الأربعاء، 27 نوفمبر 2013

Why Is Quail Farming In Kenya The Talk Of The Town: Distinguishing Truth From Hype

Quail farming in Kenya; everyone seems to talk about this new business in town. I can bet this is not the first time you are reading about it. So have we, Kenyan farmers, found some hidden treasure or is the whole thing just mere hype? Let’s start by talking money; after all, that is what we got to make at the end of the day.

The demand vs supply trick
Quail farming in Kenya is a very new venture for poultry farmers in this country. Before 2013, quite a few people had been keeping quails but it is only in this year that the practice attracted serious farmers who started raring the small birds on a commercial basis. This coincided perfectly with a period during which Kenyans are becoming more aware of the benefits of healthy eating and have madly started looking for healthy supplements. We will get to the health benefits of quail eggs later: I just wanted you to relate the two facts to see a large and rapidly expanding market and the very small supply. This, in my view, is the greatest advantage that those already in quail farming are enjoying.

The cost vs profits of quail farming in Kenya
Let us do a comparative analysis between ordinary chicken raring and quail farming in Kenya:

Housing: In a cage measuring 4x2.5x1.5 feet, you can comfortably keep 50 quails. Such a space would house no more than half the number in case of chicken farming. Ask any commercial poultry farmer in Kenya and they will tell you that space is money.

Veterinary costs and risk of loss due to diseases: I have talked to many poultry farmers in Kenya and the one thing they dread the most is disease. With quail farming, you need no vaccinations, no medicines and you have almost no worry over the risk of losing your birds to diseases. Good deal, huh? And that’s no hype: these birds are wild, remember?

Feeding: I remember reading the story of Lelgut Dairy Farm and the owner was joking that if you start dairy farming in Kenya without a clear source of feeds, your will cook ugali for your cows, LOL! It is no different when it comes to poultry farming. This is where the real cost is. A mature chicken layer, when well fed, consumes 150 grams per day on average. A mature, laying quail, on the other hand, will only require 20 grams of the same feed.

Let’s now do some simple money calculations for quail farming in Kenya. Suppose you have 1000 quails. You will need 20kg (20g x 1000) of layers mash every day. That will cost you at most Ksh.600 (20kg x sh30). Quails are very good layers; each bird can give you up to 330 eggs per year for the first two years. That is to say they lay at a rate of about 90%. Thus, with 1000 quails, let’s expect 900 eggs each day. Now the best deal is that due to the great demand and little supply of quail eggs, fertilized ones are currently being sold at Ksh.80 each. That’s no hype too! Just go to a supermarket stocking quail eggs and come tell us what you find out. So we have Ksh.72,000 in sales per day. Minus our feeding costs of Ksh.600 and any other running costs that definitely won’t go beyond Ksh.1000 per day, you have a clean Ksh70,000 profit per day. Sounds too good to be true, huh? But there, you have the facts.

This is a hidden treasure, quail farming in Kenya is no talk of the town for nothing. Let’s get to it and make the cash. If you have any questions, you can always drop me an email at enthiga@gmail.com. We are currently doing training for farmer who want to go into this business and offering all the technical support you need to get started. 

Take it up and let's meet at the millionaires' club. 

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