customer service?
• Will you offer better pricing?

Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.  

Marketing Plan

Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a poultry farm business plan, your marketing plan should include the following:

Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of poultry farm company that you documented in your Company Analysis. Then, detail the specific products you will be offering. For example, in addition to traditional poultry, will you provide organic or cage-free poultry?

Price : Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your marketing plan, you are presenting the products and services you offer and their prices.

Place : Place refers to the location of your poultry farm company. Document your location and mention how the location will impact your success. For example, is your poultry farm located near a processing facility, near a transportation hub, etc. Discuss how your location might be the ideal location for your customers.

Promotions : The final part of your poultry farm marketing plan is the promotions section. Here you will document how you will drive customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:

• Advertising in trade papers and magazines
• Reaching out to local agriculture extension offices
• Social media marketing
• Local radio advertising

Operations Plan

While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.

Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your poultry farm, including animal care / feeding, flock supervision, animal transportation, sourcing feed, etc.

Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to sign your 20th production contract, or when you hope to reach $X in revenue. It could also be when you expect to expand your poultry farm to a new location.  

Management Team

To demonstrate your poultry farm’s ability to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.

Ideally you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing poultry farms. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.

If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act like mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in managing farms or successfully running small businesses.  

Financial Plan

Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statements.

Income Statement

An income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenues and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.

In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will you supply 50 restaurants, or produce 2,000 birds for processing each month? And will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.

Balance Sheets

Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your poultry farming business, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a bank writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.

Cash Flow Statement

Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and make sure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.

In developing your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a poultry farm business:

• Location build-out including design fees, construction, etc.
• Cost of equipment and supplies
• Payroll or salaries paid to staff
• Business insurance
• Taxes and permits
• Legal expenses

Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your farm title or lease, or blueprints of the production facility.  

Putting together a business plan for your poultry farm is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will really understand the poultry farm industry, your competition, and your customers. You will have developed a marketing plan and will really understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful poultry farming business.

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Since 1999, Growthink has developed business plans for thousands of companies who have gone on to achieve tremendous success.   Click here to see how Growthink’s professional business plan consulting services can create your business plan for you.

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

Poultry Farm Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Poultry Farm Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your Poultry Farm business plan.

We have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their Poultry Farms.

Below is a template to help you create each section of your Poultry Farming business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

Smith Poultry Farm is a new farm business located in Mason City, Iowa. The business is a newly established farm founded by John and Sue Smith. As native Iowans, the couple has spent their life in the farming industry as their families have established farms throughout Iowa. Currently, there is a poultry shortage throughout the midwestern United States as some farms have been forced to shut down their business due to rising costs, labor shortage, and higher technology standards. John and Sue have decided to take this opportunity to alleviate the poultry shortage as well as finally establish the farm they have been planning to do for the past six years.

As native Iowans, John and Sue have already recruited a team of farmhands that have extensive experience working in poultry farms. Most of them have been recently laid off from other poultry farms that have shut down their operations.

John and Sue plan on starting with 5,000 chickens, 500 turkeys, and 100 ducks on 10 acres of land. Their business operations will be centered around daily processes and procedures to tend to the chickens and prepare them for packaging for resale and distribution.

Product Offering

The following are the products that Smith Poultry Farm will provide:

• Chicken for consumption
• Turkey for consumption
• Ducks for consumption

Customer Focus

Smith Poultry Farm will target all residents residing in northern Iowa and throughout the state. They will target families, individuals, supermarkets, large retail chains, and restaurants.

Management Team

Smith Poultry Farm will be owned and operated by John and Sue Smith. They will recruit a very experienced and knowledgeable operator to manage the day-to-day operations of the poultry farm.

John Smith was born and raised on a local farm and has been working in farms most of his life. He left to pursue his agriculture degree from Iowa State and returned to work full-time at his father’s large farm. That farm produces beef, poultry, pork, and vegetables. Once he married Sue, the couple decided that they would begin to save up to pursue a farm of their own.

Sue Smith was raised on a farm as well. Once she graduated from high school, she attended Iowa State to pursue a degree in Business Administration. It was there where she met John and planned for their future farm where he would manage the farm operations and she would be in charge of the financial management and administration of the poultry farm operations.

Success Factors

Smith Poultry Farm will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

• Ownership has extensive experience and knowledge in the poultry farming industry.
• Owners will invest in the latest technology and equipment to make their poultry farm the most superior in the Midwest.
• Smith Poultry Farm will breed high quality chickens, turkeys, and ducks in order to produce the freshest and quality poultry.

Financial Highlights

Smith Poultry Farm is seeking $500,000 in debt financing to launch its property management business. The funding will be dedicated towards securing the farm land and purchasing the necessary equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated towards three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, mortgage, and marketing costs for the poultry farm. The breakout of the funding is below:

• Purchase 10 acres of farmland: $100,000
• Farm equipment, supplies, and materials: $100,000
• Three months of overhead expenses (payroll, rent, utilities): $150,000
• Marketing costs: $50,000
• Working capital: $100,000

The following graph below outlines the pro forma financial projections for Smith Poultry Farm.

Company Overview

Who is Smith Poultry Farm?

Smith Poultry Farm is a new poultry farm business located in Mason City, Iowa. The business is a newly established poultry farm founded by John and Sue Smith. As native Iowans, the couple has spent their life in the farming industry as their families have established farms throughout Iowa. Currently, there is a poultry shortage throughout the midwestern United States as some farms have been forced to shut down their business due to rising costs, labor shortage, and higher technology standards. Growing up in the farming industry, John and Sue have decided to take this opportunity to alleviate the poultry shortage as well as finally establish the farm they have been planning to do for the past six years. The couple plans to raise chickens, turkeys, and ducks to produce poultry for food consumption as well as eggs. Once the business is established, the couple will add more birds to the farm and purchase additional land.

As native Iowans, John and Sue have already recruited a team of farmhands that have extensive experience working in poultry farms. Most of them have been recently laid off from other poultry farms that have shut down their operations. John and Sue have already identified the lead farmhand who will assist John in the day to day farm operations oversight.

Smith Poultry Farm History Smith Poultry Farm is owned and operated by John and Sue Smith, Iowa natives who have extensive experience in farm operations and business administration. John has worked for his father’s large farm for most of his life and wants to finally pursue his own poultry farm since a number of poultry farms have ceased operations due to increased labor and distribution costs. John has already pursued a number of local grocery stores, large retail stores, and restaurants to have contracts to be their sole poultry distributor.

Since incorporation, Smith Poultry Farm has achieved the following milestones:

• Registered Smith Poultry Farm, LLC to transact business in the state of Iowa.
• Has 6 contracts in place to provide poultry for local restaurants, grocery stores, and large retail chains.
• Reached out to numerous individuals and households to purchase their household’s poultry directly from Smith Poultry Farm.
• Began recruiting a staff of farmhands to assist in the day to day operations of the poultry farm.

Smith Poultry Farm Products

The following will be the products Smith Poultry Farm will provide:

Industry Analysis

Customer analysis, demographic profile of target market.

Smith Poultry Farm will target all residents of  Mason City and the surrounding states. The target market will consist of households, grocery stores, restaurants, and large retail chains.

The precise demographics for Mason City, Iowa are:

• 503,642 residents
• 310,000 households
• 1,000 restaurants
• 500 grocery stores
• 6 large retail grocery stores

Customer Segmentation

Smith Poultry Farm will primarily target the following customer profiles:

• Individuals and households
• Grocery Stores
• Restaurants
• Large Grocery Chains

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

Smith Poultry Farm will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.

Myson Poultry Farm

Myson Poultry Farm is a modern, multi-national, protein-focused food company that produces approximately 20% of the beef, pork, and chicken in the United States. Along with its subsidiaries, the company operates a food company worldwide. The company began during the Great Depression when the eldest Myson began selling chickens. A few decades later, Myson’s son grew it into the large company it is today and is one of the largest poultry producers and distributors in the world.

By investing in technology, Myson was able to grow the brand. Through the development of better feeds and better disease control methods, chickens were maturing more quickly. These improvements, combined with increased competition, meant lower prices for consumers and households were able to purchase their poultry products in larger quantities.

Iowa Poultry Farm

Iowa Poultry Farms started in the 1920s when Liam Nelson sold and traded eggs by the dozen as a means to put food on the table for his family. Four generations later, the Nelson family has grown the business year-over-year to continue to meet the changing needs of the egg and pullet industry. More than 90 years of experience has established Iowa Poultry Farm as a well-respected pullet and hatching business as well as a reliant commercial egg producer under the current leadership.

The strength of Iowa Poultry Farm began when master plans for growth from the late 1980s to present day have produced new and improved pullet production facilities that have the capacity to accommodate the growth of the majority of the pullets in NPF’s proprietary facilities. Recent capital development has been invested in hatchery and breeder facilities that have the capacity to produce up to 9 million female chicks per year as well as supplementary aviary growing facilities for both cage-free and floor-grown conventional pullets.

Iowa Poultry Farm continues to innovate as a pullet and hatching business under the leadership of Frank and his son, Brett.

Good Cluck Poultry Farm

Good Cluck Poultry Farm maintains more than 50,000 breeders on its company owned farms. The company currently hatches and sells 79 standard chicken breeds/varieties, 58 breeds/varieties of bantams, 9 breeds of ducks, 3 breeds of geese, and 4 breeds/varieties of guineas. In addition, Good Cluck has available, as a service to its customers, 9 heritage breeds of turkeys, pheasants, and chukar.

Good Cluck certainly has good luck. While many hatcheries have been forced to close, Good Cluck Poultry Farm has become a leader in producing non-commercial poultry annually, selling more than six million items of baby poultry.

Good Cluck’s full list of products are white egg layers, brown egg layers, colored egg layers, standard assortments, broilers, crested chickens, feather legged bantams, bantam assortments, clean leg bantams, ducks, geese, guineas, turkeys, pheasants, chukar, and supplies.

Competitive Advantage

Smith Poultry Farm will be able to offer the following advantages over their competition:

• Ownership has extensive experience and knowledge in the poultry farming industry and has over 20 years of experience managing poultry farm operations
• Smith Poultry Farm will breed high quality chickens, ducks, and turkeys in order to produce the freshest and quality poultry.

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

Smith Poultry Farm will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

• All farming practices will utilize the latest technology and equipment for safe breeding practices, production, and distribution of all farm animals.
• The farm will only breed the highest quality poultry.
• Unbeatable pricing to its clients and customers – Smith Poultry Farm does not mark up its poultry products at a large percentage. All poultry will be on par with competition.

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for Smith Poultry Farm is as follows:

Word of Mouth/Referrals

John Smith has built up an extensive list of contacts over the years by living and working in the midwestern farming industry. Since a number of local poultry farms have ceased operations, they have committed to John that Smith Poultry Farm will be their poultry supplier. They trust his work ethic and commitment to the local community.

Professional Associations and Networking

Smith Poultry Farm will become a member of American Farmland Trust, Farming NGO, National Farmers Union, and the Iowa Chamber of Commerce. They will focus their networking efforts on expanding their client network and marketing their new brand.

Print Advertising

Smith Poultry Farm will invest in professionally designed print ads to display in programs or flyers at industry networking events.

Website/SEO Marketing

Smith Poultry Farm will hire a third-party marketing company to design their print ads and design their website. The website will be well organized, informative, and list all the poultry products they plan to offer. The website will also list their contact information and directions to the poultry farm. The marketing company will also include SEO tactics so that anytime someone types in the Google or Bing search engine “Iowa poultry farm” or “poultry farm near me”, Smith Poultry Farm will be listed at the top of the search results.

Zero po, hindi rin po kami mahilig malabas ng mga panood.

The pricing of Smith Poultry Farm will be moderate and on par with competitors so customers feel they receive value when purchasing their poultry products.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for Smith Poultry Farm.

Operation Functions:

• John Smith will be the Owner and President of the company. He will oversee all staff and manage client relations. John, along with Sue, has spent the past year recruiting the following staff:
• Sue Smith – will oversee all administrative aspects of running the poultry farm. This will include bookkeeping, tax payments, and payroll of the staff.
• George Hargrove – Head Farmhand who will oversee the farming staff and day to day operations.
• Ben Loya – Assistant Farmhand who will assist George.
• Frank Johnson – Distribution Manager who will oversee the packaging and distribution of all poultry products.

Milestones:

Smith Poultry Farm will have the following milestones complete in the next six months.

1/1/202X – Finalize purchase of farm land

2/15/202X – Purchase farm equipment, supplies and materials

3/1/202X – Finalize contracts for grocery store, chain, and restaurant clients

4/15/202X – Begin networking at industry events

5/1/202X – Purchase initial set of poultry animals

5/15/202X – Hire and train farm staff

6/1/202X – Smith Poultry Farm begins farm operations

Smith Poultry Farm will be owned and operated by John and Sue Smith. John will manage the oversight of all farm operations with the help of his lead farmhand. Sue will manage all administrative and financial aspects of the farm business.

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for Smith Poultry Farm are the revenues it will receive from poultry products, eggs, and the breeding fees they will charge to individuals who have high-quality chicken, turkeys, or ducks they want to breed.

The cost drivers will be the overhead costs required in order to staff and maintain successful farm operations. The expenses will be the payroll cost, mortgage payment, utilities, farming supplies, equipment maintenance, and marketing materials.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Smith Poultry Farm is $500,000 in debt financing to launch its property management business. The funding will be dedicated towards securing the farm land and purchasing the necessary equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated towards three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, mortgage, and marketing costs for the poultry farm. The breakout of the funding is below:

Key Assumptions

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the startup business loan.

• Number of Poultry Animals: 5,600
• Average Revenue per Animal: $20
• Number of Poultry Products Sold Per Year: 1,000,000

Financial Projections

Income statement.

Balance Sheet

Cash Flow Statement

Poultry Farm Business Plan FAQs

What is a poultry farm business plan.

A poultry farm business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your poultry farm business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your poultry farm business plan using our Poultry Farm Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Poultry Farms?

There are a number of different kinds of poultry farms , some examples include: Breeder Farms, Broiler Farms, and Pullet Farms.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Poultry Business Plan?

Poultry farms are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding.  Having a chicken farming business plan will help show investors you are well-prepared to start your own business.

What are the Steps To Start a Poultry Farm Business?

Starting a poultry farm business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Poultry Farm Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed poultry business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.  

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your poultry farm business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your poultry farm business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Poultry Farm Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your poultry farm business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws. 

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your poultry farm business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms. 

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations. 

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events. 

7. Acquire Necessary Poultry Farm Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your poultry farm business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation. 

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your poultry farm business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising. 

Learn more about how to start a successful poultry farm business:

• How to Start a Farm Business

Additional Helpful Template

Farm Business Plan

Poultry Farming Business Plan [Sample Template]

By: Author Tony Martins Ajaero

Home » Business ideas » Agriculture Industry » Livestock Farming » Poultry » Poultry Business Plan

Are you about starting a poultry farm ? If YES, here’s a complete sample poultry farming business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE to raise money .

There are quite a great number of things that are highly needed by man as a nutritious source of food that is gotten from the poultry. Chief amongst them is them the egg. Poultry farms all over the world has egg as one of its primary produce and that is why people will continue to look to poultry farms to churn this out.

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To start a poultry related business, you will first need to learn the ropes. Undertaking a thorough and exhaustive research is also one of the tasks that you will be saddled with.  Thereafter you might be required to do some apprenticeship so as to have firsthand experience on how to run a poultry farm.

A Sample Poultry Farming Business Plan Template

1. industry overview.

The agricultural industry of which poultry farming and egg production is a subset of is no doubt among the leading industry in most countries of the world; it is the industry that produces chicken and eggs for the populace.

Because of the significant role the agriculture sector plays, the government of most countries ensures that they go all the way to subsidize seedlings, fertilizers, and farming implements and machinery for farmers and also encourage entrepreneurs to go into commercial farming (poultry farming inclusive).

Hens, various birds, quails, guinea fowls, ducks et al are all birds that can be comfortably reared in a poultry farm. Chicken and birds are widely consumed in all parts of the world hence there is a large market for poultry farmers. If you are looking towards starting a livestock breeding business, then one of your options is to settle for poultry farming.

Poultry farming is a highly thriving and profitable business venture. Aside from the fact that people consume birds and chickens et al, supply of eggs is also a major source of revenue generation for poultry farmer. Players in the poultry farming and egg production industry basically raise chickens for meat, and egg production. The eggs produced may be sold for use as table eggs or hatching eggs.

The Poultry Farm and Egg Production Company Industry is indeed a very large industry and pretty much thriving in all parts of the world especially in developed countries such as United States of America, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia and Italy et al.

Statistics has it that in the united states of America alone, there are about 30,000 licensed and registered poultry farm and egg production company directly responsible for employing about 280,800 employees and indirectly responsible for employing roughly 1,339,900.

The industry rakes in a whooping sum of $10 billion annually with an annual growth rate projected at 6.1 percent. It is important to state that the establishments with a lion share of the available market in this industry are Cal – Maine, Land O’Lake, Inc., Michael Foods and Rose Acres Farms.

Statistics also has it that an estimate of about 35 companies are involved in the business of raising, processing and marketing chickens on a  commercial level; they export chickens, processed chickens and eggs to other countries of the world.

It is on record that Americans consume more chicken than anyone else in the world – more than 90 pounds per capita in 2015 – the number one protein consumed in the United States. So also, in 2015, almost 9 billion broiler chickens, weighing 53 billion pounds, live – weight, were produced. More than 40 billion pounds of chicken product was marketed, measured on a ready-to-cook basis.

The United States has the largest broiler chicken industry in the world, and about 19 percent of egg and chicken production was exported to other countries in 2015.Research conducted shows that the top 5 broiler producing states in the US are Georgia, Arkansas, Alabama, North Carolina and Mississippi.

If you are looking towards leveraging on the agriculture industry to generate huge income, then one of your best bet is to start a poultry farm and egg production business.

One thing is certain about starting poultry farming and egg production business, if you are able to conduct your market research and feasibility studies , you are more likely not going to struggle to sell your eggs and chickens because there are always food processing companies and consumers out there who are ready to buy from you.

2. Executive Summary

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is a world – class and licensed poultry farm and egg Production Company that will be based in the outskirt of Santa Fe, New Mexico – United States. We have done our detailed market research and feasibility studies and we were able to secure a hundred hectares of land to start our poultry farm and egg production business.

Our poultry farm is going to be standard commercial poultry farm hence will be involved in raising, processing and marketing chickens and eggs ( Table eggs produced by battery chickens (white ), Table eggs produced by battery chickens (brown), Hatching eggs, Specialty eggs, and Table eggs produced by free-range chickens ) on a commercial level; we export chickens, processed chickens and eggs to other countries of the world.

We are in the commercial poultry farm and egg production line of business because we want to leverage on the vast opportunities available in the agriculture industry, to contribute our quota in growing the U.S. economy, in national food production, and also to export chicken and eggs from the United States to other countries and over and above to make profit.

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is well positioned to become one of the leading commercial poultry farms and egg production business in the United States of America, which is why we have been able to source for the best hands and machines to run the company with.

We have put process and strategies in place that will help us employ best practices when it comes to commercial poultry farms and egg production processes as required by the regulating bodies in the United States of America. At Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC, our customer’s best interest will always come first, and everything we do will be guided by our values and professional ethics.

We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards by meeting our client’s needs precisely and completely. We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning a living, and living in our world, for our partners, employees and for our clients.

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is a private registered commercial poultry farm and egg production company that is owned by Mr. Noble Ernest and his immediate family members. The poultry farm will be fully and single handedly financed by the owner – Mr. Noble Ernest and his immediate family members at least for a period of time.

Before starting Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC, and Mr. Noble Ernest was the Head of a renowned Agriculture Research Institute in The U.S. he worked in the industry for well over 10 years before resigning to start his own commercial poultry farm and egg production business. He is of course well experienced and highly qualified to run this type of business.

3. Our Products and Services

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is a standard commercial poultry farms and egg production company that is committed to raising chickens and producing eggs for both the United States’ market and the global market. We are in the commercial poultry farms and production line of business to make profits and we are going to do all we can to achieve our business goals, aim and objectives.

These are the areas we will concentrate on in our commercial poultry farms. If need arises we will definitely add more poultry produce to our list;

• Raising, processing and marketing chickens on a commercial level; we export chickens, processed chickens and eggs to other countries of the world.
• Table eggs produced by battery chickens (white)
• Table eggs produced by battery chickens (brown)
• Hatching eggs
• Specialty eggs
• Table eggs produced by free-range chickens

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

• Our Vision is to become one of the leading commercial poultry farm and egg production brands not just in the United States of America but also on the global stage.
• Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is a world class and registered commercial poultry farms and egg production company that is committed to raising chickens and producing eggs for both the United States’ market and the global market.
• We want our chickens and eggs to flood the nooks and crannies of the United States and other countries of the world.

Our Business Structure

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is a privately owned and managed commercial poultry farms and egg production business that intend starting small in Santa Fe – New Mexico, but hope to grow big in order to compete favorably with leading commercial poultry farms and egg production companies in the industry both in the United States and on a global stage.

We are aware of the importance of building a solid business structure that can support the picture of the kind of world class business we want to own. This is why we are committed to only hire the best hands within our area of operations.

At Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC, we will ensure that we hire people that are qualified, hardworking, and creative, result driven, customer centric and are ready to work to help us build a prosperous business that will benefit all the stakeholders (the owners, workforce, and customers).

As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our senior management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of five years or more as agreed by the board of trustees of the company. In view of the above, we have decided to hire qualified and competent hands to occupy the following positions;

• Chief Operating Officer

General Farm Manager

Human Resources and Admin Manager

• Accountant / Cashier
• Sales and Marketing Executive
• Field Employees
• Front Desk Officer

5. Job Roles and Responsibilities

Chief Executive Officer – CEO:

• Increases management’s effectiveness by recruiting, selecting, orienting, training, coaching, counseling, and disciplining managers; communicating values, strategies, and objectives; assigning accountabilities; planning, monitoring, and appraising job results; developing incentives; developing a climate for offering information and opinions; providing educational opportunities.
• Responsible for providing direction for the business
• Creates, communicates, and implements the organization’s vision, mission, and overall direction – i.e. leading the development and implementation of the overall organization’s strategy.
• Responsible for signing checks and documents on behalf of the company
• Evaluates the success of the organization
• Responsible for the planning, management and coordinating all farm activities across the various sections on behalf of the organization
• Supervises other section manager
• Ensures compliance during project executions
• Provides advice on the management of farming activities across all section
• Responsible for carrying out risk assessment
• Uses IT systems and software to keep track of people and progress of the growth of chickens and other birds
• Responsible for overseeing the accounting, costing and sale of poultry farm produce
• Represent the organization’s interest at various stakeholders meetings
• Ensures that farming goals desired result are achieved, the most efficient resources (manpower, equipment, tools and chemicals et al) are utilized and different interests involved are satisfied. Responsible for preparing financial reports, budgets, and financial statements for the organization
• Responsible for overseeing the smooth running of HR and administrative tasks for the organization
• Updates job knowledge by participating in educational opportunities; reading professional publications; maintaining personal networks; participating in professional organizations.
• Enhances department and organization reputation by accepting ownership for accomplishing new and different requests; exploring opportunities to add value to job accomplishments.
• Defines job positions for recruitment and managing interviewing process
• Carries out staff induction for new team members
• Responsible for training, evaluation and assessment of employees
• Oversees the smooth running of the daily office.

Accountant / Cashier:

• Responsible for preparing financial reports, budgets, and financial statements for the organization
• Provides managements with financial analyses, development budgets, and accounting reports; analyzes financial feasibility for the most complex proposed projects; conducts market research to forecast trends and business conditions.
• Responsible for financial forecasting and risks analysis.
• Performs cash management, general ledger accounting, and financial reporting for one or more properties.
• Responsible for developing and managing financial systems and policies
• Responsible for administering payrolls
• Ensures compliance with taxation legislation
• Handles all financial transactions for Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC
• Serves as internal auditor for Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC.

Sales and Marketing Manager

• Manages external research and coordinate all the internal sources of information to retain the organizations’ best customers and attract new ones
• Models demographic information and analyze the volumes of transactional data generated by customer
• Identifies development opportunities; follows up on development leads and contacts; participates in the structuring and financing of projects; assures the completion of development projects.
• Writes winning proposal documents, negotiate fees and rates in line with organizations’ policy
• Responsible for handling business research, market surveys and feasibility studies for clients
• Responsible for supervising implementation, advocate for the customer’s needs, and communicate with clients
• Develops, executes and evaluates new plans for expanding increase sales
• Creates new markets cum businesses for the organization
• Empowers and motivates the sales team to meet and surpass agreed targets

Field Workers / Contract Staff

• Responsible for daily collection of eggs
• Responsible for feeding chickens and other birds as instructed by the supervisor
• Responsible for cleaning poultry and the entire environment
• Changes the water for the birds as instructed by the supervisor on a regular basis
• Handles poultry farm implements and machines (hatchery) as instructed by the section manager / supervisor
• Assists in handling the chicken and other birds et al
• Carries out task in line with the stated job description
• Assists in transport working tools and equipment from the poultry farm and back to the designated store room
• Handles any other duties as assigned my the line manager

Front Desk / Customer’s Service Officer

• Welcomes clients and potential clients by greeting them in person, online or on the telephone; answering or directing inquiries.
• Ensures that all contacts with clients (e-mail, walk-In center, SMS or phone) provides the client with a personalized customer service experience of the highest level
• Through interaction with clients on the phone, uses every opportunity to build client’s interest in the company’s products and services
• Manages administrative duties assigned by the creative director in an effective and timely manner
• Consistently stays abreast of any new information on the organizations’ products, promotional campaigns etc. to ensure accurate and helpful information is supplied to clients when they make enquiries

6. SWOT Analysis

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC do not intend to launch out with trial and error hence the need to conduct a proper SWOT analysis.

We know that if we get it right from the onset, we would have succeeded in creating the foundation that will help us build a standard commercial poultry farm and egg production company that will favorably compete with leading commercial poultry farms and egg production companies like Cal – Maine, Land O’Lake, Inc., Michael Foods and Rose Acres Farms in the United States of America and in the rest part of the world.

We engaged the services of a core professional in the area of business consulting and structuring to assist our organization in building a well – structured commercial poultry farm and egg Production Company that can favorably compete in the highly competitive commercial poultry farms and egg production industry in the United States and the world at large.

Part of what the team of business consultant did was to work with the management of our organization in conducting a SWOT analysis for Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC. Here is a summary from the result of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC;

Our strength as a commercial poultry farm and egg production company is the fact that we have healthy relationships with loads of major players ( agriculture merchants ) in the industry; both suppliers of poultry feeds and medications and buyers of chickens and eggs within and outside of the United States of America.

We have some of the latest commercial poultry farming hatchery, tools and equipment that will help us raise and produce eggs in commercial quantities with less stress. Aside from our relationship ( network ) and equipment, we can confidently boast that we have some the most experienced hands in Santa Fe – New Mexico in our payroll.

Our weakness could be that we are a new commercial poultry farms and egg production company in the United States, and perhaps it might take us sometime to attract big time customers in the industry. We are aware of this and from our projection will overcome this weakness with time and turn it to a major advantage for the business.

• Opportunities:

The opportunities that are available to us as a standard commercial poultry farm and egg Production Company cannot be quantified, we know that there are loads of households, and businesses such as hotels and fast food restaurants that can’t do without daily supply of chicken and eggs. We are well positioned to take advantage of this opportunity

Some of the threats and challenges that we are likely going to face when we start our own commercial poultry farm and egg production company are global economic downturn that can impact negatively on household spending, bad weather cum natural disasters (draughts, epidemics), unfavorable government policies and the arrival of a competitor ( a commercial farm that engage in the rearing of chickens and other birds ) within same location.

There is hardly anything you can do as regards this threats and challenges other than to be optimistic that things will continue to work for your good.

7. MARKET ANALYSIS

• Market Trends

The Poultry and Chicken Egg Production industry has greatly benefited from campaigns advertising the health benefits of chickens and eggs as a good source of protein.

No doubt, the increased demand of chicken and eggs from households and food related businesses and of course the growing popularity of specialty and processed eggs have rapidly improved revenue growth for the industry. In the face of this growth, profit margin has suffered from rising feed costs and also regulations regarding animal welfare.

As a matter of fact, one of the new trends is that with the recent advancement in technology, poultry farmers can now comfortably predict and produce the quantities of chickens / birds and eggs per time.

8. Our Target Market

Naturally, the target market of those who are the end consumer of commercial poultry farm produce and also those who benefits from the business value chain of the poultry farming and egg production industry is all encompassing; it is far – reaching.

Every household consumes produce from commercial poultry farms be it chicken or egg. So also almost all hotels and fast restaurants sell chicken and eggs. In essence a commercial poultry farmer should be able to sell his or her chicken and eggs to as many people as possible.

In view of that, we have positioned our business to attract consumers of chickens and eggs not just in the United States of America alone but also other parts of the world. We have conducted our market research and survey and we will ensure that we meet and surpass the expectations we set for the business. Below is a list of the people and business that we will market our chickens and eggs to;

• Individuals
• Restaurants
• Fast food eateries
• Agriculture merchants

Our Competitive Advantage

It is easier to find entrepreneur flocking towards an industry that is known to generate consistent income which is why there are more commercial poultry farmers in the United States of America and of course in most parts of the world.

For example, Statistics has it that there are 2.2 million farms in the United States of America, covering an area of 922 million acres. These goes to show that there are appreciable numbers of farmers in the United States of America but that does not mean that there is stiffer competition in the industry.

As a matter of fact, entrepreneurs are encouraged by the government to embrace commercial farming cum poultry farming and egg production business. This is so because part of the success of any nation is her ability to cultivate her own food and also export food to other nations of the world.

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is fully aware that there are competitions when it comes to selling commercial farm produce all over the globe, which is why we decided to carry out thorough market research so as to know how to take advantage of the available market in the United States and in other parts of the world.

We have done our homework and we have been able to highlight some factors that will give us competitive advantage in the marketplace; some of the factors are effective and reliable poultry farming and egg production processes that can help us sell our produce at competitive prices, good network and excellent relationship management.

Another competitive advantage that we are bringing to the industry is the fact that we have healthy relationships with loads of major players (agriculture merchants) in the industry; both suppliers of poultry feeds and medications and buyers of chickens and eggs within and outside of the United States of America.

We have some of the latest commercial poultry farming hatchery, tools and equipment that will help us raise and produce eggs in commercial quantities with less stress. Aside from our relationship (network) and equipment, we can confidently boast that we have some the most experienced hands in Santa Fe – New Mexico in our payroll.

Lastly, all our employees will be well taken care of, and their welfare package will be among the best within our category (startups commercial poultry farms and egg production companies in the United States) in the industry. It will enable them to be more than willing to build the business with us and help deliver our set goals and achieve all our business aims and objectives.

9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

• Sources of Income

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is in the poultry farms and egg production line of business for the purpose of maximizing profits hence we have decided to explore all the available opportunities within the industry to achieve our corporate goals and objectives. Below are the sources we intend exploring to generate income for Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC;

10. Sales Forecast

From the survey conducted, we were are able to discover that the sales generated by a commercial poultry farm and egg production business depends on the size of the poultry farm, the types of birds available in the poultry and of course the size of their marketing network.

We have been able to critically examine the poultry farms and egg production business and we have analyzed our chances in the industry and we have been able to come up with the following sales forecast.

The sales projection is based on information gathered on the field and some workable assumptions as well with respect to the nature of commercial poultry farm and egg production business that we run. Below are the projections that we were able to come up with for the first three years of running Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC;

• First Fiscal Year-: $250,000
• Second Fiscal Year-: $600,000
• Third Fiscal Year-: $ 900,000

N.B : This projection is done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the assumption that there won’t be any major economic meltdown that can impact negatively on household spending, bad weather cum natural disasters (draughts, epidemics), and unfavorable government policies.

• Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy

We are quite aware that the reason why some commercial poultry farms and egg production companies hardly make good profits is their inability to sell off their chickens and eggs as at when due.

Our sales and marketing team will be recruited based on their vast experience in the poultry farming and egg production industry and they will be trained on a regular basis so as to be well equipped to meet their targets and the overall business goal of Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC.

Over and above, we have perfected our sale and marketing strategies first by networking with agriculture merchants and businesses that rely on daily supply of chicken and eggs from the poultry farms and egg production industry that are likely to become our customers.

In summary, Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC will adopt the following strategies in marketing our commercial farm produce;

• Introduce our business by sending introductory letters alongside our brochure to stake holders in the agriculture industry, households, hotels and restaurants and agriculture produce merchants et al.
• Advertise our business in agriculture and food related magazines and websites
• List our commercial poultry farms and egg production business on yellow pages ads
• Attend related agriculture and food expos, seminars, and business fairs et al
• Leverage on the internet to promote our business
• Engage in direct marketing
• Encourage the use of Word of mouth marketing (referrals)

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

Any business that wants to grow beyond the corner of the street or the city they are operating from must be ready and willing to utilize every available means (both conventional and non – conventional means) to advertise and promote the business.

We intend growing our business which is why we have perfected plans to build our brand via every available means. We know that it is important to create strategies that will help us boost our brand awareness and to create a corporate identity for our commercial poultry farm and egg production business.

Below are the platforms we will leverage on to boost our commercial poultry farm and production brand and to promote and advertise our business;

• Place adverts on community based newspapers, radio stations and TV stations.
• Encourage the use of word of mouth publicity from our loyal customers
• Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; YouTube, Instagram, Facebook ,Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Badoo, Google+  and other platforms to promote our business.
• Ensure that our we position our banners and billboards in strategic positions all around Santa Fe – New Mexico
• Distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas in and around our neighborhood
• Contact corporate organizations, households, landlord associations and schools by calling them up and informing them of Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC and the poultry produce we sell
• Advertise our business in our official website and employ strategies that will help us pull traffic to the site
• Brand all our official cars and trucks and ensure that all our staff members and management staff wears our branded shirt or cap at regular intervals.

12. Our Pricing Strategy

Some of the factors that will help you sell your farm produce at the right price that will guarantee that you make profits is dependent on your strategy while some of the factors are beyond your control. For example, if the climatic condition is unfavorable and if there is natural disaster in the location where you have your commercial poultry farm, then it will directly affect the prices of your chicken and eggs.

Over and above, if you want to get the right pricing for your chicken and eggs, then you should ensure that you choose a good location for commercial poultry farm, choose a good breed that will guarantee bountiful harvest, cut the cost of running your poultry farm to the barest minimum.

Of course you should try as much as possible to attract buyers to your poultry farm as against taking your eggs and chickens to the market to source for buyers; with this, you would have successfully eliminate the cost of transporting the goods to the market and other logistics.

We are quite aware that one of the easiest means of penetrating the market and acquiring loads of customers for all our eggs and chickens is to sell them at competitive prices hence we will do all we can to ensure that the prices of our poultry farm produces are going to be what other commercial poultry farmers would look towards beating.

One thing is certain; the nature of commercial poultry farming makes it possible for poultry farmers to place prices for their eggs and chicken based on their discretion without following the benchmark in the industry. The truth is that it is one of the means of avoiding running into loss.

• Payment Options

The payment policy adopted by Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is all inclusive because we are quite aware that different customers prefer different payment options as it suits them but at the same time, we will ensure that we abide by the financial rules and regulation of the United States of America.

Here are the payment options that Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC will make available to her clients;

• Payment via bank transfer
• Payment with cash
• Payment via online bank transfer
• Payment via check
• Payment via bank draft

In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will enable our client make payment for farm produces purchase without any stress on their part. Our bank account numbers will be made available on our website and promotional materials to clients who may want to deposit cash or make online transfer for chickens and eggs.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

When it comes to calculating the cost of starting a commercial poultry farm, there are some key factors that should serve as a guide. The different type of birds to be raised in a commercial poultry farm determines the total cost of setting up the business.

Besides, in setting up any business, the amount or cost will depend on the approach and scale you want to undertake. If you intend to go big by renting / leasing a big facility, then you would need a good amount of capital as you would need to ensure that your employees are well taken care of, and that your facility is conducive enough for workers to be creative and productive.

This means that the start-up can either be low or high depending on your goals, vision and aspirations for your business. The tools and equipment that will be used are nearly the same cost everywhere, and any difference in prices would be minimal and can be overlooked.

As for the detailed cost analysis for starting a commercial poultry farm and egg production business; it might differ in other countries due to the value of their money. Below are some of the basic areas we will spend our start – up capital in setting up our commercial poultry farm;

• The Total Fee for incorporating the Business (commercial farm) in United States of America – $750.
• The amount needed to acquire / lease a farm land  – $50,000
• The amount required for preparing the farm land (poultry fencing et al) – $30,000
• Legal expenses for obtaining licenses and permits as well as the accounting services (software, P.O.S machines and other software) – $3,300.
• Marketing promotion expenses for the grand opening of Bill The Carpenter™ Furniture, Inc. in the amount of $3,500 and as well as flyer printing (2,000 flyers at $0.04 per copy) for the total amount of $3,580.
• The total cost for hiring Business Consultant – $2,500.
• The total cost for payment of insurance policy covers (general liability, workers’ compensation and property casualty) coverage at a total premium – $9,400
• The amount required for the purchase of the first set of chickens – $10,000
• The cost for acquiring the required working tools and equipment / machines / hatchery et al– $50,000
• Operational cost for the first 3 months (salaries of employees, payments of bills et al) – $60,000
• The Cost of Launching an official Website – $600
• Additional Expenditure (Business cards, Signage, Adverts and Promotions et al) – $2,000

Going by the report from detailed research and feasibility studies conducted, we will need an average of $500,000 to start a standard commercial poultry farm and egg production business in the United States of America.

Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC

No matter how fantastic your business idea might be, if you don’t have the required money to finance the business, the business might not become a reality. Finance is a very important factor when it comes to starting a business such as commercial poultry farming.

No doubt raising start – up capital for a business might not come cheap, but it is a task that an entrepreneur must go through.

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is a family business that is solely owned and financed by Noble Ernest and his immediate family members. We do not intend to welcome any external business partner, which is why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of the start – up capital to 3 major sources. These are the areas we intend generating our start – up capital;

• Generate part of the start – up capital from personal savings
• Source for soft loans from family members and friends
• Apply for loan from my Bank

N.B: We have been able to generate about $150,000 (Personal savings $100,000 and soft loan from family members $50,000 ) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility of $350,000 from our bank. All the papers and document have been signed and submitted, the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited with the amount.

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

The future of a business lies in the numbers of loyal customers that they have the capacity and competence of the employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If all of these factors are missing from a business (company), then it won’t be too long before the business close shop.

One of our major goals of starting Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC is to build a business that will survive off its own cash flow without the need for injecting finance from external sources once the business is officially running.

We know that one of the ways of gaining approval and winning customers over is to retail our chickens and eggs a little bit cheaper than what is obtainable in the market and we are well prepared to survive on lower profit margin for a while.

Noble Ernest Poultry Farms, LLC will make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that our staff welfare are well taken of. Our company’s corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and training and retraining of our workforce is at the top burner.

As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of six years or more. We know that if that is put in place, we will be able to successfully hire and retain the best hands we can get in the industry; they will be more committed to help us build the business of our dreams.

Check List / Milestone

• Business Name Availability Check : Completed
• Business Registration: Completed
• Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
• Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
• Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
• Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
• Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
• Application for business license and permit: Completed
• Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
• Leasing of farm land and building of standard poultry (cages): In Progress
• Conducting Feasibility Studies: Completed
• Generating capital from family members: Completed
• Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
• Writing of Business Plan: Completed
• Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
• Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
• Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
• Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing / Promotional Materials: In Progress
• Recruitment of employees: In Progress
• Purchase of the Needed furniture, racks, shelves, computers, electronic appliances, office appliances and CCTV: In Progress
• Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
• Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
• Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
• Opening party / launching party planning: In Progress
• Compilation of our list of products that will be available in our store: Completed
• Establishing business relationship with vendors – key players in the industry: In Progress

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The Big Book Project

Agribusiness Training & Startup Tools

Poultry Business Blueprint: How to Plan, Launch, and Grow a Profitable Poultry Farm

Last updated on November 15, 2021 by Temi Cole 1 Comment

I’m about to share with you my 15-point blueprint for writing a winning poultry farming business plan.

(Step-by-step.)

The best part?

You’re going to get linked to LOTS of business planning resources including real-life case studies within these steps.

Let’s take a look together…

• Step #1: Get ‘The Most Complete’ Poultry Farming Business Plan Template
• Step #2: Download “The Poultry Farm Business Plan Analysis Playbook”

Step #3: Download Poultry Plan It (eBook)

Step #4: download poultry project reporter 2.0 – insider’s guide, step #5: download sample poultry plan data, step #6: use business management templates (keep sheet).

• Step #7: Download Business Records for Poultry Keepers eBook (USDA Bulletin 1614)

Step #8: Subscribe To Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 (Fill-In-The-Gap PDF Builder) Software

Step #9: download zero debt: poultry farming business plan (2021) pdf ebook, step #10: download grow agribusiness faster classes, step #11: download poultry project hub pdf ebook, step #12: take the poultry farmer’s business quiz, step #13: download poultry project planning toolkit ebook v.1, step #14: download poultry business start-up: recommended digital tools of the trade, step #15: get a 1-to-1 poultry farming business planning review, step #1: get the best poultry farming business plan template.

A poultry farming business plan template is usually the no.1 request I get asked for as the author of The Big Book Project.

Emails like this are a good example:

Up until now, it’s been an obvious MISS as part of The Big Book Project…

…ready-made business planning consultancy for the beginner.

I always had it in mind to plug in the gap.

It’s in me to do.

With the experience of 10+ years serving start-up entrepreneurs with strategic business planning consultancy…there are countless benefits to offer here.

However, I didn’t want to rush.

I wanted the solution I delivered to ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS. And be handed over in a way that is:

Write Your Poultry Business Plan - in Just 90 Mins!

Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 - fastest way to write your project report online.

• self-explanatory
• self-driven

…the more flexible, yet comprehensive the planning materials are – the easier they will be to use and act on.

( And business does come down to action at the last .)

The Ultimate Poultry Farming Business Planning Template

My first step was to construct what I consider to be the most complete poultry farming business plan template possible.

The kind of thing that covers both bases of:

• helping to provide clarity to your thoughts for rolling out a successful poultry business launch
• communicating an attractive proposal to potential stakeholders and investors

Pouring in over 50,000+ hours of strategic business consulting experience which spans:

• global best practice insights and technology
• corporate currency exchange
• project management
• financial advisor and stockbroker
• freelance business management advisor

…I decided upon the following outline template:

Executive Summary

What is the business?

Why is it needed?

How will it deliver?

What are the financial rewards of investment?

Industry Analysis

Industry snapshot

SWOT & PESTLE (situational) analysis

Competitive forces

Vision & Mission Statement

Key function

Aspect of life

Product type

Scope and audience

Principles & promise

Feel good and standards

Poultry farm slogan

Competitive Analysis

Products and services

Marketing and sales

Key strengths

Marketing Strategy

Physical evidence

Leadership team

Professional profile

Financial Plan

Profit and loss

Balance sheet

Labour budget

Key performance indicators (KPIs)

It’s 38-parts that together spell out every critical element of poultry business success.

You simply won’t find a more comprehensive effort to fully load a poultry farming business plan with ALL ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS.

Want a breakdown of what each part really contains?

That’s EXACTLY what’s up next…

Step #2: Download The Poultry Farm Business Plan Analysis Playbook

As shared above, I’ve taken the time to draft what I am absolutely certain is THE market leading poultry farming business plan template – FULL STOP.

It’s got it all.

But what about the detail? And how should it be used?

Business planning analysis: the KEY to using my business plan template – like a PRO

Like so many business planning template solutions out there like bPlans, for example, they do a good job of setting a solid format, BUT…

…where they FALL SHORT is in giving you some real-life examples of how to APPLY the template .

In other words,

Most business planning tools out there don’t give you examples of how real poultry businesses measure up with the tool.

And because of this, those other planning tools leave you GUESSING what to do with it.

So you end up using it as a first-time pupil uses an exercise book:

Unskillfully and regrettably (“…don’t want to go back there again if I can help it…”).

When actually, what you NEED is a dynamic, “can’t put it down”, interactive ACTION plan – with bite.

…this is the reason I wrote this series of poultry farming business planning analyses.

Here’s what my business plan analysis will do for you…

To take all the guesswork and wandering out of planning your poultry business.

And to show you EXACTLY HOW a real-life poultry start-up success story marries up with my winning business planning formula…

…giving expert insight into how BEST to use the template to plan your own success.

The result?

(Way much better than just templates or homework…)

Step-by-step,   proven insights of what REALLY works and why in every step of writing your own poultry business plan.

= 1st rate consultancy & on-the-shoulder advice – at your own pace ( & at only a fraction of the price ).

You can access The Poultry Farming Business Plan Analysis Playbook here (Downloadable PDF version is available to paid subscribers )

So, why is an eBook the IDEAL partner to helping your write your poultry farming business plan?

(I’m glad you asked!)

Poultry Plan It: the blueprint to winning investment for your poultry business

Rather than present you with empty template boxes to fill out (which – let’s face it – offers zero value, both to you and potential investors)…

…instead,

My eBook called, Poultry Plan It – shows you EXACTLY how to:

• skillfully deliver and
• expertly pitch

…your poultry business plan to achieve 1 thing:

To Win Investment .

(Simple. My eBook “Poultry Plan It” shows you how to get investors to take your poultry business seriously .)

Read The Poultry Business - Like Never Before!

Chicken Snippets Newsletter - deep poultry analysis to sharpen your acumen, by email.

Does this eBook sound like what you need?

Try the first chapter called “ Poultry Plan It: Executive Summary ” right here .

Want to unlock the whole eBook as PDF download?

Become a paid subscriber and get “ Poultry Plan It ” by instant PDF download .

Have you ever wanted to see:

…how the financial PROs estimate future poultry investment returns?

…which poultry production models generate the most profit?

(I mean REALLY SEE?)

Then the Poultry Project Reporter 2.0: Insider’s Guide was written just for you.

Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 – Insider’s Guide: the ‘grain-by-grain’ financial analysis EVERY poultry business plan needs

I wrote the Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 – Insider’s Guide for two pressing reasons:

• …to plug in the gap of a general lack of ‘detailed, long hand’ financial poultry business calculations available online to help with planning profits.
• …a ‘case study based’ user guide for license holders of my proprietary software ‘Poultry Project Reporter’ – to find out ALL the inside hints and tips for producing rock solid financial projections.

Here’s a quick snippet of the level of breakdown I provide:

…literally, grain-by-grain, high precision detail.

BUT at the same time super simple to follow.

(With lots of visual content to really help you ‘get the picture’.)

Want to hear it from a reader?

This feedback email was sent by a start-up poultry farmer.

He emailed me within minutes of receiving a mailshot of a FREE chapter from the Insider’s Guide.

So what’s actually ‘ inside ‘ the Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 – Insider’s Guide?

A great question.

Here’s what you get:

Totally comprehensive and also a great handbook to accompany my proprietary software Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 .

Want to grab a copy of the PPR 2.0: Insider’s Guide?

Become a paid subscriber today and instantly get the inside track on financial planning for your poultry farm business.

Have a read of this:

…and there are many more requests like this in my inbox.

It seems when it comes to business planning help, poultry farmers and professionals alike are interested in scanning sample data too.

( Not just templates )

Sample papers: a GREAT way for self-assessing if your business plan is up to scratch

If you ask me, examples are without doubt the BEST way to learn.

Whenever I’m looking to work out a business model I always look for working models that already exist.

Never contrived or manufactured formulas.

As an adult, I don’t like to be spoon-fed. I learn best when I’m left a little room to figure things out myself.

Let’s take it back to class…

…why are past exam papers and examiner notes such a popular revision method?

SELF-ASSESSMENT.

(i.e. finding out for yourself how you measure up against standard.)

My preferred method of advanced learning.

And I don’t think I am alone in this.

This is exactly why I put together these sample poultry farming data plans – both layer and broiler models.

I left out any country bias, so these are a universal fit to any and every economy.

What do the samples contain?

There are 2 typical planning problems that these plans are designed to solve:

• Input and output VARIABLES,
• related to the SCALE and MODEL of your farm.

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Poultry Courses Online - most actionable and interactive online poultry course.

In other words, these samples are shortcuts or crib notes for literally telling you if your planning progress is:

• en-route for success, or;
• taking a wrong turn .

I’ve arranged the samples according to the following attributes :

Broiler farming rearing models

• All-In-All-Out

Layer farming rearing models

Input/Output variable

• Feed consumption
• Production (meat or eggs)
• Broiler by product

These lists above are like ingredients to prescribed recipes.

Or, elements of an equation for solving a problem.

Mix them together in the right order and you answer critical questions within your poultry farm business plan.

Want an example?

The sample plans above will answer questions like,

“How much manure will a 2,000 bird broiler farm produce annually over 6 years, using the 4+1 rearing method?” Or, “How many eggs will a 5,000 layer farm produce annually over 6 years, using the 1+2 rearing method?”

Simply pull the relevant data set and immediately land your finger on the answer.

A convenient ‘plug-in’ to EVERY poultry farming business plan

Would you like a free sample?

Click on this link for a free egg production dataset for a 500-bird layer farm using 1+3 rearing system .

Now, are you ready for EVERYTHING?

Become a paid subscriber to gain instant access to ALL current sample plans PLUS future updates.

Another short falling of traditional business planning templates is that they are  start-up focused .

It makes the value gained from them short-lived.

Think of it this way…

When you’ve finally launched your business, that’s just the beginning and not the end.

At the very least, you should have another 6 years on top of actually running your business.

If your templates are ONLY valid for start-up,

Then what do you use to keep your ongoing plans in order ?

Crush investment risk with my business management templates

Arguably, running the business is a far more risky phase of investment – most of all because now you have made a material commitment.

Therefore, you carry the potential of loss.

And business management also just happens to be the most challenging discipline to hold.

Because you’ve got SO MUCH going on all at the same time.

And staying organised becomes more and more difficult with every day that goes by.

CHAOS costs …

• you lose foresight, you lose track of progress and ultimately you lose money.

ORGANISATION profits …

you gain vision, you gain awareness and ultimately make money.

Business Management Templates

These templates are designed to help you stay on top.

What’s included?

Advance Your Poultry Project - Into Maximum Profits!

Advanced Poultry Pickup - hands-on, 1-to-1 poultry business consultancy - anywhere.

Download the ‘Keep Sheet’ for future reference.

Want to start making business management plans?

Become a paid subscriber and access this suite of business management templates today.

Step #7: Download Business Records for Poultry Keepers eBook

This is a USDA eBook (United States Department of Agriculture – Farmers’ Bulletin 1614) from 1929.

(That’s right – it’s almost 100 years old!)

But testament to ‘things done well’…

…this evergreen piece of invaluable financial coaching for poultry farmers still holds true today, as when it was 1st published.

Business Records for Poultry Keepers: “Simply…DON’T attempt to write your poultry business plan without it.”

The motto of the eBook? “It literally pays for poultry farmers to keep records of current operations to guide their efforts in profitable directions.” In fact the book gives the following 6 great   reasons why you need this download : (1) “… reduce the guesswork in poultry farming by helping the farmer to determine the actual reasons for poultry profits and losses,” (2) “… show the relative efficiency of different methods of production and marketing,” (3) “…make it possible for a poultry keeper to compare his results with published information (benchmark) on many poultrymen’s problems,” (4) “… show the financial progress a poultry keeper has made in his business,” (5) “… furnish information for credit statements when funds are borrowed,” (6) “… help to prevent disputes by serving as a check on business dealings.”

What is included in this eBook?

Business Records for Poultry Keepers

• Usefulness of poultry records
• Receipts and expenses
• Egg-production record
• Labor record
• Sales records
• Records of eggs and poultry for household use
• Pen records
• Incubation and hatching records
• Diary or notes on management
• Making use of the records 

Want to pick up a copy?

Download the eBook here.

When I began writing The Big Book Project, I had one goal in mind:

To demystify investment proposal writing for start-up farmers.

By trawling the endless blog posts and comments in the small agribiz space online,

It became clear that MANY of us have the ambition to start up.

• see borrowing as the only root
• underestimate their business plan as just a means of getting a loan
• grossly misunderstand how to model production to make a profit

…and I desperately wanted to change turn this on its head.

Only, I made up my mind that I wasn’t going to go the traditional consulting route .

• Too expensive
• VERY limited
• Anti self-sufficiency ( clients grow dependant )

So, what were the alternatives to consulting?

• Perhaps, author a book
• Develop a proprietary software
• Run online courses

…these were just a few.

Then after extensive research and thinking things through…

…I settled for all 3 of the above alternatives, wrapped up into one package:

A book, plus bespoke software and an online course.

Enter: The Big Book Project

The Big Book Project ( https://thebigbookproject.org )

• An online eBook – pushed by a blog.
• A spin-off digital business planning tool called Poultry Project Reporter.
• And an online poultry farming course called Advanced Poultry Pick-Up.

In 2 years only,

the blog amassed 170,094 new search engine visitors  alone

PLUS , a little over 8,000 newsletter subscribers too.

Mission accomplished.

(Well, almost – “… but what about that software? “)

Actually, one of the most popular enquiries received through my blog is for help writing poultry business proposals .

With all the best intentions in the world, there’s just not enough of me to go around the entire subscriber base giving out 1-to-1 proposal writing help.

So, I did the next best thing.

I made my advice automated (with the help of some handy digital tools) and wrote it one time only.

The result was Poultry Project Reporter and now we have just launched version 2.

What is Poultry Project Reporter 2.0?

Poultry Project Reporter 2.0: the fastest way of writing a professional poultry farming proposal

If you are looking to write a watertight poultry business proposal,

Then this Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 is a solid investment for you.

Here’s why:

Essentially, all you have to do is type in your data into the input field and then leave the publishing (complete with PDF download) – even the calculations to PPR 2.0

Are you ready to take a closer look at Poultry Project Reporter? Take a look at the dedicated Poultry Project Reporter 2.0 website

Poultry farming as a topic is MASSIVE worldwide.

It seems, when it comes to the subject matter of poultry farming, every country is both ‘ stalking it ‘ and ‘ talking it ‘ online.

These stats from my blog above tell the tale of poultry farming and its popularity. It literally reaches every country in the world .

And despite all this talk about poultry farming business plans…

…I find a large percentage of the ‘audience’ has no capital funding availability (whether saved or borrowed) . Of course, this is totally natural and a reality for the majority, AND if you ask me a great ADVANTAGE.

Take this reader of my blog:

It seems many see a lack of capital as a barrier to entry when it comes to layer or broiler farming.

“But who said anything about needing significant capital to start up a profitable poultry business ?”

One of the BIGGEST attractions to poultry farming surely is the LOW BARRIER to entry , LOW SETUP costs and yet HIGH profitability and cash flow potential.

But as with many theories, I suppose it remains ‘up in the air (talked about)’ until someone makes it tangible…material…possible.

This is the principle that encouraged me to step up to the plate in an attempt to ‘bat out of the park’ all doubt surrounding it…

…and finally, answer the question:

Can you start up a poultry farm with zero capital?

Yes, you can start a poultry farm with no available capital.

Here’s how…

Zero Debt Poultry Farming: the MOST REWARDING way to start, scale and establish a leading egg or chicken business

In my line of work as a consultant (professional problem solver) – the one discipline that keeps my craft alive is RESEARCH.

And as such, I come across all kinds of neat fixes that may not be for the time I find them,

But are bound to come in handy some time.

So, much like a handyman or craftsman, not wanting to let anything go that could be of use,

I end up keeping a stash of these in a ‘kind of’ strategic toolbox.

When enough time passes by whilst researching related topics,

I get enough of a head of steam to begin compiling an eBook.

This is my process.

And using this I wrote ‘ Zero Debt Poultry: Business Startup Plan ‘.

It’s a strategic playbook and secret formula for how (with no borrowings or savings) you:

• turn your poultry startup idea into a market-leading farming enterprise
• BEFORE you yield your 1st egg or carcass .

Want the PDF download?

Become a paid subscriber today and download Zero Debt Poultry Business Startup Plan .

I had to refrain from using the phrase, “Masterclasses”…a bit presumptuous for my liking.

Aren’t we always needing to ‘add on’ – even after many years of experience? Are ever really the finished article?

Whatever your answer to those questions is,

I do think what is indisputable is the benefit of someone else’s EXPERIENCE when you don’t have any…

… experience saves loss …

…loss of:

…and in the case of business startup, the benefit of experience in some critical areas can be the difference between success and failure.

And where so much is riding on you making it work,

Getting the right experience is HIGHLY valued.

Equally, identifying the most advantageous area of learning carries importance.

So, what area of learning would you say has the most impact on farming success?

According to this study , ‘ Farm Business Management Skills a Missing Link For Smallholder Farmers: A Case Of Malingunde, Malawi ‘ (European Journal of Business and Innovation Research 2016): Just one of many studies which declare a link between business management discipline and better economic output . Other quotes from the study bear reference to previous works: “Generally, management is a human responsibility and skill that drives economic activities and development ( Oghojafor et al, 2012 ).” “Smallholder farmers need to be better equipped with business management skills if they are to play a central role in improving agricultural productivity ( Mohit, 2012 ).”

So, there you have it – business management is the most influential skill set you could acquire for succeeding with your poultry startup.

But is there really a shortage of business management material on the internet?

Not according to Google,

As you can see above, it took Google 0.6 seconds to return almost 6 BILLION results for the search term ‘business management’.

That’s a FLOOD of management content.

But…I ask:

• Is all of it good ? Or at least suitable for a startup poultry farmer?
• Also, where do you begin ?

To save you ENDLESS wandering from page to page online,

I have neatly packaged a power-packed portfolio of business management tutorials tailor-made for EVERY startup farmer…

…called “Grow AgriBusiness Faster Classes”

Grow AgriBusiness Faster Classes: instantly download 15 years of 1st class management expertise ( & speed up your poultry profits )

The purpose of these tutorials is to make common with you some of the most valuable business management lessons learned in my 15 years of management.

They span a corporate and independent consulting career, including:

• global best practice
• financial investments
• small business strategy

But the goal is simple…

…to make hard things simple for you to ‘master’ (…there, I’ve said it now…) to save you any potential material losses of getting it wrong.

These lessons should help you to get it right, 1st time.

The GREAT thing about these tutorials also is that they are all written from 1st hand experiences and lessons learned . Nothing academic – all true to life .

Here’s currently what is included :

Want to access the Grow AgriBusiness Faster Classes?

Become a paid subscriber today and fast forward your management abilities.

Are you currently working on a feasibility plan & business proposal for your future poultry farm?

Then this resource is the ideal pocketbook and project reference guide for equipping you with EVERYTHING you need to draft a winning plan.

It’s called the Poultry Project Hub…

Poultry Project Hub: a jampacked project resource library giving you 100’s of angles on planning optimal profits

This has to be the most plentiful online digital resource for assisting your poultry business proposal writing .

Here’s a quick round-up of its contents:

In short, the Poultry Farming Project Hub contains:

“…over 20,501 words, 200+ rows of data tables, as well as 30+ screenshots/images, sample calculations, case studies and more.”

If you are looking for:

• sample plans
• expert poultry business consultancy
• step-by-step calculations
• definitions and equations for investment metrics
• case studies
• detailed ‘explainer’ articles on hard to understand model concepts

…then this is an unmissable opportunity for you.

Visit the library and its FREE resources now.

Want to download the entire library in PDF instead?

Become a paid subscriber and get the PDFs.

This is very simply – a little bit of light relief if you are finding the whole exercise of business planning a little…frustrating.

There are 15 questions in this quiz.

Each covering a key poultry farming discipline.

It’s multiple choice and nothing too heavy.

Ideally, you might use them to sharpen up your general strategic business awareness.

Try the poultry business quiz.

I made this as a complementary guide to be read alongside sample poultry plans.

To help you better DIRECT the planning process.

To have you asking the right questions and taking the right approaches to assemble your poultry business plan successfully.

Plus, I provide insight into:

• production modelling options and,
• uncover flawed assumptions.

These points above are often sticking points and wrong turns for many when building a plan.

This eBook helps you avoid the loss of time and effort getting tied up in with grey spots.

And here’s how…

Poultry Planning Toolkit eBook: avoid common planning errors by having this on your desk as you work

I’d go as far as saying that you shouldn’t begin writing your poultry farm business plan UNTIL you’ve read this.

It does the job of ironing out all the usual sticking points that trouble and prolong planning.

Issues such as:

• modelling choices
• how best to plan your earnings
• how to measure profitability
• how to do capital planning

…are opened up with ease and made plain.

Here’s the chapter line-up :

• Broiler vs. Layer
• Reverse Engineer your Earnings
• Modelling for Cash Flow
• Frameworking
• Cost & Price Inputs
• Gross Profits
• Capital Planning
• Return on Investment
• Scenario Planning

I designed it to answer ALL the key strategic planning questions.

I’d say, the real value of this eBook is that it prevents false starts by filling in the common knowledge gaps .

A great time saver.

Take a few minutes to read a chapter for free .

Want to download the entire PDF eBook?

Become a paid subscriber today and get expert direction for writing a successful poultry business plan.

This one is quite simple.

If it’s ever cross your mind to ask,

“Hey Temi, what website software do you use?”

“What service do you use to send out those email messages?”

For example, I use WPMUDEV as my web hosting partner. They are just right for The Big Book Project currently. It’s true that there are many cheaper web hosting services out there, But the operative word here is * SERVICE* . When I fail, they pick up the pieces and always ensure The Big Book Project is constantly online. No downtime, no curveballs, no disasters…you see everything coming LONG before it hits, giving plenty of time to react successfully…PLUS, when trouble hits, they REALLY know how to rescue a WordPress website . Hands down. I have no complaints and many good things to say…if you are looking for an expert WordPress website support team – I couldn’t recommend them highly enough . Learn more about WPMUDEV here. (The link above goes to their website and of course costs you nothing. If you decide to hire them, I get a small payment back. The money side has no influence though. I personally use them and happily recommend their service.)

My other tools of the trade including:

• graphic design tool
• online payment gateway
• document management tools
• email marketing platform
• accounting program (inc. invoicing, quotations etc).

…are all neatly listed in the crib sheet.

It’s exhaustive. And comes with 10 years of self-employment and business ownership experience.

Lots of valuable, ‘hard-to-find’ gems to give you plenty of advantage.

(*Plus there are some GREAT time and budget savers in here to help you save the pennies, without compromising on  quality.)

Want to download my Digital Tools of The Trade crib sheet?

Become a paid subscriber today and get a headstart on digital business services.

Whilst I don’t write business plans, I do review them from time to time.

From your point of view, it might be a useful pointer in the right direction.

Just the thing you need to get you out of a rut and to finally complete your plan.

A bit like this:

…always good to see REAL LIFE RESULTS gained by readers of The Big Book Project who put the advice into action .

Want me to take a look at your poultry farm business plan?

Become a paid subscriber today and book your business plan review.

Now over to you…

Are you currently writing a business plan for your poultry farm?

Have you already drafted your plan?

Either way, I’d be interested to hear from you.

Leave a comment below.

Reader Interactions

Write your poultry project proposal in just 90 mins.

February 22, 2024 at 1:44 pm

My first time to visit this web site. I am impressed and subscribed soon. Hope I will be benefited from the package. Inspired by quick response of the system and tells how efficient and profitable the poultry business too. I will keep myself long in the transaction. Regards, Assefa T.

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How to Start a 7-Figure Poultry Farm (2024)

Did you know the average poultry farm provides over a million dollars of chicken for people to eat every year? John Mathia and Geoff Scott showed us how to start a poultry farm and turn it into a vertically integrated award-winning business. You can too!

Geoff and John started Marion Acres in 2012 so they could eat healthier food than they could buy at the supermarket. Their first attempt at growing their own food went horribly wrong: tractors broke, rains made the land unusable, and the landowner sold the land out from under them––but they persevered. They went from 32 chickens in Geoff’s garage to a poultry farm with different animals, a grocery store, a slaughterhouse, and award-winning chickens.

We’ll share how they developed one of the northwest’s most successful poultry farms! You’ll learn about government subsidies, partnerships, and building a vertically integrated business.

They’ve got information any poultry business can use. Let’s start by learning about the poultry industry. 

Step 1. Learn About Poultry Farming

Don’t try to just jump straight into the chicken business and expect to make a million dollars overnight. There’s a lot to learn about the chicken farming business. You will have federal, state, and local laws to follow. In addition, there are lots of capital expenditures. Plus, you’re raising animals, so without proper hygiene, your whole farm could die.

Don’t be scared, though. You can start small. Geoff told us:

Geoff recommended Reading Pastured Poultry Profits by Joel Salatin, plus we added some other best sellers on Amazon for avid readers.

Here are some interesting reads I found while researching the topic:

• Why poultry is better than beef
• Different feeds for different chickens

We’ll help you understand the poultry business so you can decide the best strategy for your chicken farm. Let’s start by looking at the poultry industry.

How much to start a chicken farm?

Geoff and John started off with:

• 32 broiler chickens : $75
• One chicken tractor : $220
• 150 pounds feed : $100
• Gravity water dispenser : $60
• Total : Under $500

So, you don’t need a lot of money to start raising chickens. If you don’t have land, that’s another story. Let’s look at how much it costs if you need land.

How much does it cost to start a chicken farm if you don’t own land?

Poultry farming will be more expensive if you don’t already have land to use. Chickens need space and a healthy environment. Chickens require at least three square feet per chicken plus space for storage, vehicles, home, etc. 

That means the first acre will hold a maximum of 4500 chickens and each additional acre can hold around 5,000 chickens.

If you don’t have land, you can expect at least $100K startup costs for poultry farming. Some resources even say a poultry farmer should expect to spend $250K. The number of chickens you can hold will depend on the number of acres you buy. Check out the table below for an idea of how land will impact the costs and revenue.

Of course you don’t have to start off with 5,000 chickens. You can start smaller and build your way up. But realistically expect to spend the cost of a down payment and the first two to six months of the mortgage right away. Then, with every 100 chickens expect to spend $1.500.

Is chicken farming profitable?

A poultry farm business can sell both chicken and eggs on the commodity markets or direct to consumers (DTC). Let’s look at each. 

Poultry companies selling DTC

Egg production and meat production can be highly profitable if you sell directly to consumers. Marion Acres sells most of its meat to people and local restaurants, which differs from many farms that sign contracts with major poultry corporations. Geoff told us:

Chicken is about a 30% margin.

Check out the rest of our interview with Geoff and Josh.

They sell their meat at $13.99 per pound (lb) because it is non-GMO, pasture-raised broiler farming. That means they make about $50 per chicken and $15 is margin.

Unless a poultry farmer processes the meat onsite, they shouldn’t expect to get such high margins, though.

Selling as a commodity

A poultry farm business might sell on the open market as well. In this scenario, you’ll need to register with the USDA . You’ll be selling to companies that process the live chickens and turn them into breast, wings, thighs, and other meat for consumption. In this scenario, your profit would be:

Broiler Companies Gross Profit = (market rate per pound x pounds of live chickens) – (costs of chicks + feed + labor caring for chickens + transportation costs).

Egg Laying Companies Gross Profit = (market rate of eggs x number of eggs) – (feed + labor caring for chickens + transportation costs).

You’ll want to compare current pricing for broilers versus eggs to decide which is more profitable. Alternatively, you could do a mix of broiler meat and egg laying.

Geoff told us about how a lot of farmers operate:

Bring on a bunch of debt, get all your equipment, and then farm for the rest of your life. You hope to pay off that debt. John and I took a little bit more measured approach.

During many years farmers will run at a loss and have to be subsidized by the government, so make sure you talk to a financial advisor before you jump into the poultry farm business.

Poultry Industry

According to IBISWorld , the average American eats approximately 112 pounds of chicken, eggs, turkey, and other farm fowl each year. They expect Americans to increase their consumption by about half a pound per year. 

Chicken farms sell chicken and other birds based on the commodity market rates, which have ranged from 59 cents per pound at the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdowns to an all-time high of 99 cents per pound on June 17, 2022. Estimates expect that this inflation will level off and return to approximately 1% increases in the prices paid for full birds.

From the poultry farm, the birds will go to:

• A processing plant (or slaughterhouse)
• A wholesale processor
• Supermarkets and retailers
• The final consumer

As a result, a bird that sold for 99 cents per pound, increases to about $5.99 to $7.99 for a whole chicken in the supermarket. Breasts and tenders can go for over $4 per pound according to the USDA . 

However, Geoff and John reap most of the profits from their poultry farming because they own the processing and supermarket. Let’s look at each of the players in the poultry farm business to see how it quadruples in price from the farm to the consumer.

A farmer’s main costs include:

• Land : It’s best to be near but not in big cities. Prices of land can vary dramatically. For example, you might find two to five acres ranging from $5,000 per acre to $2.5 million per acre.
• Chicken coop : Later on, we’ll explain how to build a chicken coop, but if you’re building with three square feet per chicken, you’ll probably end up spending a ton on your chicken house.
• Chickens: You might find day-old chickens for approximately $1 to $2.50 per chick based on the quantity, sex, and whether they are GMO-raised.
• Feed: You’ll need to feed the chickens, and you’ll probably want to buy in bulk. Per pound, smaller bags are much more expensive than when you buy a ton of feed.
• Transportation costs : IRS mileage deductions change each year, but have been over $.50 per mile since 2008. You can deduct actual costs instead.
• Employees: If you have over 500 chickens per owner, plan to spend $15 per hour according to the BLS .

Poultry and other meats require processing, which is an industry worth approximately $227.6 billion with a 4.8% profit margin according to IBISWorld . Poultry processing is included in US Industry (NAICS) Report 31161 . I strongly suggest you pay for the report if you’ll be involved in processing, especially if you need a loan.

Using current market rates, the spending breaks down to:

• Purchase price per pound: $.99
• Additional expenses per pound: $.75
• Profit per pound: $.09
• Sell to the wholesaler by the pound: $1.83

Processing is where most of the additional costs in the industry occur, but not where most of the profits are. At the time of writing, there are 5,486 processing companies, and the major players get 57% of the revenue and 98.25% of the profits. The major players are included in the chart below:

That means the average company can expect to achieve a maximum of $18,000,000 revenue and up to $867,000 per year. There are a lot of industry participants operating at losses.

Once the meat has been processed, it is sent to the wholesaler.

Poultry Wholesalers

These are the companies that sell to grocery stores and restaurant chains. There are between 700 and 800 businesses in this category, but the industry is dominated by Sysco and Cal-Maine foods, which get a combined 52% of the revenue. 

Interestingly, smaller wholesalers seem to perform better with a higher profit margin of 3.19% on a little over $8 million revenue on average.

• Purchase price per pound: $1.83 
• Additional expenses per pound: $.40 per pound
• Profit per pound: $.57
• Sell to supermarkets by the pound: $2.80 

Supermarkets

The supermarket industry makes $757 billion in revenue with 21.3% of that attributed to meat, poultry, cheese, and eggs. The purchase of food items accounts for almost 70%. They also average 1.8% profit , but Publix manages to hit a 27.6% profit margin.

• Payment to wholesaler: $2.80
• Profit: $.07
• Other expenses: $1.13
• Consumer price per pound: $4

Why does this matter to a poultry farm?

It means that by the time the food gets to the customer, three other companies are adding $3.01 to the price of the chicken, of which 75 cents is profit.

That’s why John and Geoff’s business model is so brilliant. Instead of being a commodity that gets the short end of the stick, they’ve built their poultry farm into a slaughterhouse, packager, retailer, and online store.

While this comes with additional costs, they effectively make 2.5 times the revenue while increasing the costs by approximately $2.28 per pound with potential profit margins of 10%. 

Governing Laws

There are a lot of laws covering poultry farming and egg production. You’ll want to familiarize yourself with:

• EPA rules on animal feed operations
• USDA policies regarding livestock
• Farmers Service Agency (FSA, a division of the USDA specifically to help farmers succeed)
• State agencies may have policies about farming permits, licensing, or inspection. Check the FSA map to find experts on your state regulations.
• Many cities and counties may have regulations that apply to starting a chicken farm. I would suggest talking to your local SBA office and health district.

Don’t forget to register your farm. Marion Acres is a multi-member LLC, but it operates similarly to a partnership. Read our blog that walks you through how to register an LLC . 

Market Forces

Weather, unemployment, and disposable income all have an impact on farming poultry. Chickens don’t sweat, so temperatures above 90 degrees can jeopardize their health. Make sure to take that into consideration if you are considering how to start poultry farming.

Choose a Poultry Sector Next

Now that you know a little about the types of businesses involving poultry, what kind of poultry business are you going to start?

• Sell chickens for meat
• Create feed to sell for poultry farmers
• Hatchery and breeding chicks
• Egg and meat processing

Whichever one you choose, your focus should be on how to maximize the output for the lowest cost. Given the primary variable cost is feed, you want to focus on the following ratios:

• Broiler farm : meat per pound of feed 
• Laying eggs : Eggs per pound of feed 

Let’s look at the different breeds of chickens you can choose for your own poultry business.

Type of Bird

Were you raised on a chicken farm?

If you weren’t, I bet you’ll be surprised by the number of chicken breeds available. Fortunately, Chicken Breeds List has an extensive knowledge-base about chickens. It’s basically a one-stop-shop about poultry farming for beginners, with over 31 different breeds ranked based on:

• Number of eggs per year
• Growth potential
• Aggressiveness
• Space requirements 
• And other considerations

They rate the Leghorn as the best egg-laying chicken and the Cornish Cross as the best for producing fast and plentiful chicken meat production.

Look for their awards on sites that educate, breed, or cook chicken. If you see one of them, this means they are a poultry company focused on excellence.

Oops! I spent half the blog educating us on the chicken industry. Let’s carry on with how to start a poultry farm in the USA.

Step 2. Write a Poultry Farming Business Plan

Poultry farming business plans help you keep yourself focused on your goals. Whether you just want enough to feed family and friends, you want to sell eggs or chicken meat locally, or you have dreams of becoming a major chicken farming business, a business plan will help.

Check out our blog about business plan writing and write your own. If that’s not your style, we understand. Marion Acres has never had an official business plan. They told us;

I would say we’re kind of unofficial. A lot of the growth that we have had is just kind of the market driving us that way. The goals we have are probably how to become more sustainable as a farm, and how to become more self-sufficient down the road. And that could be a one to two-year venture.

After you have a business plan for your poultry farm, you’ll know whether you need extra funding or not. If you do, you might want to consider business loans.

Step 3. Poultry Business Loans

If you don’t already have land to start a poultry farm, you’ll need to get some. That means you probably need to buy it. Most landlords won’t love a chicken coop in their garage.

Plus, there’s other poultry farming equipment you’ll need. In addition to the standard loans available for most businesses, the FSA has farming loans that help people buy land, invest in equipment, and make it until the next harvest. 

There’s even youth funding to help 10 to 20-year-olds do farming projects. Put your kid to work raising chicks! Teaching them young is great for when they want their own business.

Next, choose a location for your poultry farm.

Step 4. Find a Location of Chicken Farm

Where are you going to raise chickens? 

Well, that depends on how many you have. Raising chickens can be a space-consuming venture. The poultry farm business can consume three to ten square feet per chicken meaning you can fit about 33 chickens in a 10 x 10 space. 

That means an acre can hold between 4k and 14k chickens, but that doesn’t leave room for much else. That would also be a massive chicken house. 

Chickens also do best in 70° to 75° weather, and they can have heat strokes when temperatures get above 90°. Geoff told us:

They’ve gotta have water. They’ll die pretty quick if they don’t. Especially in the heat.

You also want to create a farm where the cost of land plus transporting poultry products is balanced to minimize costs. 

Step 5. How to Make a Chicken Farm 

Poultry farm design is focused on creating effective layouts and processes to help chicken farms become more profitable and efficient. Check out the Big Book Project . 

You’ll need to do things like:

• Establish how to position everything on your land.
• Decide how to make the most of your space.
• Build a chicken coop.
• Manage your supply chain.
• Purchase and care for your chickens.
• Process and sell your poultry products.

We’ll look at a few, but I strongly advise checking out the Big Book Project and talking to other poultry farming businesses to learn more about designing a small farm. Acclimating to the setting in person will give you a powerful perspective on chicken farming.

How to start a poultry farm: Build a Chicken Coop

Marion Acres uses what they call a Chicken Tractor with a Gravity Water Delivery System for their broiler chickens. It’s an 8-foot by 8-foot enclosure made from:

• Nine 2” x 2” wood beams : $4 each = $36
• Seven 8’ x 2’ corrugated steel panels : $22 each = $154
• Chicken wire : $39 (should be approximately 1 roll)
• Nails and screws: $5
• Estimated Total: $234 + tax, shipping, and handling

When they built it, the total cost would have been about $220 for the coop and $60 for the gravity water delivery system. 

This makes it where they can easily move the chicken coop to different spots on the poultry farm. Watch the video below to view how they built the chicken tractor.

Almanac.com has a good read on how to make a chicken house. They suggest keeping the poultry house near where people are at all times of day so that someone can hear if a fox tries to enter the chicken house.

Farm innovations have created intensive poultry housing systems. With automated feeders, watering systems, and other improvements, you can more easily care for your chickens. You’ll have to establish the proper settings for your poultry house because chicken breeds vary on their needs. Learn about some of the best feeding systems.

How to start a poultry farm: Buy Feed

Every chicken will need to eat. Without poultry feed, you’ll have a hard time keeping your chickens healthy. Chicken feed is made with specific purposes in mind. You can buy poultry feed for:

• Baby chickens: Starter food is best for ages that range from day old chicks to 20 weeks.
• Chicken broilers: If you’re just trying to raise chicks to sell the meat, get food specifically for broilers.
• Teenage chickens: If you want to keep your chicks properly cared for until they each become an adult chicken, you might want to change from starter food to grower food at six weeks. You’ll want to change this when they start laying eggs.
• Egg layers: Once chickens start laying eggs, they need layer feed to help produce healthier eggs. It’s like grower feed but with more calcium and minerals.

When you’re just getting started, you can buy feed from Amazon or Walmart, but you may want to buy in bulk. When comparing a 40 to 50 lb bag to a 2,000 lb order, you can save up to $1,000 by buying in bulk based on online pricing. 

Check out this blog to learn more about feeding chickens .

You’ll want other equipment, too. 

How to start a poultry farm: Other Equipment

You will need equipment based on the chicken products you sell, the space you have, and your budget. Some of the items you might need before you buy your chicks include:

• Waste removal system(s)
• Lighting instruments
• Brooders (for breeding)
• Heaters (for cold weather)
• Crates (for collecting eggs)
• Egg trays (for handling and selling eggs)
• Perches (for laying hens)
• Nests (for laying hens and breeding)
• Incubator (for breeding)

Once you have all the equipment setup, it’s time to find dependable breeders.

Get Your Chickens

It’s time to buy some quality chicks from a reputable breeder. You can buy locally or online, but be careful when buying online. There are two ways to get new chickens and it sounds like a joke. You get to choose between the chicken or the egg.

Geoff told us:

You definitely wanna buy day-old chicks. Leave the hatching of the eggs to the hatchery.

Based on my research, it seems that eggs and chickens sell for about the same price, which means you are better off with the chicks. If you decide to expand your business to incubate your own eggs later, you can potentially increase your profit. You’ll need to learn poultry science first, though.

Some breeders are more honest than others, so make sure they have a guarantee. You might also ask if they have an American Poultry Association flock certification .

Some of the ones consistently mentioned include:

• Jenks : Business success is often measured by profitability, but longevity is also important. As the longest operating poultry company supplier, they know they understand the poultry farm business.
• Cackle Hatchery : If you are looking to buy from only one supplier, Cackle is probably the place. They sell pretty much everything you need for raising and selling chickens. Plus, they’ve been around for over 80 years.
• Privett Hatchery : If you are on the west coast, you might consider getting your chickens from Privett. It’s in New Mexico making it more convenient for a farmer located in the southwest United States.

You can find more breeders and fertile egg suppliers on Chickens and More .

Step 6. How to Run a Chicken Farm

Poultry farming is a delicate business. You have to:

• Feed your birds the proper nutrients: We discussed this in the section on feed. This will help promote chicken health.
• Treat against poultry diseases: If your flock catches a chicken disease, you need to separate the sick ones and care for them. You may also have to hire a vet. Learn more about diseases chickens catch .
• Protect against predators: We discussed this during the section on design.
• Dispose of their waste: You’ll need a waste disposal system to help keep the chicken coop clean. 
• The deep litter system is a method of composting inside the coop. 
• You can also use an automated system.

Geoff and John use manual processes. They told us:

We move the chicken tractors around so their waste fertilizes the land. Every animal plays a role in the ecosystem.

• Treat against poultry diseases : If your flock catches a chicken disease, you have to separate sick ones and care for them. You may also have to hire a vet.
• Maintain documentation of care: You’ll need a great system to document your date of purchase, care, date of processing, and more. Check out USDA documentation requirements .

Author’s note: During my experience in the building automation industry, I found that automated systems make documentation of anything much easier. When you can easily check a log to see when feed was distributed, water consumed, temperatures, and other relevant data, it is much easier to comply with government regulations.

Step 7. Process the Birds

Once the birds have matured to an age you can sell them (typically six to 20 weeks), you need to turn them into meat. Most people will do this using an external processing company, which we discussed in the industry overview, but Geoff and John do it themselves. They told us:

I wish we would’ve known more about how it was going to go with the county in developing the processing facility. I think we probably would’ve just hired a project manager and said, “Deal with the county, make sure everything is taken care of. Let us focus on the stuff we’re good at. 

And I don’t wanna be distracted by explaining to the county about our storage tanks… In the end, I think it (hiring a land-use consultant) probably would’ve saved us a lot on (the) schedule.

Step 8. Sell the Chickens or Eggs

There are several ways for a poultry farm business to sell their chickens and eggs. The business can sell its products to:

• Consumers: Reach this target market through websites, social media, your own retail location, and farmers’ markets.
• Restaurants: Get in touch with restaurant owners through similar channels as consumers but also through trade organizations.
• Poultry processors and wholesalers : Join trade associations or keep reading to find out how to farm for Perdue or Tyson.

How to start a chicken farm for Perdue

If you want to learn the benefits of poultry farming with Perdue, check out the links on their poultry initiatives . As a Perdue farmer, you get access to:

• Some of the most advanced systems in the industry
• A consistent supply of industry best practices
• A regional vet dedicated to helping provide care for your poultry
• Flock advisors to help you maximize gross income and profit
• Technical assistance to maintain your systems

They’ll guide you through the process of how to start a poultry farm for Perdue.

How to start a chicken farm for Tyson

If you’re wanting to contract with Tyson, check out their prospective farming partners page. They use guidelines from the University of Georgia and contract with more than 6,000 contract farmers. Contact the nearest live operations manager if you’d like to discuss how to start a poultry farm with Tyson.

How to start a chicken farm to sell eggs

Egg-selling poultry farms have many of the same requirements as broiler farms, but they are focused on getting the most eggs per unit of feed. You’ll be trying to keep your chickens healthy for a longer period of time because layers often start egg production near 20 weeks and can produce eggs daily for three to four years .

Step 9. Other Business Functions

In addition to the basic equipment and chicken care, you’ll need to have your systems in place for standard business operations like:

• Bartering (unique to farming)

Fortunately, John and Geoff gave us a ton of information on what they use to operate their business selling broiler chickens.

How to start a poultry farm: Hiring

Marion Acres, LLC emphasizes two aspects when hiring:

• Skill: Do they at least somewhat understand the job?
• Personality: Are they fun to be around? Similar values? Work Ethic?

For processing employees, they told us:

It’s called Poached. I think that attracts more of the food service industry, people that are used to handling knives and processing things, stuff like that. So we use that for the processing facility.

They also explained most other positions are easily filled with walk-ins and “now hiring” signs.

How to start a poultry farm: Accounting 

Marion Acres uses a variety of tools for accounting. John told us:

Geoff does (accounting), but we do use QuickBooks Online, a lot of spreadsheets.

You can connect QuickBooks to most software, so you might be able to integrate it with other software you love. Geoff and John told us:

We use Clover for here in the store. Shopventory, which handles our inventory. And we do use Square for some of our online .

Make sure you understand your accounting processes because you’ll need to have sufficient funds or be well documented for the farm programs. Learn about other accounting software for farmers and have a professional accountant help you set it up properly.

How to start a poultry farm: Marketing

John discussed their marketing strategy with us:

We have mainly my wife who oversees that team, Rachelle. There (are) about two people right now, besides her. So three total. 

We use Wix, which is very user-friendly, and a very simple platform. It just uploads some pictures and types in some things and they make it look good. So kudos to Wix.  

The team that manages that also manages the inventory.

Marion Acres uses social media because it’s so powerful. Check out their Instagram and LinkTree . Like most business owners, they have found that their search engine optimization is what truly helps drive awareness.

They also mentioned that customer service is a big part of their value. They treat people like family and have a beautiful view with picnic tables. Geoff and John have created such a pleasant experience that some customers come almost daily.

Go start your own business!

Chicken is a staple of most people’s diets. Now you have an idea of how to start a poultry farm, so take a training course with poultry farming for beginners, buy some baby chicks, and get farming today!

Which type of farming would you rather do, broilers or egg-layers?

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How to Write a Poultry Farming Business Plan (Sample Template)

Last updated Apr 22, 2024 | Poultry Business

Have you been thinking of starting a poultry farm ? If YES, here is a comprehensive sample of a poultry farming business plan you can use for free to raise capital.

Poultry farming is a growing industry as it has become one of the largest meat producing industries across the globe. And as a result, demand for poultry products keeps increasing day by day.

To start any type of business, you will first need to learn the ropes. Conducting thorough research is also one of the things you will be tasked with. Also, you might be required to undergo some training so as to have firsthand experience on how to run your business.

The agricultural industry, of which poultry farming is a part of, is no doubt among the leading industries in most countries of the world. This is the industry that produces chickens and eggs for the larger population.

Poultry farming is a highly thriving and profitable business venture. Aside from the fact that people consume birds and chickens, the supply of eggs is also a major source of revenue generation for poultry farmers. Players in the poultry farming and egg production industry basically raise chickens for meat and egg production. The eggs produced may be sold for use as table eggs or hatching eggs.

I have prepared a Poultry Farming Business Plan sample, that I believe will be of great help to you.

Areas covered in the business plan include:

• Executive Summary
• Our Services
• Our Mission and Vision Statement
• Roles and Responsibilities
• SWOT Analysis
• Market Analysis
• Our Target Market
• Our Competitive Advantage
• Sales And Marketing Strategy
• Publicity and Advertising Strategy
• Financial Projections and Costing
• Our Startup Budget and Expenditure
• Financial Projection
• Sales Forecast
• Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

Important Things to Note About The Poultry Farming Business Sample.

• The name used for the poultry farming business is an imaginative name. It’s totally used for illustration purposes.
• The budgeting and financial estimates are for illustration purposes. When developing your business plan, ensure that you do a feasibility study, so as to come up with the right figures.
• This poultry farming business sample should act as your guide, to help you develop a better one for your business.

Use the big button below to download the Poultry Farming Business Plan Sample.

Patrick Lumumba

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Poultry Farm Business Plan: A Comprehensive Guide to Success

Table of Contents

Are you considering starting a poultry farm and need a solid plan to guide your way? Crafting a well-thought-out Poultry Farm Business Plan is essential for ensuring the success of your venture. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the key elements of creating a compelling poultry farm business plan, helping you turn your vision into a profitable reality.

What is a Poultry Farm Business Plan?

A Poultry Farm Business Plan is a detailed document that outlines your poultry farming business’s goals, strategies, and financial projections. It serves as a roadmap, guiding you through the early stages of your business and providing a framework for future growth. Whether you’re seeking funding or just want to ensure you have a clear plan, a business plan is a vital tool for any aspiring poultry farmer.

Executive Summary: Setting the Stage

The executive summary is the first section of your Poultry Farm Business Plan and should provide a concise overview of your business. This includes your farm’s mission, goals, competitive advantage, and financial projections. Keep it engaging and captivating to hook potential investors and stakeholders right from the start.

Company Description: Defining Your Farm

In the company description section, you’ll provide a detailed account of your poultry farm. This includes your farm’s location, legal structure, and the products or services you’ll offer. Highlight your unique selling propositions and explain how your farm will stand out from the competition. This section should paint a clear picture of your business, leaving no room for confusion.

Market Analysis: Understanding Your Audience

Conducting a thorough market analysis is crucial for a successful Poultry Farm Business Plan . Identify the demand for poultry products, understand the demographics, preferences, and buying patterns of your target audience. Analyze industry trends, such as the growing demand for organic or free-range poultry products, and outline how your farm will capitalize on these opportunities.

Organization and Management: Building Your Team

Introduce your team and describe the key roles and responsibilities in the organization and management section. Emphasize the relevant experience of each team member in the poultry farming industry. Investors want to know that you have a competent and dedicated team capable of executing your business plan effectively.

Product Line: What Will You Offer?

Provide an in-depth description of the poultry products you’ll offer in the product line section. Include information about the breeds you’ll raise, production capacity, and anticipated flock growth. Detail any value-added products or services, such as organic feed or direct-to-consumer sales channels.

Financial Projections: Crunching the Numbers

The financial projections section outlines your anticipated revenues, costs, and profitability over the next three to five years. Include projected income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. Explain your assumptions and provide a break-even analysis to demonstrate the viability of your business.

Marketing and Sales Strategy: Reaching Your Market

Clearly define your target market segments and outline how you’ll reach them in the marketing and sales strategy section. Describe your promotional activities, such as online advertising, social media campaigns, and participation in local farmers markets or trade shows. Detail your distribution channels, whether it’s direct-to-consumer, local grocery stores, or partnerships with restaurants.

Operations and Management: Day-to-Day Details

Explain the day-to-day operations of your poultry farm, including production processes like housing, feeding, and veterinary care. Outline your biosecurity measures to ensure the health and safety of your flock. Discuss waste management strategies and any permits or licenses required for operation.

Risk Management: Preparing for the Unexpected

Identify potential risks and challenges your poultry farm may face and describe your risk management strategies. This could include disease outbreaks, market volatility, or regulatory changes. Show that you have thought ahead and have contingency plans in place to address these risks.

20 Questions to Answer Before Starting Your Poultry Farm

• What is the demand for poultry products in the local market?
• What are the initial costs involved in setting up a poultry farm?
• What are the legal requirements and permits needed to start a poultry farming business?
• How much space is required for setting up a poultry farm?
• What are the different types of poultry farming systems, and which one suits your business goals?
• What breed of chicken is best suited for your target market?
• What are the necessary equipment and infrastructure needed for poultry farming?
• How will you ensure the biosecurity and health of your flock?
• What are the feeding and nutrition requirements for poultry?
• How will you handle waste management on your farm?
• What are the common diseases that affect poultry and how will you prevent and treat them?
• Where will you source your chicks or hatching eggs?
• What are the ongoing operational costs of running a poultry farm?
• How will you market and sell your poultry products?
• What are the potential risks and challenges associated with poultry farming and how will you mitigate them?
• What is the expected growth rate and profitability of the poultry farming industry?
• Are there any local or national regulations regarding the production and sale of poultry products?
• How will you manage the labor requirements of your poultry farm?
• Have you conducted a competitive analysis of other poultry farms in the area?
• What is your long-term vision and expansion plan for your poultry farming business?

Final Thoughts on Poultry Farm Business Plan

Creating a comprehensive Poultry Farm Business Plan is crucial for establishing a successful poultry farming venture. By addressing each of the key sections outlined in this guide, you can build a solid foundation for your business, attract investors, and ensure long-term success. Remember, a well-crafted business plan not only helps you stay organized but also positions you for growth and profitability. If you found this guide helpful, consider sharing it with others who may benefit from it and feel free to leave your thoughts and questions in the comments below.

Broilers Longer Than 6 Weeks: Why It’s Not Worth the Effort Uniform Growth in Broilers: Essential Tips for Ensuring Consistency in Your Flock How to Sell Your Chickens: Essential Strategies for Success How to Start a Poultry Farm in Namibia How to Sell Broiler Chickens: A Comprehensive Guide for Success

Additional Resources for Farmers in Namibia

The National Association of Horticulture Producers (Nahop) offers training for small-scale farmers across Namibia. Additionally, the Namibian Agronomic Board provides valuable resources and guidelines, which you can access by visiting their  website .

If you have more questions, look through our blog for answers!

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Poultry Farming Business Plan Sample

Published Oct.12, 2016

Updated Apr.23, 2024

By: Cynthia Turner

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Table of Content

Do you want to start a Poultry Farming business plan?

Starting a business in the food sector requires an ambitious plan. For a poultry farm business, a good business plan for poultry farming will be needed to make it successful. 

The primary step to starting this business is to learn how to write a business plan for poultry farming. You can go for food delivery service business plans if the major focus of your startup will be to deliver poultry products. 

However, if you are looking to open a farming business in the poultry sector, reading an organic farm business plan or reading this example is a great start. Just like any other business, you will need to develop a solid business plan for a poultry farm. It can help you get required permits as well as investors in situations of need. Here, we will be presenting the business plan for Chuck’s Produce Farm.

Executive Summary

2.1 about the farm.

Chuck’s Produce Farm will be a poultry farm started by Henry Chuck. The primary objective of the business will be to provide poultry products such as chicken meat and eggs to supermarkets as well as nearby restaurants. 

2.2 How will the Farm be Managed?

According to its Chicken Farming business plan , Chuck’s produce farm will be managed through a detailed plan. The business plan of the poultry farm will include management guides for all aspects of the business, from finances to operations. Henry read through many business plan poultry farming samples to ensure that his chicken poultry farm business plan address all the possible tricky aspects of the business. 

In this business plan online template, we will show you how to make a poultry farm business plan for your business. 

2.3 Customers of Poultry Farming Company

Our customers will primarily be other businesses to whom we will provide our products and services to be transferred to the general public. Thus, our main customer groups will include:

• Supermarket Chains
• Small Produce Businesses 
• Food Factories
• Restaurants 

2.4 Business Target

The target of Chuck’s Produce Farm will be to become the major supplier of poultry products to businesses in and around Dallas. The business will aim to gain at least a 60% share in the local market by the end of the second year. 

The financial targets that the business is aiming to achieve are demonstrated below:

Company Summary

3.1 farm ownership & management.

Henry Chuck will be the owner and primary manager of Chuck’s Produce Farm. He studied biology and biochemistry as a student and then worked with many organizations to manage product dissemination operations. His father had a farm, and it was always his dream to make use of the farm to create an organic business. 

3.2 Why is the Farm Being Started?

Henry noticed that with an increase in the consumption of food, especially poultry products, industries had started to resort to harmful chemicals just to meet demands. He wanted to change the narrative by providing organic and healthy poultry substitutes so that local people could consume poultry products without the added harm of chemicals. 

3.3 Basic Steps to Start Poultry Farm Business

Step1: Refine Your Idea

The first step to the start of anything new is an idea. So, before Henry even thought about how to set up a poultry farm , he needed a basic business idea. Refining the idea before he developed a business plan on poultry farming was a great advantage as it helped him limit the scope of his planning. 

Step2: Develop the Uniqueness 

The next step before writing a poultry farming business plan is to develop the unique areas of your business. Henry used this step as a build-up of the idea. He knew the importance of marketable businesses and products, so he created a brand around the unique propositions of his farm. 

Step3: Location Selection and Permits

Henry already had a location for starting Chuck’s Produce Farm. However, since one cannot start a commercial farm on a whim, he worked to get the required permissions from local authorities. This will allow him to run his business smoothly without any legal complications. 

Step4: Online Presence

Since Henry’s business idea is focused on commercial customers instead of the public, so most of the orders will be in bulk. In order to manage such orders and keep up to date with customers and their demands, Henry decided to invest in the development of an online portal with which his customers could put in orders. Henry also decided to develop social media profiles for his business for a greater audience reach about organic products. 

Step5: Follow the Plan

One cannot learn how to run a poultry business or any other business without dedicating research to a developed plan. After developing the business plan for poultry farm pdf, Henry will follow the guidelines to establish a sustainable farming business.

Services 

When thinking about how start a poultry farming business , Henry zoned in on the services he would be providing to his customers. This helped him filter out what operations needed planning and which ones didn’t. To start a poultry farm business or any other business for that matter, a refined list of marketable products and services is needed. In his small scale poultry farming business plan, Henry decided to add all the services that his produce farm aimed to provide. To learn how to open a poultry farm, you can look at the list of services we are providing in this poultry farm business plan. You can also refer to a cattle farming business plan to understand what scale of services is best to start a business. 

• Chicken and Turkey Products

The first set of products offered by Chuck’s Produce Farm will be chicken and turkey. We will offer clean meat that is processed in different ways. Our customers will be able to buy full chickens or turkeys ready for roast, boneless meat, and so on. 

Chuck’s Produce Farm will also rear chickens for laying eggs. This will be an added facet to Henry’s pdf on poultry farming business plan. The farm will provide these eggs to our customers regularly at a wholesale price. 

• Poultry Rearing Services

The farm will also aid other smaller poultry farms with proper rearing of poultry and chickens for both eggs and meat. In this regard, our farmers will give training sessions and tips to the locals.  

• Chick Shipments

Our last service will be to provide chicks to poultry farms in other parts of the country. This is to promote the development and rearing of own meat and poultry in all parts of the country. This service will help in the sustainable consumption and rearing of poultry in the industry.

Marketing Analysis of Poultry Farming Company

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Starting a poultry farm business requires the collection and use of a lot of information. No business can be started without knowing about your target market. Whether you are developing a dairy farm business plan or a business plan for a poultry farm pdf, you need to learn about the target market. 

Therefore, Henry decided to do some research into the poultry farm industry when learning how to set up a poultry farm business. He learned that the business plan of poultry farming should include its products and services along with its unique propositions over the market. It should inquire into the previous trends and predicted future trends to invest in operations that are useful in figuring how to establish a poultry farm. 

After looking into the industry, Henry knew the major trends which he decided to utilize in developing his business plan for poultry farm . Through these trends, Henry identified the target customers for his business as presented in the poultry farming business plan template below.

5.1 Market Trends

According to IBISWorld, chicken and turkey meat production has a market share of around $30 Billion in the United States alone. And according to Reportlinker’s “Poultry Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery to 2030” report, the industry has a growth rate of 3.8%. This means there is significant room in the industry for another player like Chuck’s Produce Farms.   

5.2 Marketing Segmentation

The target customers of Chuck’s Produce Farm are as follows:

Business plan for investors

5.2.1 supermarket chains.

Our primary customers will be the supermarket chains in Dallas. We will provide the products for their meat and produce sections. We will also provide eggs and other meat options for these chains. Thus, they will be our indirect link to the public. 

5.2.2 Small Produce Businesses

The second set of customers we expect to serve will be small produce businesses. Smaller businesses have a harder time setting up their operations and properly rearing poultry. Thus, Chuck’s Produce Farm will offer training and shadowing services to these new businesses to promote the production of poultry on a local scale. 

5.2.3 Food Factories

Our third target group of customers will be food factories in the nearby areas that need poultry like chicken and turkey along with eggs to create their products. We expect to have contracts with quite a few of these factories. 

5.2.4 Restaurants

Our final target group will be restaurants in Dallas. Usually, restaurants look for the wholesale rate of poultry products to save expenses. Therefore, Chuck’s Produce Farm will reach out to many restaurants for an exclusive contract to supply organic poultry products.

5.3 Business Target

• To achieve the status as the best organic poultry farm in Dallas.
• Promote the production of clean poultry products across the country.
• To provide chemical-free meat and poultry products to our customers.
• To increase the preference for organic, chemical-free poultry over regular one.

5.4 Product Pricing

Since our products have to compete with industrial products at a commercial level, our prices will be similar to the market competitors. However, at the same price, we will be providing chemical-free products that can be checked for health benefits against competing products.

Marketing Strategy

To write a business plan on poultry farming, Henry ventured to search for his target market. This allowed him to develop a business plan sample for poultry farm that could focus on marketing for these particular customers.

A marketing plan is an essential element of a farming poultry business plan. In fact, it is a very important part of every business plan, whether it is a pig farm business plan or a broiler poultry farming business plan.

Therefore, in this business plan, we are presenting the marketing plan and strategies for Chuck’s Produce Farm.

6.1 Competitive Analysis

• We will provide meat that is free of chemicals usually used to increase the growth rate or size.
• We will offer organic products that stem from proper poultry grooming.
• We will aid local poultry farms and focus on a helping business model.
• We will use organic and eco-friendly feed and products that harm neither the poultry nor its consumers.

6.2 Sales Strategy

• We will offer organic products as compared to the chemically treated ones in the market.
• We will reach contracts with local restaurants and businesses.
• We will advertise through word of mouth and local training and guide sessions held throughout Dallas.

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6.3 sales monthly.

6.4 Sales Yearly

6.5 Sales Forecast

Personnel plan

If you have hen business ideas or something of the like, you may be trying to learn how to start a small poultry farm. Henry had the idea of an organic farm business plan which is how he developed the idea of Chuck’s Produce Farm. To ensure the success of his business, Henry added an employee section in his business plan for a poultry farm . The workforce needed to start Chuck’s Produce Farm can be found below for reference. 

7.1 Company Staff

• 1 Co-Manager to help in overall operations
• 10 Trained Poultry Farmers
• 2 Vets 
• 8 General Cleaners
• 1 Technician to maintain machines
• 3 Sales and Marketing Executives
• 1 Accountant

7.2 Average Salary of Employees

Financial Plan

Starting a poultry farm requires much more than a food idea. It requires consistent effort and planning to maintain the business. In order to develop a successful business plan for poultry farming, Henry put in a significant amount of effort in the financial analysis section. 

To start and run a sustainable business, Henry planned out the costs for different operations of the farm along with expected sales and product prices. This kind of financial analysis is necessary for every business plan, may it be a goat farming business plan . For making a financial plan for your startup, you can follow the example below for guidance.

8.1 Important Assumptions

8.2 Break-even Analysis

8.3 Projected Profit and Loss

8.3.1 Profit Monthly

8.3.2 Profit Yearly

8.3.3 Gross Margin Monthly

8.3.4 Gross Margin Yearly

8.4 Projected Cash Flow

8.5 Projected Balance Sheet

8.6 Business Ratios

• How do I start a poultry farm business plan?

You can start chicken farm by looking at poultry farming business ideas and developing a good business plan like the one above. 

• How much profit does a poultry farm make?

According to ChickenFeedMachinery, a poultry farmer can make up to $2000/month for 300 egg-laying chickens, but it varies from one type of business to the next. 

• Is poultry farming a profitable business?

A poultry farming business can be highly profitable if you have a commercial poultry farm business plan like the one shown above. 

• Which poultry is most profitable?

The success of a poultry business depends more on its management than its type. So, you can download a poultry farm business plan like the one above to sharpen those skills.

Download Poultry Farm Business Plan Sample in pdf

OGSCapital’s team has assisted thousands of entrepreneurs with top-rate business plan development, consultancy and analysis. They’ve helped thousands of SME owners secure more than $1.5 billion in funding, and they can do the same for you.

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How to Write Poultry Farming Business Plan? Guide & Template

Embarking on the journey of poultry farming requires more than just a passion for chickens. To truly thrive in this lucrative industry, a well-thought-out poultry farming business plan is essential. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the intricacies of creating a robust business plan, ensuring that your venture takes flight and soars to success.

What is a Poultry Farming Business Plan?

A poultry farming business plan is a strategic document that outlines the goals, objectives, and operational details of your poultry farm. It serves as a roadmap, guiding you through the complexities of poultry farming and helping you navigate challenges effectively. Whether you are a seasoned farmer or a novice in the poultry industry, having a solid business plan is crucial for sustainable growth.

Why You Need a Poultry Farming Business Plan

1. Strategic Direction

A well-crafted business plan provides a clear vision for your poultry farming venture. It defines your mission, values, and long-term objectives, offering a roadmap for success.

2. Financial Planning

Planning your finances is paramount in poultry farming. A business plan helps you estimate startup costs, operating expenses, and potential revenue streams, ensuring financial stability.

3. Risk Management

Poultry farming is not without its challenges, from disease outbreaks to market fluctuations. A business plan helps identify potential risks and equips you with strategies to mitigate them.

4. Attracting Investors and Lenders

If you seek external funding, a well-documented business plan is a powerful tool to attract investors and lenders. It instills confidence in stakeholders by showcasing your commitment and foresight.

What to Include in Your Poultry Farming Business Plan?

A comprehensive poultry farming business plan should encompass various elements to ensure a holistic approach to your venture’s success.

1. Executive Summary

Brief overview of your poultry farming business. Mission and vision statements. Summary of key financial projections.

2. Business Description

Detailed description of your poultry farm. Type of poultry (e.g., broilers, layers, or dual-purpose). Location and facilities.

3. Market Analysis

Overview of the poultry industry. Analysis of target market and customer demographics. Competitor analysis.

4. Organizational Structure and Management

Outline of the organizational structure. Roles and responsibilities of key personnel. Management team’s qualifications and experience.

5. Products and Services

Details about the poultry products you will offer. Any additional services, such as educational programs or consultancy.

6. Marketing and Sales Strategy

Marketing plan to promote your poultry products. Sales strategy to reach target markets. Pricing and promotional strategies.

7. Funding Request

If seeking external funding, specify the amount required. Detailed explanation of how the funds will be utilized.

8. Financial Projections

Projected income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. Break-even analysis. Return on investment (ROI) projections.

How Do I Write a Business Plan on Poultry Farming?

Creating a poultry farming business plan might seem daunting, but breaking it down into manageable steps can simplify the process.

• Conduct Thorough Research

Before you start writing, gather data on the poultry industry, market trends, and potential challenges. Understanding your industry is the foundation of a successful business plan.

2. Outline Your Plan

Use the aforementioned sections as a template and create an outline. This provides a structured framework to ensure you cover all essential aspects of your poultry farming business.

3. Executive Summary First

Begin with the executive summary, as it provides a snapshot of your entire plan. Although it appears first, it’s often easier to write this section after you’ve detailed the other components.

4. Be Realistic in Financial Projections

While optimism is encouraged, be realistic in your financial projections. Ground your estimates in thorough market research and conservative assumptions.

5. Seek Professional Guidance

If the financial aspects seem overwhelming, consider consulting with an accountant or financial advisor. Their expertise can enhance the accuracy and reliability of your financial projections.

6. Revise and Refine

Writing a business plan is an iterative process. After completing a draft, revisit each section, seek feedback, and make necessary revisions. The more refined your plan, the more effective it will be.

read more about how to write poultry farming business plan

Crafting a poultry farming business plan is a crucial step towards building a sustainable and profitable venture. By investing time and effort into this strategic document, you lay the foundation for long-term success in the dynamic and rewarding world of poultry farming.

Poultry Farming Business Plan FAQs

How do I write a business plan for poultry?

Research site selection and housing needs, outline bird stocking plans with projected breed numbers, create budgets for equipment/feed/labor costs, identify target buyers like processors or live markets, and estimate profit potential based on current egg/meat prices in your area.

How much does it cost to start a poultry farm?

Starting a small backyard poultry farm costs $2,000-$4,000 for a coop, chick brooding setup, protection netting, initial hen stock, and supplies like feeders while commercial operations require $200,000+ for barns, automation, grading and processing equipment.

Which poultry farming is most profitable?

Broiler meat production offers the highest profit potential in poultry farming currently, benefitting from soaring consumer demand and wholesale prices while layers see narrower margins limited by seasonal gluts.

What is SWOT analysis in poultry farming?

A SWOT analysis for a poultry farming business evaluates strengths like industry connections, weaknesses like financial limits, opportunities like specialty organic eggs, and threats like bird flu outbreaks or feed price volatility.

What are the weakness of poultry?

Common weaknesses of poultry businesses include tight profit margins vulnerable to commodity feed/fuel prices, disease risk requiring careful biosecurity protocols, high fixed costs for real estate/equipment, and lack of control over wholesale market rates.

How do I write a business plan on poultry farming?

Outline your poultry operation’s proposed scale, breed stock slate, facilities specifications, integrated production processes from chick to harvest, 5-year financial projections on operating expenses and sales forecasts, and contingency response plans addressing disease/disaster scenarios or market fluctuations.

Written by Ivan Smith

Hello, I'm Ivan Smith, a graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing. Currently, I'm actively engaged in practicing business plan writing.

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[Pdf Sample] Business Plan For Poultry And Fish Farming Docx

In today’s world, where sustainable food production is gaining immense importance, poultry and fish farming have emerged as lucrative business opportunities. This article aims to provide a comprehensive guide to aspiring entrepreneurs looking to start their poultry and fish farming ventures. We will cover various aspects of a well-rounded business plan, including market analysis, operational strategies, financial considerations, and marketing techniques.

[Pdf Sample] Poultry And Fish Farming Business Plan Proposal

Executive summary.

The executive summary provides an overview of your business plan , highlighting the key points and objectives. It should include a concise description of your business, its goals, target market, and financial projections. This section serves as an introduction to your plan and should captivate the reader’s attention, encouraging them to explore further.

Market Analysis

In this section, you will conduct thorough market research to understand the demand and competition in the poultry and fish farming industry. Identify your target market, analyze consumer preferences, and assess the market trends. Understanding the market dynamics will help you position your business effectively and develop strategies to gain a competitive edge.

Business Description

Describe your poultry and fish farming business in detail. Outline your company’s mission, vision, and values. Discuss the legal structure of your business, whether it’s a sole proprietorship, partnership, or limited liability company. Provide information about the location of your farm, available resources, and any unique selling propositions that differentiate your business from others in the market.

Product Line

In this section, outline the various products you will offer through your poultry and fish farming business . Specify the different breeds of poultry and fish you will raise and highlight their unique features and benefits. Discuss any value-added products you plan to offer, such as organic or free-range options, which can appeal to a niche market.

Marketing and Sales Strategy

Your marketing and sales strategy is vital to attract customers and generate revenue. Identify your target audience and outline the marketing channels you will utilize to reach them. This may include online advertising, social media marketing, attending trade shows, or collaborating with local restaurants and retailers. Develop a pricing strategy that is competitive yet profitable, and outline your sales projections for the coming years.

Operations and Management

Financial projections.

In this section, present your financial projections, including revenue forecasts, expenses, and profitability analysis. Include a comprehensive budget that covers all aspects of your business, such as infrastructure development, livestock procurement, marketing expenses, and overhead costs. Use industry benchmarks and historical data to make realistic assumptions and create a solid financial foundation for your business.

Risks and Mitigation

Here Is The Download Link To Business Plan For Poultry And Fish Farming Proposal By Agrolearner

Business Model for Agrolearners.com’s Poultry and Fish Farming Business

Customer segments:.

Small-scale farmers: Individuals interested in starting or expanding their poultry and fish farming operations.

Agricultural organizations: Non-profit organizations or government agencies focused on promoting sustainable agriculture and supporting farmers.

Value Proposition:

Comprehensive Online Learning Platform: Agrolearners.com offers a user-friendly online platform that provides educational resources, training modules, and practical guides on poultry and fish farming .

Expert Guidance and Support: Agrolearners.com connects users with industry experts who provide personalized advice and guidance to help them succeed in their farming endeavors.

Online Platform: Agrolearners.com operates a website and mobile application where users can access educational content, participate in forums, and connect with experts.

Customer Relationships:

Expert Assistance: Agrolearners.com offers personalized support through email, chat, or video calls, connecting users with industry experts who provide guidance and answer queries.

Key Activities:

Content Creation: Agrolearners.com develops and curates high-quality educational content, including articles, videos, webinars, and interactive modules.

Expert Engagement: Agrolearners.com collaborates with experienced professionals in the poultry and fish farming industry to provide expert guidance and support to users.

Key Resources:

Online Platform: Agrolearners.com’s website and mobile application serve as the primary resource for accessing educational content and connecting with experts.

Content Library: Agrolearners.com maintains a comprehensive library of educational resources, including articles, videos, and guides on poultry and fish farming .

Key Partnerships:

Industry Experts: Agrolearners.com forms partnerships with experienced professionals in the poultry and fish farming sector who provide guidance, expertise, and support to users.

Agricultural Organizations: Agrolearners.com collaborates with agricultural organizations to reach a wider audience, conduct webinars or workshops, and promote sustainable farming practices .

Revenue Streams:

Online Courses: Agrolearners.com develops and offers specialized online courses on poultry and fish farming , which users can enroll in for a fee.

Sponsored Content: Agrolearners.com partners with relevant brands or agricultural suppliers to create sponsored content or advertise relevant products or services.

Cost Structure:

Platform Maintenance: Expenses related to maintaining and updating the Agrolearners.com online platform, ensuring its functionality and user experience.

Expert Engagement: Costs associated with engaging industry experts, including consultation fees, professional fees, and compensation for their time and expertise.

By implementing this business model, Agrolearners.com can provide valuable resources and support to aspiring and existing poultry and fish farmers , contributing to the growth and sustainability of the agricultural industry.

What permits and licenses do I need to start a poultry and fish farming business?

The permits and licenses required may vary depending on your location. It’s important to research and comply with local regulations related to animal husbandry, food safety, and environmental protection.

How can I estimate the demand for poultry and fish products in my target market?

Are there any specific biosecurity measures i should implement in my farm.

Yes, biosecurity measures are crucial to prevent disease outbreaks. This may include controlling visitor access, proper waste disposal, and regular veterinary inspections.

What financing options are available for poultry and fish farming businesses?

Financing options may include bank loans, agricultural grants, venture capital investments, or partnerships with investors. Research and evaluate the options that best suit your business needs.

How can I differentiate my poultry and fish farming business from competitors?

What are the key factors to consider when selecting a location for a poultry and fish farm.

When selecting a location for a poultry and fish farm , consider factors such as proximity to target markets, availability of resources like water and feed, transportation infrastructure, and local regulations. A well-chosen location will facilitate efficient operations and minimize logistical challenges.

How can I ensure the health and well-being of my poultry and fish stock?

To ensure the health and well-being of your poultry and fish stock, implement robust health and disease control protocols. This includes routine vaccinations, regular check-ups by a veterinarian, maintaining a clean environment, and providing balanced diets that meet their nutritional requirements.

What are the main sources of revenue for a poultry and fish farming business?

What are the marketing strategies that can help promote a poultry and fish farm.

To promote a poultry and fish farm , employ strategies such as branding and packaging, online and offline marketing channels, and building customer relationships. Develop a strong brand identity, utilize social media and online platforms, participate in local markets or trade shows, and focus on providing exceptional customer service.

How long does it take to achieve profitability in the poultry and fish farming industry?

The time required to achieve profitability in the poultry and fish farming industry can vary based on various factors, including the scale of operations, market demand, operational efficiency, and cost management. Generally, it takes around 1 to 3 years for a well-managed poultry and fish farm to become profitable .

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How to Craft a Business Plan for Poultry Farming Success in 2024

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Welcome to our blog post on how to write a business plan for a poultry farm in 9 steps. If you're thinking about starting a poultry farm business, you've come to the right place. Poultry farming is a booming industry that continues to grow year after year. In fact, according to the latest statistics, the global poultry market is projected to reach $470.97 billion by 2027 with a CAGR of 4.8% . With such promising growth prospects, it's essential to develop a solid business plan to ensure your success in this highly competitive market.

Research Industry And Market Trends

Before starting a poultry farm, it is crucial to conduct thorough research on the industry and market trends. This step will provide valuable insights into current market demand, potential growth opportunities, and any challenges or risks that may arise. Here are some important points to consider during your research:

• Market Demand: Explore the current demand for poultry products, including meat and eggs, in your target market. Consider factors such as population growth, dietary preferences, and consumer buying habits.
• Trends and Innovations: Stay updated on the latest trends and innovations in the poultry industry. This could include advancements in breeding techniques, feed formulations, or sustainable farming practices. Identify opportunities to differentiate your business and meet consumer preferences.
• Competitive Landscape: Analyze the existing poultry farms and suppliers in your area. Look for gaps in the market that your business could fill or areas where you can offer a unique value proposition. Consider the pricing, product quality, and customer service of your competitors.
• Regulatory Environment: Understand the regulations and requirements governing the poultry farming industry. Familiarize yourself with laws related to animal welfare, food safety, and environmental sustainability. Compliance with these regulations is essential for the success and long-term sustainability of your business.
• Seasonal Demand: Consider any seasonal fluctuations in demand for poultry products. You may need to adjust your production and marketing strategies accordingly to meet the changing demands throughout the year.

Tips for Researching Industry and Market Trends:

• Subscribe to industry publications, attend conferences, and join online forums to stay updated on the latest trends and developments.
• Network with other poultry farmers and industry experts to gain insights and learn from their experiences.
• Utilize market research reports and studies to gather data and gain a deeper understanding of the industry.
• Engage with potential customers through surveys or focus groups to understand their preferences, needs, and expectations.
• Keep an eye on changing consumer trends, such as an increasing demand for organic or free-range poultry products, and assess the feasibility of incorporating such practices into your business.

Define Target Customer Segment

Defining your target customer segment is crucial in developing a successful business plan for your poultry farm. The more specific and focused you are in identifying your ideal customers, the better you can tailor your products and marketing strategies to meet their needs and preferences.

Here are some important steps to help you define your target customer segment:

• Conduct market research: Gather data and insights about the poultry industry, including customer preferences, habits, and purchasing behaviors. This will help you understand who your potential customers are.
• Segment your market: Divide your potential customers into specific groups based on similar characteristics, such as demographics, geographic location, or buying patterns.
• Create buyer personas: Build detailed profiles of your target customers, including their age, income level, education, lifestyle, and motivations. This will help you better understand their needs and design products that resonate with them.
• Identify pain points and desires: Determine the challenges or problems your target customers face in relation to poultry products. Also, identify what desires or aspirations they have when it comes to poultry farming.
• Assess market size and potential: Evaluate the size of your target customer segment and determine if there is enough demand for your premium quality poultry and related products.

Tips for Defining Your Target Customer Segment

• Consider conducting surveys or focus group interviews to gather qualitative data directly from potential customers.
• Look for niche markets or specific customer groups that may have unique needs and preferences, which you can cater to.
• Stay updated with the latest market trends and changes in consumer behavior to adapt your target customer segment if necessary.
• Regularly revisit and refine your target customer segment as your business evolves and new opportunities arise.

By defining your target customer segment accurately, you can develop a poultry farm business that meets the specific needs of your customers, allowing you to stand out in the market and maximize your profitability.

Conduct Competitor Analysis

Conducting a thorough competitor analysis is crucial for the success of your poultry farm business. It allows you to understand your competitors' strengths and weaknesses, identify any gaps or opportunities in the market, and develop strategies to differentiate your business from others. Here are some important steps to follow when conducting a competitor analysis:

• Identify your direct and indirect competitors in the poultry industry. Direct competitors are those who offer similar products and target the same customer segment, while indirect competitors may offer different products but still compete for your customer's attention and budget.
• Examine your competitors' product offerings, pricing strategies, and quality of their poultry and related products. Consider visiting their farms or stores, if possible, to observe their operations firsthand.
• Analyze their marketing and promotional activities. Look out for any unique selling propositions (USPs) they use to differentiate themselves in the market and attract customers.
• Evaluate their distribution channels and how they reach their target customers. This will help you identify potential gaps in the market or opportunities to improve your own distribution strategy.
• Study your competitors' customer feedback and online reviews. This will provide insights into their customers' experience and satisfaction levels, helping you identify areas where you can excel and offer better value.
• Assess your competitors' strengths and weaknesses. Identify areas where they are underperforming or lacking, which could present an opportunity for you to position your business as the preferred choice for customers.

Tips for conducting a competitor analysis:

• Use online tools and resources to gather information about your competitors, such as their websites, social media accounts, and online directories.
• Keep track of any new entrants or emerging trends in the poultry industry that could impact your competition.
• Regularly review and update your competitor analysis to stay informed about any changes in the market landscape.
• Consider attending industry events and trade shows to network with competitors and gain further insights into the industry.

Identify Suitable Location For The Farm

Choosing the right location for your poultry farm is crucial to its success. Here are some important factors to consider:

• Access to Resources: Look for a location that has easy access to resources like water, electricity, and feed suppliers. Availability of these resources will ensure smooth operations and minimize costs.
• Proximity to Market: It is beneficial to be located close to your target customer segment or potential buyers. This will help reduce transportation costs and ensure freshness of your products.
• Climate and Weather: Consider the climate and weather conditions of the potential location. Poultry farming requires specific temperature, humidity, and ventilation conditions for optimal growth and health of the animals.
• Zoning Restrictions: Check local zoning regulations to ensure that the location is suitable for poultry farming. Some areas may have restrictions or require specific permits for agricultural operations.
• Transportation Network: Assess the transportation network around the location. Easy access to major roads or highways will facilitate efficient transportation of poultry and related products.
• Environmental Factors: Evaluate the surrounding environment to ensure it is suitable for a poultry farm. Avoid areas with high pollution levels or close proximity to factories or industries that may emit harmful substances.
• Consider conducting a site visit to assess the potential location firsthand.
• Consult with local farmers or agricultural experts to get insights on the suitability of the location.
• Research about any potential future developments or projects that might affect the area's suitability.

Determine Legal and Regulatory Requirements

In order to start a poultry farm, it is crucial to understand and comply with the legal and regulatory requirements of your specific region. These requirements may vary depending on the country, state, or even local ordinances. Failing to adhere to these regulations can result in penalties, fines, or even the closure of your business.

Here are a few key steps to consider when determining the legal and regulatory requirements for your poultry farm:

• Research the specific laws and regulations governing poultry farming in your area. This can include laws related to animal welfare, biosecurity measures, zoning restrictions, and permits required for operation.
• Identify the government agencies or departments responsible for overseeing and enforcing these regulations. This may include the Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency, or local health departments.
• Ensure that you have the necessary licenses and permits to operate a poultry farm. This may include obtaining a business license, livestock permits, and any required certifications.
• Familiarize yourself with any restrictions or guidelines related to the construction and maintenance of poultry housing, ventilation systems, waste management, and other infrastructure.
• Develop a comprehensive understanding of the food safety regulations and quality control standards that apply to poultry farms. This includes proper handling, storage, and labeling of poultry products.
• Consult with local agricultural extension offices, industry associations, or legal professionals specializing in agriculture to gain a better understanding of the specific requirements in your area.
• Keep track of any updates or changes in the regulations that may affect your poultry farm. This could include changes in laws related to animal welfare, food safety, or environmental protection.
• Maintain accurate records of your compliance with legal and regulatory requirements. This will not only help you avoid potential penalties but also demonstrate your commitment to operating a responsible and sustainable poultry farm.

By taking the time to understand and adhere to the legal and regulatory requirements for your poultry farm, you can ensure that your business operates in a manner that is both ethical and compliant. This will not only protect your farm and animals but also contribute to the long-term success of your venture.

Assess Financial Resources And Sources Of Funding

As you embark on starting a poultry farm, it is crucial to assess your financial resources and identify potential sources of funding. This step will help you determine the feasibility of your business plan and establish a solid financial foundation to support your venture.

1. Evaluate Your Personal Finances: Begin by analyzing your personal financial situation. Assess your savings, assets, and available funds that can be allocated towards your poultry farm. It is important to have a clear understanding of your own financial resources before seeking external funding options.

2. Research Grants and Loans: Explore grants and loans available specifically for agricultural businesses or poultry farms. Research government programs, local initiatives, and private organizations that support the agricultural industry. These funding options can provide a significant boost to your financial resources and help you establish a strong foundation for your poultry farm.

• Connect with agricultural organizations and industry networks to stay updated on potential funding opportunities.
• Consider reaching out to local banks and financial institutions that may offer specific loan programs for agricultural ventures.
• Prepare a well-structured business plan to increase your chances of securing funding.

3. Seek Investment Partners: If your personal financial resources are not sufficient, consider seeking investment partners who share your vision for the poultry farm. Collaborating with individuals or organizations who are willing to invest in your business can provide the necessary capital and expertise to ensure its success.

4. Explore Crowdfunding: Crowdfunding platforms have become increasingly popular for funding various business ventures. Research crowdfunding platforms that focus on agriculture or small-scale farming. Present your business idea and attract potential investors who are interested in supporting sustainable and ethical farming practices.

5. Prepare a Comprehensive Financial Plan: Develop a detailed financial plan for your poultry farm, including projected expenses, revenue, and profit margins. This plan will provide a clear picture of your financial requirements and help you determine the amount of funding needed to launch and sustain your business.

Assessing your financial resources and identifying potential sources of funding is a critical step in establishing a successful poultry farm. By thoroughly evaluating your personal finances, exploring grants and loans, seeking investment partners, and considering crowdfunding, you can secure the necessary capital to turn your poultry farm business plan into a reality.

Analyze Start-Up And Operational Costs

When starting a poultry farm, it is crucial to carefully analyze the start-up and operational costs involved. This step will help you determine the financial requirements of your business and plan accordingly. Here are some important factors to consider:

• Infrastructure: Assess the cost of constructing or renovating poultry houses, sheds, and other necessary facilities. Determine whether you will need to purchase or lease the land for your farm.
• Equipment and Machinery: Research the prices of essential equipment and machinery such as incubators, brooders, feeders, and waterers. Make sure to consider the costs of maintenance and repairs.
• Feed and Nutrition: Calculate the expenses associated with purchasing quality feed for your poultry. Consider different feed options and their costs, including custom feed if you plan to offer specialized products.
• Animal Stock: Determine the cost of acquiring high-quality poultry breeds or hatching eggs. Take into account transportation costs and any necessary quarantine procedures.
• Labor: Estimate the wages and salaries of the staff required to operate your poultry farm. Consider both full-time and part-time employees, as well as any additional training costs.
• Utilities and Running Costs: Account for expenses related to electricity, water supply, heating, ventilation, and waste management. These costs will vary depending on the size and complexity of your farm.
• Insurance and Licensing: Research the costs associated with obtaining insurance coverage for your farm and complying with the necessary permits and licenses.
• Consider contacting suppliers and vendors to get accurate cost estimates for equipment, feed, and other essentials.
• Create a spreadsheet or financial software to track and monitor your expenses effectively.
• Factor in contingencies and unforeseen expenses in your budget to ensure you have sufficient funds to cover unexpected costs.
• Regularly review and update your financial projections to stay informed about your farm's profitability and make necessary adjustments.

By carefully analyzing the start-up and operational costs, you will gain a clear understanding of the financial aspects involved in running a poultry farm. This knowledge will enable you to develop a realistic budget and secure the necessary funds to establish and maintain a successful venture.

Develop A Comprehensive Marketing Strategy

A comprehensive marketing strategy is essential for the success of a poultry farm business. It involves creating a plan that outlines the specific marketing activities and tactics that will be used to promote the products and services offered by the farm.

To develop a strong marketing strategy, it is important to understand the target customer segment and their needs and preferences. This will help in tailoring the marketing messages and campaigns to effectively reach and attract the intended audience.

Research: Start by conducting market research to identify the current trends and demands in the poultry industry. This will provide valuable insights into the market potential and help in identifying opportunities for differentiation and growth.

• Stay updated with the latest market and consumer trends in the poultry industry.
• Identify gaps in the market that can be leveraged for competitive advantage.
• Consider conducting surveys or focus groups to gather information directly from potential customers.

Brand: Create a strong brand identity that reflects the core values and unique selling propositions of the poultry farm. This includes designing a compelling logo, choosing appropriate colors and fonts, and creating a consistent brand image across all marketing materials and platforms.

Online and Offline Marketing Channels: Develop a mix of online and offline marketing channels to reach the target audience effectively. This may include creating a user-friendly website, leveraging social media platforms, participating in relevant industry trade shows and exhibitions, and distributing brochures and flyers in local communities.

Content Marketing: Produce high-quality content that educates, entertains, and engages the target audience. This can be in the form of informative blog posts, videos, social media updates, or newsletters. The content should be tailored to address the pain points and interests of the target customers, positioning the poultry farm as a trusted source of information and solutions.

Promotions and Incentives: Consider offering promotions, discounts, or loyalty programs to attract and retain customers. This can include special offers on bulk purchases, referral programs, or exclusive access to limited edition products.

Networking and Partnerships: Establish connections with other businesses in the poultry industry, such as feed suppliers, veterinary clinics, or local restaurants that may be interested in using or promoting your products. This can help in expanding the reach and visibility of the farm.

By developing a comprehensive marketing strategy, a poultry farm business can effectively promote its products, build brand awareness, attract customers, and ultimately achieve long-term success in a competitive industry.

Establish A Network Of Suppliers And Potential Partners

In order to ensure the success of your poultry farm business, it is crucial to establish a strong network of suppliers and potential partners. Building relationships with reliable suppliers will ensure a steady supply of high-quality feed, equipment, and other essential resources for your farm. Additionally, partnering with companies that share your values and goals can help expand your business and open up new opportunities.

Research and Identify Potential Suppliers: Conduct thorough research to identify reputable suppliers who can provide the necessary resources for your poultry farm. Consider factors such as the quality of their products, pricing, delivery options, and customer service. It is important to establish long-term relationships with suppliers who can meet your farm's needs consistently and reliably.

Develop a Comprehensive Supplier Evaluation Process: Before entering into partnerships with suppliers, it is essential to evaluate them thoroughly. Assess their track record, reputation, financial stability, and ability to meet your specific requirements. This evaluation process will help you choose suppliers who align with your farm's values and can contribute to its success.

Build Strong Relationships: Foster strong relationships with your suppliers by maintaining open and transparent communication channels. Regularly communicate your expectations, requirements, and any changes in your farm's needs. Collaborate with suppliers to identify opportunities for improvement and cost-saving measures. Building long-term relationships based on trust and mutual growth will benefit both parties in the long run.

Explore Potential Partnerships: In addition to suppliers, consider potential partnerships with other businesses in the poultry industry. This could include distributors, retailers, restaurants, or even other poultry farms that specialize in different products. Collaborating with partners can help you expand your market reach, explore new distribution channels, and leverage each other's strengths.

Tips for Establishing a Strong Network of Suppliers and Partners:

• Attend industry trade shows and conferences to connect with potential suppliers and partners.
• Join professional networks, associations, or online communities related to the poultry industry to expand your contacts.
• Seek recommendations and referrals from trusted industry professionals.
• Regularly review and assess the performance of your suppliers and partners to ensure they continue to meet your farm's needs.
• Consider establishing backup suppliers to mitigate the risk of disruptions in the supply chain.

In conclusion, writing a business plan for a poultry farm requires careful research, analysis, and planning. By following the nine steps provided in this checklist, entrepreneurs can ensure they have considered all the necessary aspects of starting and running a successful poultry farm business.

From researching industry and market trends to establishing a network of suppliers and potential partners, each step plays a crucial role in setting up a poultry farm that can produce and sell premium quality poultry and related products.

With a comprehensive business plan in place, entrepreneurs can confidently approach lenders or investors for funding, as well as navigate the legal and regulatory requirements involved in operating a farm.

A strong marketing strategy and focus on building a reliable distribution network also contribute to the success of a poultry farm business, allowing for wider reach and increased profits.

Overall, writing a business plan for a poultry farm is an essential step in ensuring a well-organized, efficient, and profitable operation. By following the steps outlined in this checklist, entrepreneurs can set themselves up for success and achieve their goals in the poultry farming industry.

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Poultry Farming: Business Plan And Guide For Beginners

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Poultry farming is a very old and traditional business in many countries around the world. It is a very easy but highly profitable business, and anyone can start this business.

Actually, poultry farming means ‘raising various types of domestic birds commercially for the purpose of meat , eggs and feather production’.

The most common and widely raised poultry birds are chickens . About 5k million chickens are being raised every year as a source of food (both meat and eggs of chicken).

The chickens which are raised for eggs are called layer chicken , and the chickens which are raised for their meat production are called broiler chickens .

United Kingdom and United States consume more meat and eggs of chicken than other countries of the world. On an average the UK alone consumes more than 29 million chicken eggs everyday.

Commercial poultry farming is very necessary to meet up the demand of animal nutrition (eggs and meat). Commercial poultry farming is also very profitable. And commercial poultry farming business is one of the traditional business ventures.

Here we are trying to describe more about the advantages of poultry farming business and the steps for running this business.

Table of Contents

What Is Poultry Farming?

Poultry farming means ‘ raising various types of domestic birds commercially for the purpose of meat, eggs and feather production ‘

How to Start Poultry Farming Business?

As we have mentioned above, starting poultry farming business is very easy and simple . Even the beginners can start this business. But you should complete a training before starting this business commercially.

You will be successful in this business and be able to make good profits if you follow good rearing methods. Here we are trying to describe more about starting and operating a successful poultry farming business from purchasing birds to caring and marketing.

Step 1: Learn Practically

First of all, try to learn practically about this business. You can have practical experience from any of your nearest poultry farms. Having practical knowledge is very important for running a successful farm. Try to visit as many farms as you can for learning practically and gathering experience.

Step 2: Complete Training

Completing a training will be beneficial for you, especially if you are a beginner. You can complete training from any of your nearest agriculture extension office, agricultural collages or universities.

The egg-laying birds lays more eggs in warmer months than the colder months. So, keeping the temperature of the room moderate will be very helpful for better egg production.

Step 3: Make A Business Plan

A good and effective business plan helps to start and operate a successful poultry farming business. So, try to make a good business plan and try to include everything in the plan from starting to marketing. You can ask for help from an expert for making the business plan, especially if you are a beginner.

Step 4: Select a Good Location

Select your desired area for starting your poultry farming business. For commercial production, try to select the land far from residential areas.

Calm, noise and pollution free place will be very good for better production. Ensure water, electricity and good transportation system. Because all these are very important for good production and maximum profits.

Step 5: Determine The Products

Determining the products is also very important before starting this business. You can start your poultry farm for producing different products such as eggs, meat, feathers etc.

Try to emphasis your local market demand while determining the products. Poultry eggs and meat are common products, and both have good market demand and value.

Step 6: Choose Right Breed for Your Business

There are some popular and mostly raised poultry birds. Among them chickens, turkeys, quails etc. are mostly raised poultry birds.

If you are willing to start with chickens , then you can choose either meat or egg laying breeds. If you want to produce eggs then the good breeds are Rhode Island Red , Leghorn , Sussex , Ancona , Plymouth Rock , Hamburg and some hybrids.

But if you want to produce meat, then you have to select the best broiler breeds. Some popular and common broiler chicken breeds are Cornish , Cornish Cross, Jersey Giant , Freedom Rangers, Orpington , Buckeye , Brown Leghorn, Dorking , Brahma etc.

If you want to raise turkeys, then some popular turkey breeds are Bourbon Reds , Narragansetts , Royal Palm , Broad-Breasted Whites , Standard Bronze and White, White Hollands etc.

Japanese , Tuxedo, Pharaoh, British Range, English White and Manchurian Golden are some very good quail breeds.

If you want to raise ducks, then Indian Runner , Khaki Campbell , Buff , Welsh Harlequin , Ancona and Magpie are some great duck breeds for eggs production. And some popular meat duck breeds are Aylesbury , Pekin , Muscovy etc.

Arabian (Middle Eastern), Black Necked (Southern or Cape), Blue-necked (Somali), Masai (Kenyan Red) and Red necked (North African) are some common ostrich breeds.

If you want to start your poultry production with pigeons, then some popular pigeon breeds are Archangel , Barb , Cameau, Carrier , Cumulet, Dragoon , Fantail , Florentine, Ice , King , Magpie , Maltese, Modena , Oriental Frill and Tumblers .

If you want to start peafowl production business, then the choices are Indian Peacock, Green Peacock, Congo Peacock etc.

You can select any type of poultry bird depending on the availability in your area. Chickens are the most common and popular birds. And meat and eggs of chicken have very good demand and value in the market.

Step 7: Purchase Birds

After selecting the right poultry breed, you have to purchase good quality and healthy birds. Try to purchase birds from any of your nearest hatcheries or breeders. Purchase healthy and active birds for your farm.

Step 8: Ensure Good Housing Facilities

Good and suitable housing play a vital role in raising all types of poultry birds. Some birds grow and live happily in the floor, and some birds grow well in cages.

Depending on the birds, you have to make a suitable house for your birds and ensure availability of all types of necessary facilities for them. Consider the following aspects while building houses for your poultry birds.

• Always keep sufficient space inside your poultry house, depending on the number of birds. Enough space will help your birds to live, grow and produce happily. Never overcrowded the poultry house with too many birds.
• Good ventilation system is a must. Ensure that your poultry house is well ventilated.
• You also have to ensure sufficient flow of fresh air and light inside the house.
• If you go for commercial production, keep proper distance between one house to another house.
• Clean the house and equipment on a regular basis. Sterilize the house before bringing new chicks into your farm.
• Take necessary steps for preventing all types of predators and harmful animals.
• Make a fence around your farm area.
• Make good temperature management system so that your birds do not suffer by excessive heat or cold.
• Make suitable drainage system inside the house for cleaning it properly.
• Making poultry houses in calm and quite place is always a good idea. Because quiet place play a very important role in production.

Step 9: Ensure Nutritious Feeding & Enough Watering

Feeding the birds with very good quality and nutritious food is the most important part of successful poultry farming business. Because, feeding the birds high quality, fresh and nutritious food always ensure good health, proper growth and high production. So, always feed your poultry birds healthy and nutritious feeds. Add all types of necessary vitamins and minerals to their feed.

Commercial poultry feed s for various types of birds are available in the market. You can easily feed this type of ready-made feed to your birds. Along with feeding your birds high quality and nutritious feeds, always serve them sufficient amount of fresh and clean water according to their demand.

Step 10: Breeding is Also Important

Most of the poultry birds are naturally very good breeders. They will breed easily and produce fertile eggs if you keep good ratio of males and females.

Most of the commercial producers used to purchase chicks from the chick suppliers. So, you can avoid breeding if you purchase chicks from the breeders or suppliers. But, you can also start a poultry breeding business if you want to start chick supply business.

Step 11: Ensure Proper Care and Management

Always take good care of your birds. Learn more about various types of poultry diseases , symptoms and treatment. Vaccinate the birds timely. Provide them nutritious feed and clean water. Clean their house on a regular basis. Try to make a stock of some required drugs. And always try to keep good contact with a vet in your area.

Step 12: Marketing

Marketing process of various types of poultry products is very easy. Poultry products have a huge demand and value globally. So you don’t have to worry about marketing your products. You can easily sell your farm products in your local market or big supermarkets.

Finally, we can say poultry farming is absolutely easy and a very popular and profitable business idea. If you are thinking about setting up a poultry farm, then read and learn as much as possible about poultry farming before starting. You can visit some of your nearest farms. And consult with some existing farmers who are already raising various types of poultry birds.

These are the steps and ways for starting and operating a successful poultry farming business. Hope this guide has helped you! Good luck and may God bless you!

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2 thoughts on “poultry farming: business plan and guide for beginners”.

Can a layer produce a small chick with out a cock ?

No, it’s not possible. Your hens will produce unfertilized eggs without roosters. Good luck!

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Mastering Investment Planning for Contract Broiler Farming

Effective investment planning is crucial for the success of contract broiler farming. It involves assessing financial needs, allocating resources wisely, and making informed decisions that align with your business goals. Proper planning helps manage costs, optimize operations, and ensure sustainable growth.

Financial Assessment

Begin with a thorough financial assessment to understand your current financial situation and future needs. Evaluate your available capital, identify potential funding sources, and estimate the costs associated with starting or expanding your broiler farm. This assessment provides a foundation for making informed investment decisions.

Resource Allocation

Allocate resources efficiently by identifying critical areas that require investment. This includes investments in infrastructure, equipment, feed, and labor. Prioritize areas that will have the most significant impact on your farm’s performance and long-term success .

Risk Management

Investing in risk management strategies is essential for minimizing potential losses. Assess the risks associated with feed supply disruptions, disease outbreaks, and market fluctuations. Develop contingency plans and insurance options to protect your investment and ensure business continuity.

Setting Clear Objectives

Define clear objectives for your investment planning. Whether you’re looking to expand your farm, upgrade equipment, or improve feed quality, having well-defined goals helps guide your investment decisions and measure success.

Conducting Market Research

Conduct thorough market research to understand industry trends, demand forecasts, and competitive dynamics. Market research provides valuable insights into pricing, customer preferences, and potential opportunities for growth. Use this information to make informed investment decisions and stay ahead of the competition.

Budgeting and Financial Forecasting

Create a detailed budget and financial forecast to guide your investment planning. Include all anticipated expenses, such as capital investments, operational costs, and unexpected expenses. Regularly review and update your budget to reflect changes in your business environment and financial performance.

Evaluating Return on Investment (ROI)

Evaluate the potential return on investment for each planned expenditure. Assess how each investment will impact your farm’s profitability and operational efficiency. Calculate ROI by comparing the expected benefits with the costs associated with the investment. Focus on investments that offer the highest potential returns.

Developing a Strategic Plan

Create a strategic plan that outlines how you will implement your investment decisions. Include timelines, milestones, and responsible parties for each aspect of the plan. A well-structured plan ensures that investments are executed efficiently and aligns with your overall business strategy.

Monitoring and Adjusting

Regularly monitor the progress of your investment plan and make adjustments as needed. Track key performance indicators (KPIs) to assess the effectiveness of your investments. Be prepared to adjust your plan based on changing conditions, new opportunities, or unexpected challenges.

Engaging with Industry Experts

Consult with industry experts and financial advisors to gain additional insights and guidance. Their expertise can help you navigate complex investment decisions and provide valuable recommendations for optimizing your investment strategy.

Investment planning is a critical component of successful contract broiler farming . By conducting thorough financial assessments, allocating resources effectively, and implementing strategic plans, you can make informed investment decisions that drive growth and profitability. Use market research, budgeting, and ROI evaluation to guide your planning process and achieve long-term success in your poultry operations.

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Nigerian Businessman Accuses Abuja Authorities Of Destroying His N150Million Poultry Farm, Killing Over 5,000 Birds Without Prior Notice

He added that he was in possession of all papers, including the certificate of occupancy (C of O) for the property. He, therefore, asked for the rationale behind the destruction.

A Nigerian businessman, Henrich Bankole Akomolafe has accused the Federal Capital Development Authority of demolishing his poultry farm.

Akomolafe made the accusation in a series of posts on his X (formerly Twitter) handle.

According to the former opposition Peoples Democratic Party House of Representatives candidate in Ekiti, the poultry farm located around Lokogoma area in the nation’s capital was demolished without any prior notice from the authority.

Sharing videos, he posted, “I am heartbroken & angry. Yesterday, my N150 million investment in a poultry farm located in Lokogoma, Abuja, was DESTROYED by the guys from the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA).

“NO WARNING, no prior notice, just pure destruction and over 5,000 birds are dead.

“How can this happen in a country where I followed every legal process? Let it be clear that all papers, including the (C of O), were obtained and yet, some individuals in this government felt it was okay to destroy what I’ve worked for—an investment of a lifetime.

“This isn’t just my loss - over 50 workers are now thrown out of jobs and business! In these hard times, Families will now suffer because of the EVIL of some individuals operating under the guise of FCDA.

“Tell me why I can't farm on my private property? Why? Why? I ask—where does the government expect me to start from? Why should I ever think of investing in Nigeria again when this can happen overnight? This is how people fall into depression. But for God, I don’t know how I and my family would even be standing right now.

“I hope FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike is seeing the damage being done under his administration. I hope Madam First Lady who asked us to start farming can see the rubbish going on. I hope no one will accuse me of treason when I carry placards because this is TREASON against me.”

When contacted on the phone by SaharaReporters for comments, Director of Press, Office of the FCT Minister, Anthony Ogunleye, declined, maintaining that he adheres to a strict policy of only engaging in face-to-face interviews.

Over the years, the nation's capital, Abuja, has witnessed widespread demolition of properties valued at billions of naira, affecting both high-end and low-income neighborhoods.

Regrettably, these demolitions have often been shrouded in controversy, with persistent allegations of official malfeasance, coercion, and corruption involving both enforcement agencies responsible for physical development control and residents.

The demolition exercises have left countless residents reeling from the loss of their homes and livelihoods, sparking claims of extortion and violence. The situation has raised fundamental questions about the accountability and transparency of government agencies tasked with regulating urban development.

In a recent development, residents of the Committee on Resettlement and Development Layout (CRD), Lugbe, Airport Road in Abuja, have made a passionate appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyeson Wike.

They are seeking urgent intervention and redress regarding the alleged demolition of their homes and forceful takeover of their land.

The affected residents contend that these actions have resulted in untold hardship, displacement, and financial ruin.

They are demanding justice, transparency, and compensation for their losses. 

View the discussion thread.

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Hazelnut trees and tall grasses grow in the chicken paddocks at the Organic Compound, a farm in Faribault, Minnesota. Wil Crombie / Organic Compound

How Agroforestry Could Help Revitalize America’s Corn Belt

By practicing agroforestry — growing trees alongside crops and livestock, for example — farmers can improve soils, produce nutrient-rich foods, and build resilience to climate change. Now, a movement is emerging to bring this approach to the depleted lands of the Corn Belt.

By Tom Philpott • September 10, 2024

Drive through rural Minnesota in high summer and you’ll take in a view that dominates nearly the entire U.S. Midwest: an emerald sea of ripening corn and soybeans. But on a small operation called Salvatierra, 40 minutes south of Minneapolis, Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin is trying something different. When he bought the land in 2020, this 18-acre patch had been devoted for decades to the region’s most prevalent crops. The soil was so depleted, Haslett-Marroquin says, he thought of it as a “corn and soybean desert.” Soon after, he applied 13 tons of compost, sowed a mix of prairie grasses and rye, and planted 8,200 hazelnut saplings.

While he won’t reap a nut harvest until 2025, the farmer and Guatemalan immigrant doesn’t have to wait to make money from the land. He also runs flocks of chickens in narrow grassy paddocks between the rows of the fledging trees, where they hunt for insects and also munch on feed made from organic corn and soybeans, which they transform into manure that fertilizes the trees and forage.

Salvatierra is the latest addition to Tree-Range Farms, a cooperative network of 19 poultry farms cofounded in 2022 by Haslett-Marroquin. Chickens evolved from birds known as junglefowl in the forests of South Asia, he notes, and the co-op’s goal is to conjure that jungle-like habitat. Chickens crave shade and fear open spaces; trees shelter them from weather and hide them from predators. In 2021, Haslett-Marroquin’s nonprofit, Regenerative Agriculture Alliance, purchased a poultry slaughterhouse just south of the Minnesota border in Stacyville, Iowa, where farms in the Tree-Range network process their birds. You can find the meat in natural-food stores from the Twin Cities area to northern Iowa.

The USDA has launched a $60-million effort to expand agroforestry production and markets in the central and eastern U.S.

By combining food-bearing trees and shrubs with poultry production, Haslett-Marroquin and his peers are practicing what is known as agroforestry — an ancient practice that intertwines annual and perennial agriculture. Other forms include alley cropping, in which annual crops including grains, legumes, and vegetables grow between rows of food-bearing trees, and silvopasture, which features cattle munching grass between the rows.

Agroforestry was largely abandoned in the United States after the nation’s westward expansion in the 19 th century. In the 2022 Agricultural Census, just 1.7 percent of U.S. farmers reported integrating trees into crop and livestock operations. But it’s widely practiced across the globe, particularly in Southeast Asia and Central and South America. According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, 43 percent of all agricultural land globally includes agroforestry features.

Bringing trees to the region now known as the Corn Belt, known for its industrial-scale agriculture and largely devoid of perennial crops, might seem like the height of folly. On closer inspection, however, agroforestry systems like Haslett-Marroquin’s might be a crucial strategy for both preserving and revitalizing one of the globe’s most important farming regions. And while the corn-soybean duopoly that holds sway in the U.S. heartland produces mainly feed for livestock and ethanol, agroforestry can deliver a broader variety of nutrient-dense foods, like nuts and fruit, even as it diversifies farmer income away from the volatile global livestock-feed market. In recognition of this potential, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), in late 2022, launched a $60 million grant program to help farmers adopt such practices.

Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin at his first farm, Finca Marisol, in Northfield, Minnesota. Leia Marasovich / Farmer’s Footprint

For decades, Midwestern farmers have devoted tens of millions of acres to just two crops, leaving the ground largely unprotected from wind and rain between harvest and planting. As a result, the loamy trove of topsoil that settlers found there has been pillaged. Using satellite imagery, a team of University of Massachusetts researchers has calculated that a third of the land in the present-day Corn Belt has completely lost its layer of carbon-rich soil. And what’s left is washing away at least 25 times faster than it naturally replenishes. As prime topsoil vanishes, farmers become more dependent on fertilizers derived from fossil fuel.

Not surprisingly, given those applications, the Corn Belt is also in the midst of a burgeoning water-pollution crisis, as agrichemicals and manure from crowded livestock confinements leach away from farm fields and into streams and aquifers. In other words, our breadbasket is a basket case. As University of Washington geomorphologist David Montgomery noted in his magisterial 2007 book Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations , “With just a couple feet of soil standing between prosperity and desolation, civilizations that plow through their soil vanish.”

Trees actually have a much longer and more robust history in the Midwestern landscape than do annual crops.

Breaking up the corn and soybean rotation with trees — and freeing some farm animals from vast indoor facilities to roam between rows, where their manure can be taken up by crops — could go a long way to addressing these crises, experts say. Trees actually have a much longer and more robust history in the Midwestern landscape than do annual crops. Think of the Midwestern countryside before U.S. settlers arrived, and you might picture lush grasses and flowers swaying in the wind. That vision is largely accurate, but it’s incomplete. Amid the tall-grass prairies and wetlands, oak trees once dotted landscapes from the shores of Lake Michigan through swathes of present-day Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri, clear down to the Mexican border. These trees didn’t clump together in dense forests with closed canopies but rather in what ecologists call savannas — patches of grassland interspersed with oaks. Within these oak savannas, which were interlaced with prairies, tree crowns covered between 10 percent and 30 percent of the ground. They were essentially a transition between the tight deciduous forests of the East and the fully open grasslands further west.

And in the region where Haslett-Marroquin farms — part of the so-called Driftless Area, which was never glaciated — trees proliferated even more intensely. In pre-settlement times, according to a 2014 analysis coauthored by Iowa State University ecologist Lisa Schulte Moore, closed-canopy forests of oaks, sugar maples, and other species covered 15.3 percent of the area, and woodlands (low-density forests) took up another 8.6 percent. Prairies — the ecosystem we readily imagine — composed just 6.9 percent. Oak savannas made up the rest.

Corn grows between rows of walnut trees at the Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station. Shibu Jose / University of Missouri

In the Driftless and in the rest of the Midwest, Native Americans played an active role in managing savannas, prairies, and forests, where they harvested nutrient-dense acorns for food and other uses. Everything began to change in the mid-19 th century, when settlers evicted or killed most of the original inhabitants, drained wetlands, razed trees for lumber, and ripped into the land with plows. In place of staggering biodiversity, an agricultural empire of row crops arose, tended with the tools of modern engineering and industry: genetically modified seeds, insect- and weed-killing chemicals, synthetic and mined fertilizers, and massive tractors and combines. Oak savannas, meanwhile, have been vanishing from the landscape. Today, they occupy a mere 0.02 percent of their historic Midwestern range.

For most of the past century, any push to return trees to the Corn Belt centered on ecosystem services, not food production. Planting trees along streams and rivers — creating what’s known as riparian buffers — helps filter agrichemical runoff and improve water quality. Then there are “wind breaks,” stands of trees strategically placed to shelter crops from wind.

But these practices remain rare, in part because they are marginalized by federal farm policies that reward maximizing the production of corn and soybeans, with subsidized crop insurance and price supports, and disincentivize planting alternative crops.

Trees could play a much bigger role and, once established, could more than pay their way by delivering cash crops. A 2018 paper by University of Illinois researchers found that black walnut trees placed in rows between fields of corn and soybeans (alley cropping) would deliver more profits to landowners than field-crop-only farming on nearly a quarter of the Corn Belt’s land.

An acre of land under agroforestry can sequester five tons of carbon annually, versus one ton for an acre of corn or soybeans.

Haslett-Marroquin and his fellow poultry farmers aren’t the only ones hoping to reimagine agriculture in the Corn Belt by reinstating the role of trees. The Savanna Institute, founded in 2013 by a group of farmers and academic researchers at a gathering in Illinois, promotes agroforestry in the region. Its funders include the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other government agencies, environmental foundations, and business interests including Patagonia and the family behind Clif Bar. In addition to operating demonstration farms in Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan, run in partnership with landowners, the Institute trains and places apprentices on farms that mix trees with crops or livestock. At the 250-acre Hawkeye Buffalo & Cattle Ranch in northeast Iowa, for example, the McFarland family sells grass-fed beef and bison meat from animals raised on restored oak savanna. The other “apprenticeship” farms are smaller operations.

Fred Iutzi, the institute’s director of agroforestry innovation, says an arboreal revival throughout the region would make it more resilient to climate change. Tree canopies buffer soil from the impact of heavy rain, and their roots plunge deep beneath the soil surface and fan out laterally, further holding soil in place. They suck up nutrients all year long, keeping excess fertilizer and manure from leaching away and polluting water. Trees shield crops and soil from the wind. And they both build carbon in the soil as their leaves drop and decompose and store it in their roots, trunks, and branches. Altogether, Iutzi says, an acre of land under agroforestry can sequester five tons of carbon annually, versus about one ton for an acre of corn or soybeans under optimal conditions, which include reducing tillage and planting off-season cover crops.

Cattle graze among trees in Marshall, Texas. USDA-NRCS

While practices like alley cropping and silvopasture are eligible for support from USDA conservation programs, they haven’t been widely adopted. A recent study co-authored by Trent Ford, the Illinois state climatologist, found that between 2017 and 2023, the USDA’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program doled out just $900,000 to support agroforestry practices in the Corn Belt, a sliver of its overall budget.

But more money is on the way. In 2022, as part of its $3.1 billion Partnership for Climate Smart Commodities program, the USDA announced a $60-million five-year effort to expand agroforestry production and markets in the central and eastern regions of the United States, plus Hawaii. Managed by The Nature Conversancy in partnership with the Savanna Institute and other groups, the project’s goal is 30,000 new acres of agroforestry by 2026, says TNC’s Audrey Epp Schmidt, who leads the project. So far, 35 projects have been selected for funding, eight in the Corn Belt.

For now, an agroforestry renaissance remains at a nascent phase, Epp Schmidt says, “but there’s a ton of momentum, there’s a historic amount of resources and opportunities for folks to get into it.” What the movement needs, she says, is a farmer-to-farmer network: “That’s really when this is going to take off — when farmers see the success of their neighbor’s [agroforestry] operations.”

It’s impossible to say what type of event would force farmers to drastically change course in the Corn Belt.

Even so, the Corn Belt will be a tough nut to crack, says Silvia Secchi, a natural resource economist at the University of Iowa. Such expenditures, while important, will struggle to overcome the formidable inertia of corn and soybeans. The proximate reason is the subsidies that keep the region’s farmers afloat even as their soil washes away. But ultimately, she says, farmers in the region “strive to be as simple as possible and as mechanized as possible” — a mindset that favors focusing on two cash crops instead of a more complex, labor-intensive approach, like agroforestry.

Yet Iutzi remains hopeful. In the 1920s, he says, the idea of a federal farm policy centered on soil conservation seemed beyond the realm of possibility. Then came the Dust Bowl, a severe soil-erosion crisis that triggered New Deal legislation that, for a time, tempered overproduction of farm commodities and held soil in place.

It’s impossible to say precisely what type of event would force policymakers and farmers to drastically change course in the Corn Belt. But as the region’s vast corn and soybean operations continue hemorrhaging soil and fouling water and climate change proceeds apace, they may find themselves looking for new directions sooner than later. Iutzi thinks projects like Tree Range Farms could show the way forward. “History is just absolutely peppered with this pattern of big disruptions of one kind or another being the catalyst for big change,” he says. “And it’s ideas that are really well honed, when the time comes, that really surge.”

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