YAP proposal #155: Making chickens easily available (Misheck Madalitso Kathumba, Malawi)

Getting Profited Through Making Easy Availabilities Of Chickens

I am Misheck Madalitso Kathumba, 29, with a Bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Malawi. I work with Malawi Mangoes (Operations), an agricultural business firm. I live in Salima district, Kamuzu Road town.

I raise chickens for commerce and for consumption at home. I have had a passion for chickens since my childhood, as my mother has been a devoted chicken-raiser. I learnt a lot of skills from her and I have developed some more expertise in this field since I started raising my own in 2014.

Raising chickens has become more popular and profitable for small farmers and homesteaders, among others. Chickens are beneficial in diversified farming operations by providing a source of income to families. They also provide manure for farms, which is used instead of fertilizer.

With the recent global burst in population and worldwide demand for food, there is potential in raising chickens to provide important basic food to people. Regardless of economic situations, humans must eat and since domestic birds are consumable, chicken farming businesses are viable. Again, an increased awareness of nutritional and dietary requirements with which chicken meat provides humans has seen rising demand for poultry.

I wish, therefore, to expand my broiler breeding business from small- to medium- and eventually to large-scale through this funding. I want to intensify the business by building a larger and well-spaced chicken house, provide adequate lighting, and an improved distribution strategy, to encompass both live chicken sales and processed, packed, and frozen chicken sales.

The Now

I currently raise broiler chickens at home with the help of my wife in the house. I have been selling them at five or six weeks, and buying some more day-old chicks. Right now, I have 85 birds and I use my storeroom with minimal lighting as the birds’ house.

I also use plates and buckets as feeders, and I use the droppings as manure on my small maize farm.

Veterinary services are expensive so I rarely provide vaccinations to the chickens. My distribution point is at home and sometimes door to door, upon request.

The Future

My motto—‘Profiting by the easy availability of chickens’—was carefully chosen to suit my grand objective of becoming a young and successful professional farmer. I want to grow big by raising more birds and expanding my market reach.

I want to take very good care of the chickens by providing clean and well-spaced housing, substantial feed, labour, and lighting, so that they should weigh more kilograms at the time of sale and eventually make me a lot of profits. I want to shine among fellow young people who think that farming is for the old and poor.

The Opportunity

Kamuzu Road, the area that I reside in, is densely populated. Many residents are middle-income earners. The area is infested with a lot of lodges and hotels. It is also strategically located at a crossroads with a major route connecting the cities of Blantyre, Lilongwe and Mzuzu, with a lot of travellers at any time of the day and night. It is also proximal to Lake Malawi, with a lot of visitors passing by this town. This has raised demand for chicken here.

The Budget

Building chicken house and fixtures USD 1,000
Procure day old chickens (400 per lot for six lots in one year) USD 1,000
Buying feeds (USD 150 per lot for six lots in one year) USD 1,000
Computer (for marketing online and accounting) USD 200
Vaccinations USD 300
Renting shop (Distribution point for frozen chicken) USD 150
Buying two fridges for storage USD 700
Labour (raising/processing/selling) USD 500
Miscellaneous—transport, printing, etc. (USD 150)

Measure of Success and Sustainability

Basing on current demand for chicken, I make about USD 300 per lot of 85 chickens. With improved housing and management that would come with this funding, I hope to make more profit.

The innovative method of processing the birds and selling them in parts will also improve sales. The demand has already been shown to be high, and my marketing strategy of posting adverts on walls and online will also beef up the business demand.

At the end of the acquisition of the USD 5,000 fund into this business, I have projected my profit at USD 8,455 within one year.

By March 2017, I will have acquired farmland and built four more chicken houses, procured more birds, and would have penetrated other markets in other towns and districts. I will employ a minimum of ten young personnel for this project. And I will work with them to help them learn the skills and introduce them to businesses.

 

Blogpost and picture submitted by Misheck Madalitso Kathumba (Malawi): kathumbac[at]gmail.com

The content, structure and grammar are at the discretion of the author only.

 

This post is published as proposal #155 of “YAP” – our “Youth Agripreneur Project”.

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