Layer Farm Business

Summary: Egg farming is a pricey business venture, but it has its rewards. Eggs are always in demand, the market for organic eggs is growing, and at the end of their run, you can sell your laying hens to organic chicken merchants who process chicken meat. However, in order to start your own egg farm, you need to have substantial background in production farming, not to mention other necessities like machineries, equipments, housing, medications, licenses and permits. You will also need additional farm hands.

Layer farming is more commonly known as chicken egg farming.

The term layer is the shortened form for laying hens or for female chickens that are raised and housed specifically for their egg laying abilities. Although most farm fresh eggs come from large-scale poultry farms, a niche is opening now to those who are setting up small-scale organic chicken farms. If you are thinking of setting up your own business in egg production, there are a few things you have to know.

Who Need Eggs

First of all, eggs are always in demand, both from direct consumers and businesses that use eggs for their products. Direct consumers may include groceries, restaurants and even fast food outlets. Businesses that use eggs for their end-products include bakeries, dough makers, biscuit producers, and processed food developers. The market for eggs is never wanting. However, in order to start your own egg farm, you need to have substantial background in production farming.

Egg Production Size

Before the commercialization of egg products, chickens were allowed to wander freely in the farmers’ backyards, scratching at the ground during the day and housed in the barns at night. Only excess eggs were sold in the market, which left pricing at the sole discretion of the traders.

These days, eggs are being sold by the millions in the US alone and this is on a daily basis. In order for you, as a new business owner, to acquire a respectable profit from the layer farming business industry, you need to produce enough eggs to sell – enough that your potential clients can actually distinguish your product from the competition. Background in production farming is essential.

Layer Farm Startup Cost

Production farming, by the way, is a costly venture, entailing machineries, equipments, housing, medications, licenses and permits, not to mention buying the necessary layers (laying hens) in order to have a successful start.

Must Know

You need to know basic knowledge in bio-security (preventive and curative measures for chicken diseases,) breed choosing, chick placement, cooling systems, cooling temperatures, feeding, harvesting of layers, heating systems, heating temperatures, lighting conditions, molting, vaccines, vaccination schedules, waste disposal and of course, how to operate the machineries and equipments. You also need to know when and where you can market your eggs and how to transport them for delivery. There are also egg selling regulations, and details as to how you can price your products according to egg size, etc.

This is hardly a one man operation. That means that your need to train your people with production farming as well. Farm sanitation and environmental impact of the egg farm are areas you should also look into, because there are federal laws regarding the disposal of animal waste.

For small scale egg producers, organic chicken farming is a better option as opposed to non-organic chicken farming. For one thing, organic farm eggs can be sold at a higher price than non-organic eggs, and you have less competition from large-scale poultry farms. Also, there is an increasing demand for organic produce, as opposed for the decreasing popularity of commercial produce. And lastly, chickens organically raised are later “harvested” and sold as broilers, giving you organic chicken meat as by product of your organic chicken farming.

If your farm intends to package your organic broilers as well, you would need additional equipment such as an eviscerator, defeatherer, stun baths, etc. On a more practical note, you might want to sell your live layers to other poultry merchants and let them do the chicken processing.