Which Chicken Matches Your 2025 Funds? Costs & Feed Wants In contrast (Nigeria) – Justagric

In 2025, each naira we pour right into a bag of feed or a carton of chicks has to stretch additional than final 12 months. Feed has jumped once more, studies early this 12 months pegged typical bag costs climbing from roughly ₦25,000 in December to about ₦27,800, placing actual strain on margins for small and mid-size farms.

On the inventory facet, day-old broiler costs have been risky, with ranges from about ₦57,000 as much as ₦74,000 per 50-chick carton relying on model and week, whereas point-of-lay hens are listed from roughly ₦6,200 to ₦7,500 per hen on retail marketplaces, although precise farm-gate gives range by age and vaccination historical past.

This information is my straight-talk, numbers-first walkthrough of which hen really matches your 2025 price range, not in principle however in naira, luggage, and weeks. I’ll evaluate broilers, layers (reared from DOC vs. shopping for point-of-lay), dual-purpose/Noilers, turkeys, and geese towards immediately’s enter costs and science-based feed benchmarks from main breeders (Cobb and Hy-Line). By the top, you’ll know precisely which hen aligns along with your money circulation, area, and market, plus you’ll get copy-and-paste price range fashions and a easy calculator you possibly can adapt in your farm.

Costs & Inputs For Chicken Rearing In Nigeria

Day-Outdated and Level-of-Lay birds (present listings)

Tip: for DOCs and poults, all the time ask for hatch date and vaccination sheet earlier than you pay. Costs change weekly; the “DOC value replace” posts are a helpful timestamp to archive in your farm records.

Feed costs (25 kg luggage)

In early 2025, many farmers reported bag costs rising from about ₦25,000 (December) to about ₦27,800 by February. Ingredient markets have been risky; maize eased in June 2025 (down 33 p.c in comparison with February), however retail feed tags transfer slower than grain futures. Hold a weekly log out of your native supplier.

How to decide on the suitable hen in your 2025 price range

Selecting birds in 2025 Nigeria is not only “broilers vs layers.” It’s a money-in/money-out timing sport, performed beneath scorching, humid climate and shifting feed tags. Under is precisely how I stroll new and mid-scale farmers by way of the selection, utilizing this week’s value indicators and breeder math so you possibly can commit with confidence.

1) Begin along with your timeline and cash-flow purpose

In the event you want money quick, broilers nonetheless win as a result of the cycle is brief and predictable. Major breeder tables (Cobb 500) present birds round 2.5 kg at day-35 with about 3.64 kg cumulative feed per hen, or about 3.28 kg at day-42 with 5.10 kg cumulative feed. That’s the reason a six-to-eight-week cash-out is reasonable while you handle brooding and warmth properly.

In the event you would quite gather regular money month after month, layers are about endurance and consistency. Hy-Line Brown’s present requirements put days to 50 p.c lay at about 144 from hatch, about 6.07 kg feed to 17 weeks, and a mean 110.7 g/day from 18–90 weeks. That’s the math behind the “13–14 luggage per 100 hens per thirty days” rule of thumb. Shopping for point-of-lay (POL) permits you to skip the 17-week rearing feed and danger and begin promoting eggs nearly instantly; respected distributors in Nigeria record POL pullets round ₦6,200–₦7,500 per hen as of this season.

If you need hardy birds that do a little bit of each, Noilers (Amo Farm’s dual-purpose line) commerce velocity for resilience and a second earnings stream from eggs. They’re designed for Nigerian circumstances and have documented dual-purpose efficiency in native research. Plan slower progress than broilers and value for flavour and live-bird demand.

For seasonal, high-ticket performs like Christmas or Eid live-bird markets, turkeys are an extended, heavier feed experience however will pay when timed into festive spikes. This 12 months’s vendor pages present lively Nigerian and international poult listings. Your resolution right here is much less about velocity and extra about timing demand.

In the event you farm close to water and have area of interest patrons resembling sure eating places or bakers, geese can work. They’re low cost to begin however administration is wetter and messier. FAO’s tropical duck guide remains to be the very best sensible reference for housing and water entry.

2) Map your capital and your publicity to feed value swings

I all the time write two traces on the whiteboard: inventory value immediately and feed to focus on. Layer POLs cost more up entrance however dodge rearing feed. DOC pullets are cheaper per head however swallow about 6 kg every earlier than first egg. Broilers are deceptively “low cost to begin” till you multiply these Cobb cumulative numbers by your feed tag. With Nigerian grain markets wobbling this 12 months (maize down about 33 p.c from February to June, whereas eggs stayed dear), deal with your feed line because the lever that strikes margin up or down.

For sensible pricing, I price range off printed bag tags (Topfeeds and Chikun) after which name my native supplier earlier than I purchase chicks. It is not uncommon to see Topfeeds Layer Mash round ₦19,600–₦20,000 and Chikun Layer-1 round ₦20,700 on retail pages, with broiler finisher a bit larger. Use these to sketch, then affirm regionally.

3) Match birds to the shed you really personal (area, warmth, airflow)

Your home makes or breaks the selection. In heat climates, broilers ought to sit nearer to about 30 kg stay weight per sq. meter. Greater densities in warmth punish feed conversion and put birds on the sting. Layers in flooring or aviary programs are sometimes about 6–9 birds per sq. meter of usable flooring (exclude nests and perches) with strict feeder and drinker area so timid hens can eat. If your own home can not preserve air shifting within the afternoon, broilers battle at excessive densities and layer intakes fall. Air flow, orientation, and stocking density are usually not “good to have” in Nigeria, they’re the distinction between the plan on paper and the fact within the litter.

4) Be sincere about your every day bandwidth and danger tolerance

Rearing pullets from DOC is rewarding, however it’s a 17-week, detail-heavy job earlier than your first crate of eggs. If you’re nonetheless juggling a day job, POL is usually the saner on-ramp. You pay extra per hen, however you skip brooding, tight weight curves, and most early-life losses. Broilers compress the danger into six to eight weeks, nice if you happen to can watch them carefully and preserve feed and water good by way of warmth spikes. Noilers forgive extra administration lapses however don’t race to 2.5 kg like broilers do. These trade-offs are what breeder tables and day-to-day husbandry pressure you to respect.

5) The place and when will you promote?

In case your patrons are egg resellers and close by outlets, layers provide you with weekly cashflow and adaptability to scale. In case your neighbourhood prefers stay, heavy birds for weekends and holidays, broilers or turkeys align higher. Turkey cycles are longer, so price range feed and ebook poults early in case you are concentrating on December. Examine present poult listings to gauge shortage earlier than you commit.

6) Fast resolution paths (the best way I really advise farmers)

In the event you inform me, “I want cash in beneath two months,” I’ll steer you to broilers, then run the bag math at your goal weight utilizing Cobb’s cumulative desk. At day-35 the rule is about 3.6 kg feed per hen and at day-42 about 5.1 kg. That’s roughly 14.5 to twenty.5 luggage per 100 birds on 25 kg luggage. From there we layer in mortality, litter, vaccines, and transport.

In the event you say, “I would like dependable month-to-month earnings with fewer early-stage dangers,” I counsel POL layers. The Hy-Line 2024 information pegs common 110.7 g/day in lay, so about 13–14 luggage per thirty days per 100 hens at peak is a good, dated quantity. Cross-check POL quotes this week (₦6,200–₦7,500) and ensure vaccination sheets.

In the event you insist on lowest value per hen and may babysit weights, rear DOC pullets. Simply go in eyes-open in regards to the about 6 kg per hen to 17 weeks earlier than the primary egg. The upside is flock uniformity and lengthy lay size if you happen to hit body weight curves on time.

In case your yard is scorching and tough and patrons like “nation style,” a Noiler batch is an effective trainer: rugged, dual-purpose, marketable stay, and never as feed-sensitive as broilers. Native analysis and the producer affirm the dual-purpose transient, so set progress expectations accordingly.

Hen Feed Wants and Timelines You Should Plan For

I’ll present you the precise feed your birds will eat, the time it takes to hit goal weights or begin laying, and what that interprets to in 25 kg luggage (the frequent bag dimension in Nigeria). I’ll use breeder manuals and extension guides so you aren’t budgeting off WhatsApp guesses.

Broilers (quickest meat: 5–7 weeks)

If you’re chasing fast cashflow, broilers are nonetheless king, however provided that you feed for the end. Cobb’s present efficiency desk reveals an as-hatched broiler eats about 3.64 kg of feed by day 35 and about 5.10 kg by day 42 (cumulative). For a 100-bird flock, that’s about 14.5 luggage to day 35 or about 20.4 luggage to day 42 (25 kg luggage). Cobb additionally notes these are targets beneath good administration and that FCR tables don’t embody mortality, so price range a little bit additional to cowl waste and losses.

Aviagen’s Ross 308 goals are a contact leaner on paper: about 4.59 kg feed per hen by day 42 as-hatched (about 18.3 luggage for 100 birds). The 2 units of targets provide you with a practical vary, and each assume clear water, good brooding, correct density, and warmth beneath management.

Nigerian boards typically declare “8 kg feed per broiler to 9 weeks.” That’s manner above breeder targets and often displays heat stress, spillage, poor ration density, or small feeders. It is not uncommon recommendation on-line, however it isn’t a benchmark it’s best to plan towards except your setup is already constrained.

What this implies in your 2025 price range (broilers):

• Promote at 5 weeks (stay 1.8–2.1 kg): price range 3.6–4.0 kg feed per hen (Cobb desk).
• Promote at 6 weeks: plan about 4.6–5.1 kg per hen relying on pressure and warmth.
  Multiply by your flock dimension, divide by 25 kg to get luggage, then add 5–8 p.c for wastage and mortality to be protected.

Learn extra: Arbor Acres vs Cobb 500 vs Ross 308: Prices, Performance & Best Uses

Layers (eggs): DOC vs POL

From day-old to point-of-lay (rearing value): Hy-Line’s 2024 normal reveals a pullet eats about 6.07 kg of feed by 17 weeks with about 98 p.c livability when managed properly. For 100 pullets, that’s about 24.3 luggage simply to achieve POL. In the event you purchase POL, your provider already “ate” that feed invoice, and also you pay it within the hen value.

In-lay consumption: From 18–90 weeks, Hy-Line Brown averages about 110.7 g/day. That’s about 3.32 kg/month per hen (about 13.3 luggage/month per 100 hens). Hy-Line additionally publishes feed per dozen figures, about 1.43–1.55 kg/dozen over 20–90 weeks, which is beneficial for shop-level pricing.

Money outlay comparability:

• POL hens (ISA Brown): about ₦6,200–₦7,500 every.
• Day-old layer chicks (Hy-Line/ISA): about ₦90,000–₦92,500 per 50 (about ₦1,800–₦1,850 per chick). In the event you brood your self, add the about 24.3 luggage per 100 for rearing feed plus brooding vitality and vaccines.

Twin-purpose “Noiler”

Noilers had been bred in Nigeria for twin use and resilience. A number of Nigerian research present slower progress and better FCR than broilers, however higher survivability than many exotics. Typical smallholder trials report about 1.6–1.7 kg stay weight at 12 weeks relying on housing and pasture entry. That’s effective for residence meat or live-bird markets, not a direct broiler alternative. It’s best to price range extra feed per kg of acquire than for a broiler, and an extended grow-out (10–12 weeks) to hit acceptable weights.

AMO Farm (Noiler’s developer) additionally expanded hatchery capability in Oyo in 2025, so provide is broad. Name native brokers for up to date chick or POL pricing and supply home windows earlier than you batch your feed.

Turkeys (heavier meat, huge feed invoice)

If in case you have area and a premium purchaser, turkeys will pay, however feed is your largest line merchandise by far.

College and extension guides give clear cumulative totals: to 16 weeks, a market turkey eats about 63 lb (28.6 kg) per hen; to twenty weeks, about 116 lb (52.6 kg). Translate that for budgeting: 16-week hen about 28.6 kg 1.14 luggage; 20-week tom about 52.6 kg 2.10 luggage, per hen. Hen market age is usually 14 weeks (about 9 kg stay), toms 17–20 weeks. Proteins step down (starter 28 p.c, grower 22 p.c, then 19–16 p.c finisher).

By week 7, many smallholders report a 50 lb (22.7 kg) bag lasting 2–3 days for about 50 birds, which traces up with the heavy numbers above. Funds generously; there isn’t a low cost strategy to develop a turkey.

Geese (Pekin/Muscovy)

Business meat strains like Pekin sometimes attain 6–7 lb at 7–9 weeks after consuming about 20–25 lb (9.1–11.3 kg) feed. Different studies peg about 7.9–9.0 kg to 56 days in tropical programs, shut sufficient for budgets. Plan a better FCR than broilers. FAO notes geese often deposit extra fats, making meat dearer to provide on feed alone. Layers eat about 120 g/day when in lay.

2025 Nigeria Poultry Manufacturing Funds Fashions

Under are labored examples I really use when serving to novices resolve what to inventory. I preserve the inputs clear so you possibly can swap in your personal native costs. All feed intakes come from breeder or extension guides; all costs are from present Nigerian listings as of Aug 21, 2025.

What these fashions are based mostly on (so you possibly can belief them)

Feed consumption targets:

• Broilers (Cobb 500) eat about 5.10 kg feed per hen by day 42 (cumulative). I add a 5 p.c allowance for spillage and waste.
• Layers (Hy-Line Brown) eat about 6.07 kg from 0–17 weeks to achieve point-of-lay (POL). In lay, plan on 110.7 g/day and 1.43–1.55 kg feed per dozen eggs (20–90 weeks).

Present Nigerian costs (examples):

• Topfeeds Broiler Finisher 25 kg: ₦22,500.40 (per-kg about ₦900). Topfeed layer mash: ₦19,659.99. Chikun Layer-1: ₦20,757. Chikun Grower Pellet 25 kg: ₦21,543.50.
• DOC (day-old chicks): Broilers generally record ₦59,000–₦65,000 per 50; I present ₦60,500/50. Pullets (layers) DOC: about ₦92,500 per 50. Level-of-Lay (POL) pullets: ₦6,200–₦7,500 per hen.

Maize (a key feed ingredient) fell about 33 p.c from January to June 2025 (₦600,000 per MT to ₦450,000 per MT), which is why some bagged feed costs have been easing these days. Hold watching this, your margins comply with maize.

Mannequin A: 50 broilers, 6 weeks to market (starter to finisher)

Assumptions (conservative): Cobb 500 to day 42; cumulative feed 5.10 kg per hen plus 5 p.c waste; Topfeeds Finisher 25 kg at ₦22,500.40; DOC at ₦60,500/50; vaccines and meds price range ₦300/hen.

• Feed wanted = 5.10 kg × 1.05 waste × 50 birds = 267.75 kg, 10.71 luggage (25 kg).
  Feed value = 10.71 × ₦22,500.40 = ₦240,979.
• Chicks = one carton 50 = ₦60,500.

Core variable value (feed plus chicks) = ₦301,479, ₦6,030/hen. Add vaccines/meds, ₦15,000 (₦300/hen), ₦316,479 whole (₦6,330/hen).

Mannequin B: 100 day-old pullets (DOC) reared to POL (16–17 weeks)

Assumptions (sensible): Hy-Line Brown rearing feed to 17 weeks ≈ 6.07 kg/hen; use Chikun Grower Pellet 25 kg ₦21,543.50; DOC pullets ₦92,500/50; 5 p.c waste; ₦400/hen for vaccines and meds.

• Feed wanted = 6.07 kg × 100 = 607 kg, 24.28 luggage.
  Feed value = 24.28 × ₦21,543.50 = ₦499,440; add 5 p.c waste = ₦524,412.
• Chicks = two cartons 50 = ₦185,000.

Core variable (feed plus chicks) ₦709,412, ₦7,094/hen to POL.
Add vaccines/meds, ₦40,000, working whole ₦749,412 (₦7,494/hen).

Rearing to POL in scorching months makes use of extra vitality for cooling and water sanitation; price range for electrolytes and vitamin C throughout warmth spikes. Wooden shavings stay the usual litter, although options are used when scarce.

Mannequin C: 100 Level-of-Lay pullets (18–20 weeks), egg manufacturing for a month

Assumptions: purchase 100 POL at ₦6,200–₦7,500 every; Hy-Line feeding in lay 110.7 g/hen/day; present each Topfeed Layer Mash and Chikun Layer-1 choices.

Up-front birds: ₦620,000–₦750,000.

Month-to-month feed (30 days):

• Day by day feed = 110.7 g × 100 birds = 11.07 kg/day, 332.1 kg/month = 13.28 luggage (25 kg).
• Topfeed Layer Mash ₦19,659.99: ₦261,163/month.
  Chikun Layer-1 ₦20,757: ₦275,736/month.

Feed-only value per dozen eggs: Hy-Line information says 1.43–1.55 kg feed per dozen. At immediately’s costs that’s about ₦1,180–₦1,246 per dozen (Topfeed vs Chikun). That equals ₦2,949–₦3,114 feed-only per crate (30 eggs) earlier than meds, utilities, mortality, or labor.

Evaluate to promoting value: Lagos and Abuja retail crates in early August had been round ₦5,400–₦5,800, implying a feed-only margin of about ₦2,300–₦2,850 per crate to cowl every little thing else and go away revenue.

Each ₦1,000 shift in a 25 kg bag adjustments feed value by about ₦150 per crate (as a result of one crate takes about 3.75 kg feed).

Learn Extra: Why Chick Prices Rise & Fall in Nigeria (Feed, Disease, Festive Cycles)

Feed technique to guard margins in 2025

Feed is the largest line in your price range this 12 months, so the best way you purchase it, current it, and time it’s going to resolve whether or not your ledger smells like contemporary shavings or smoke. Under is precisely how I run feed on my farm and what the breeder manuals and extension labs say, so you possibly can squeeze extra kilos and eggs out of each 25 kg bag.

Part the eating regimen on time (and don’t skip steps)

Starter, grower, finisher (for broilers) and pre-lay, layer-1, layer-2 (for hens) are usually not advertising and marketing phrases; they’re the way you match nutrient density to hen age so you don’t waste money on the improper protein or calcium on the improper time. Hy-Line’s efficiency information, as an illustration, recommends Layer-1 from roughly 19–45 weeks and offers every day consumption targets you possibly can plan round. If you section accurately, the consumption figures within the breeder tables are far simpler to hit.

Pellets, crumbles, or mash? (Efficiency vs value)

On paper and in the home, feed kind issues. Cobb’s broiler information is obvious: pelleted or extruded diets often ship higher flock effectivity and progress than mash as a result of birds kind much less and spend much less vitality consuming. Impartial trials agree: starter crumbles for the primary week enhance physique weight and FCR versus mash.

Broader evaluations additionally present pelleted diets beating mash on nutrient digestibility and efficiency. Alone flooring, pellets scale back fines and preserve birds working the feeder as a substitute of the litter. If bag value is your solely purpose to decide on mash, value all of it the best way to value per kg acquire. Pellets typically win as soon as efficiency is counted.

Hold manufacturers constant; evaluate by naira per kg, not simply naira per bag

Nigeria’s cabinets carry the phases you want, for instance Topfeeds Layer Mash and Chikun Layer-1, and the tags transfer week by week. Evaluate on naira per kilogram, not bag sticker, as a result of luggage are the identical dimension however diet and kind differ. Switching manufacturers mid-cycle to “save ₦500” can dent consumption and set you again per week. As of this week’s listings, Topfeeds Layer Mash reveals ₦19,659.99/25 kg and Chikun Layer-1 ₦20,757/25 kg. Use these costs to mannequin after which affirm the actual supplier quote before you purchase chicks.

Water is half the ration

Birds drink roughly 1.6–2.0 kg of water per 1 kg of feed, and in warmth they may drink much more whereas consuming much less. Plan your traces, nipples, and header tank for hot-day demand, not common days. Extension steering is blunt: construct surplus water capability as a result of birds will shift to consuming for cooling when temperatures spike. If in case you have ever smelled that barely metallic, overheated drinker line at 2 p.m., you already know why consumption stalls. Flush traces, preserve strain proper, and shade tanks. Your feed plan doesn’t work in case your water plan is weak.

Warmth-season feeding

In Nigerian warmth, you’ll not often hit the ebook numbers if you happen to pressure huge meals at midday. Hy-Line’s heat-stress notes explicitly suggest a 1–2-hour “midnight feeding” (with a minimum of three dead nights both facet) to push consumption into cool hours. Additionally they counsel decreasing mild depth in the course of the hottest interval to curb exercise. I prime up earlier than lights on, push the heavier meals to daybreak and nightfall, and preserve the “midnight snack” throughout warmth waves. Birds breathe simpler, and trays inform the story subsequent morning.

Good mitigation, not magic powders

You will note each complement beneath the solar when warmth bites. The proof base is clearer for just a few instruments: vitamin C and E can partially blunt heat-stress losses, and electrolyte stability (together with sodium bicarbonate as a part of dietary sodium) is a acknowledged lever in hot-weather applications. Use them intentionally. Favor label-supported premixes and discuss to your nutritionist earlier than you tinker with sodium. Overshooting electrolytes is its personal drawback.

Little dealing with particulars that save a bag per week

A number of “costly birds” are actually costly feed on the ground. Fill feeders earlier than lights come on so keener birds don’t gorge fines. Elevate pans so beaks skim, they don’t bulldoze. Even the massive guides remind you to get birds onto the principle feeding system by about 6–7 days and transfer to good pellets after day 10. Early construction units habits you money out later. My very own rule: if I can write my identify in fines beneath the road, I’ve simply spilled a tray of cash.

Chicken-by-bird purchaser’s information for Nigeria

There’s a distinction between “discovering birds on-line” and shopping for proper. Under is precisely how I vet sellers, what paperwork I ask for, how I examine inventory at pickup, and the way I transfer birds residence with out dropping them to warmth or stress. All the pieces right here is grounded in present breeder manuals, Nigerian vaccine sources, and respected listings.

The place to purchase (and confirm the vendor)

If you’re shopping for industrial layers (Hy-Line, ISA Brown), begin by verifying there’s a actual distributor behind the advert. Hy-Line maintains a public “Places and Distributors” listing; Agrited Nigeria Ltd seems there because the Hy-Line distributor. If a web based vendor claims “Agrited pullets,” cross-check their particulars towards Hy-Line’s web page or Agrited’s personal web site earlier than you pay.

For Noilers (dual-purpose), use the official Amo Farm/Noiler pages. They state Noiler is an Amo Farm Sieberer Hatchery (AFSH) product and word weekly hatches with distribution throughout Nigeria. That’s the quickest strategy to affirm {that a} “Noiler” vendor is definitely of their community.

Marketplaces will be handy, however you continue to need traceability. Justagric agros is a platform the place you will get high quality birds; pullets, broilers, noilers, turkeys, Brahma chickens, and different birds. With over 10 years of actively supporting poultry farmers with high quality birds and steering, this platform is a haven for high quality poultry enter. It’s a model you possibly can belief in terms of the availability of high quality birds.

For broiler DOCs, professional Nigerian choices embody Agrited (Ross 308), CHI or CASCADA (Arbor Acres) and others; you will note their cartons and pressure names on product pages. Once more, confirm hatch date, pressure, and pickup day on the vendor’s web page earlier than you switch funds.

The paperwork and questions that defend you

Earlier than you pay, you could ask for 3 issues:

1. Hatch or beginning date and pressure (Ross 308, Arbor Acres, Hy-Line Brown, Noiler). It ought to match the carton or label and the distributor’s schedule.
2. Vaccination document for the flock to this point. For layers and pullets, Hy-Line’s vaccination transient lists the core illnesses industrial flocks are routinely protected towards worldwide: Marek’s, Newcastle illness (NDV), infectious bronchitis (IB), infectious bursal illness (IBD or Gumboro), avian encephalomyelitis (AE), and fowl pox, with native changes suggested by your vet. In Nigeria, the Nationwide Veterinary Analysis Institute (NVRI, Vom) produces a number of NDV vaccines (LaSota, Komarov, and the thermostable I-2 pressure), plus IBD and fowl pox, so it’s regular to see these names on a vaccination sheet.
3. Age in weeks (for Level-of-Lay). Practical POL listings in Nigeria present 12–16 or extra weeks. The vendor ought to state precise age and prior vaccinations.

If the vendor hesitates to share fundamental particulars, I stroll away. There may be all the time one other batch.

Tips on how to examine day-old chicks at pickup

If you raise a chick field lid, your senses matter. Search for vivid, open eyes; clear, dry fluff; healed, closed navels; lively however calm habits. These are common indicators of excellent chick high quality. If the field smells bitter or the navels look uncooked, your efficiency curve is already bent.

I additionally weigh a pattern (5 p.c of packing containers) to guage uniformity, because the Cobb broiler information recommends. Low uniformity now often turns into uneven progress later.

Tips on how to vet Level-of-Lay pullets (what good POL appears to be like like)

A real POL (15–18 weeks) must be uniform in physique weight and improvement. Hy-Line’s pullet administration word units a purpose of 85 p.c or extra uniformity inside 10 p.c of the flock common earlier than switch. Different Hy-Line guides word flocks coming into lay at 1.57–1.67 kg with over 85 p.c uniformity carry out greatest. If half the pen is small and half is outsized, egg peaks will stagger and feed budgets won’t pencil.

Palms-on checks assist: combs must be reddening, the stomach tender and widening, and pelvic bones versatile with growing spacing as birds method lay. Extension guides describe this “three-finger” pelvic spacing check as a fast readiness indicator; pair it with a pattern weigh to keep away from being fooled by cosmetics.

Transport with out losses (beating Nigerian warmth on pickup day)

Your birds are most weak between the vendor’s gate and your brooder or shed. In scorching climate, use ventilated crates, keep away from stacking that blocks airflow, and journey very early or late. Don’t seal birds in hermetic automotive boots; preserve shifting air across the packing containers and decrease stops. Business transport guides add easy guidelines: scale back loading density in warmth, park within the shade if you happen to should cease, and preserve ready occasions quick.

Warmth-management notes additionally again shifting feeding to chill hours (or withholding feed just a few hours earlier than peak afternoon warmth) to chop warmth stress, and night time or “midnight” feeding to take care of consumption, helpful in case you are shifting POLs right into a heat home.

Widespread budgeting errors (and simple fixes)

When cash is tight, the small leaks are those that sink you. Listed here are the errors I see most frequently on Nigerian farms in 2025 and the fixes that truly transfer the numbers for broilers, layers, Noilers and even turkeys.

1) Pricing birds with out pricing luggage

I nonetheless meet farmers who choose a pressure and headcount, then “estimate” feed. That’s the way you get shocked by week 5. The breeder tables are public and exact: a contemporary broiler ought to eat roughly 3.6 kg by day 35 and about 5.1 kg by day 42 (Cobb 500). Layers want about 6.07 kg to 17 weeks simply to achieve level of lay, then about 110 g per day in lay (Hy-Line Brown). In case your money plan doesn’t begin with these numbers, you’re budgeting on vibes. Construct each batch plan off the cumulative consumption tables first, then multiply by your precise naira per kg on the mill.

2) Forgetting the “promoting week” feed

Broiler budgets typically cease at day 42 as if patrons queue on the gate. In actual life you’ll maintain birds for a number of days whereas prospects or vehicles align. These additional days nonetheless eat costly finisher and add transport water and electrolyte value. Carry an additional 0.3 to 0.8 kg per hen of finisher in your plan for the promoting interval.

3) Losing feed by way of the feeder and the ground

In case your pans are too low or you’re serving powdery fines, birds invoice out feed you already paid for. Even small-scale extension guides word that over-filled or low hoppers enhance spillage. Fill half full and preserve the lip at again peak so beaks skim quite than bulldoze. Fashionable broiler administration articles peg feed at 60 to 70 p.c of whole value, so recovering simply 3 to five p.c from wastage goes straight to margin. Elevate feeders as birds develop, change to crumbles or pellets the place doable, and sift fines out of mash.

4) Beneath-feeding in the course of the hottest hours

At 2 p.m. you possibly can scent the nice and cozy, metallic drinker traces and see birds panting. That isn’t a time to push an enormous meal. Layer guides explicitly suggest “midnight feeding” (lights on for 1 to 2 hours at the hours of darkness interval) in scorching climates. It sometimes provides 2 to five g per hen per day and helps shell formation. Transfer heavier meals to daybreak and nightfall, think about a brief midnight feed throughout warmth waves, and preserve water shaded and contours flushed.

5) Stocking too tight for a scorching home

Densities that work in cool, managed barns won’t work in a zinc-roofed shed at 33 °C. Ross and Aviagen hot-climate steering trims kilograms of liveweight per sq. metre as temperature and humidity rise to guard efficiency. In the event you cram, FCR creeps, birds sit, and also you “mysteriously” miss the breeder feed numbers. Plan density from goal weight occasions local weather, not from flooring space alone. Add followers and air inlets earlier than you add birds.

6) Switching feed manufacturers mid-cycle to “save 500 naira”

On paper a less expensive bag appears to be like intelligent. In the home, abrupt model adjustments can dent consumption for days (totally different particle dimension, vitality, amino profile). With feed already 60 to 70 p.c of value, dropping even 2 to three p.c progress or egg output for per week is dearer than the bag “saving.” Evaluate by naira per kg and efficiency, not sticker value. In the event you should change, do a gradual mix over a number of days.

7) Skipping rearing math when selecting POL vs DOC

Shopping for Level of Lay feels dear per hen, so folks default to day-old pullets and overlook the about 6 kg rearing feed, brooding vitality, and mortality danger. Hy-Line’s personal tables present that 0 to 17 weeks feed load. POL pricing primarily bundles that danger. Worth DOC to POL transparently (chicks plus 24 to 25 luggage per 100 plus meds plus vitality) versus POL (hen value plus rapid layer eating regimen). In a scorching 12 months, POL’s “time low cost” will be value it.

8) Letting mash high quality (fines) starve your progress curve

Pelleted or crumbled diets typically beat mash on consumption and FCR as a result of birds can not kind and spend much less vitality consuming. This reveals up throughout broiler manuals and up to date diet papers. In the event you should feed mash, preserve particle dimension constant and feeder lip excessive. Run starter as crumbles the place doable. If shopping for mash, audit fines (hand-sieve a scoop) and regulate feeders to cut back billing.

9) Complicated “guidelines of thumb” on Fb with breeder math

You will note posts claiming “32 luggage for 100 broilers to 9 weeks” or “11 luggage of fifty kg in 7 weeks.” They typically combine bag sizes and targets. The repair is uninteresting however undefeated: open the Cobb desk (or Ross) and multiply the cumulative feed per hen by your birds and divide by 25 kg. That provides you the suitable ballpark, then add your personal wastage and mortality buffer. Funds from breeder PDFs first, use discussion board numbers as tales, not as baselines.

10) Ignoring water capability and temperature

Birds drink about 1.6 to 2.0 kg water per kg feed and much more beneath warmth. Heat traces suppress consumption. Many brooding and administration guides emphasize water hygiene, strain and header-tank shading as a result of feed plans collapse when water is proscribed. Measurement traces for hot-day peaks, flush at noon, preserve tanks shaded, and verify nipples and strain weekly.

FAQs

What number of 25 kg luggage of feed do I want to boost 100 broilers to market weight?

Beneath good administration, trendy broilers (Ross 308 or Cobb 500) attain market at 6 weeks with cumulative feed consumption of about 4.6 to five.1 kg per hen. Meaning 100 birds eat 460 to 510 kg, or about 18 to 21 luggage (25 kg every) to 42 days. In hotter, open-sided homes or when birds are grown per week longer, price range just a few additional luggage. These numbers come from Ross 308 efficiency tables (cumulative consumption about 4.586 kg at day 42) and Cobb 500 goals (about 5.10 kg at day 42).

What number of 25 kg luggage do 100 layers eat per thirty days?

Hy-Line Brown 2024 requirements present common 110.7 g feed per hen per day (18 to 90 weeks). That’s about 3.32 kg per hen per thirty days, so 100 hens want about 332 kg per thirty days which equals about 13.3 luggage of 25 kg. Farmer estimates round 14 to fifteen luggage are frequent. Warmth or poorer rations can nudge utilization up.

What’s the feed value per dozen eggs in 2025 phrases?

Hy-Line’s desk lists about 1.43 to 1.55 kg feed per dozen eggs (20 to 90 weeks). If a 25 kg bag prices 19,600 to 23,700 naira (Topfeeds or Chikun value home windows on-line), feed value per dozen is about 1,120 to 1,470 naira at these bag costs. At all times replace along with your native bag value.

What are typical costs for point-of-lay pullets and feed?

Current market posts present Level-of-Lay hens round 7,000 naira every in mid-2025. Widespread retail feed listings present Topfeeds Broiler Finisher 25 kg at about 21,400 to 22,500 naira, and Chikun Broiler Finisher 25 kg at about 23,700 naira. Cross-check in your metropolis earlier than buy.

Pellets or mash: does feed kind actually change efficiency?

Sure. A number of managed trials and evaluations present pelleted diets enhance progress and feed conversion in comparison with mash as a result of birds can not kind components and eat sooner and extra persistently. Pellets typically value extra, however the organic acquire in weight and FCR can offset the premium if pellet high quality is sweet. If money is tight, a rough, well-mixed mash nonetheless works. Keep away from overly effective grist.

For layers in scorching climate, is “midnight feeding” definitely worth the problem?

In scorching climates, including 1 to 2 hours of sunshine in the midst of the darkish interval can raise feed consumption, typically plus 2 to five g per hen per day, and enhance shell high quality by aligning calcium consumption with nighttime shell formation. Strictly preserve 3 dead nights earlier than and after the midnight mild, and taper off step by step if you happen to cease.

Which vaccinations ought to a POL have already obtained?

Respected pullet rearers vaccinate Marek’s, Newcastle illness (NDV), Infectious Bronchitis (IB), Infectious Bursal Illness (IBD or Gumboro), Fowl Pox, and Avian Encephalomyelitis (AE) earlier than sale. Native danger could add extra. In Nigeria, NVRI (Vom) produces ND (LaSota, I-2, Komarov), IBD and Fowl Pox vaccines. At all times ask sellers for batch and schedule data earlier than you pay.

What’s a protected stocking density for broilers within the warmth?

Aviagen’s steering for warm circumstances suggests no more than 30 kg liveweight per sq. metre in controlled-environment homes and about 20 to 25 kg per sq. metre (or decrease on the hottest occasions) in open-sided homes. Overcrowding in warmth dents progress and welfare.

How a lot water do chickens drink relative to feed?

Plan on about 1.6 to 2.0 kg of water per 1 kg of feed, extra throughout warmth stress. If water consumption drops, feed consumption and efficiency additionally drop. Hold water cool, clear, and flowing.

DOC vs POL in 2025: what is best for a good price range?

• DOC layers: cheaper per hen, however you’ll feed about 6.1 kg to 17 weeks (Hy-Line cumulative), then carry the pullets to first egg. Decrease money outlay now, extra danger and extra time.
• POL: pay extra upfront however begin incomes in weeks, and another person carried brooding and grower danger. In mid-2025, many Nigerian sellers quote POL at about 7,000 naira. In case your feed is dear or brooding is dangerous in your space, POL typically makes extra sense.

What biosecurity step do most small farms nonetheless skip?

Quarantine new birds for about 30 days in a separate area with separate gear earlier than mixing. It’s the least expensive insurance coverage you should buy towards bringing in NDV or different pathogens. USDA’s Defend-the-Flock and college extensions repeat this for a purpose.

Conclusion

I’m positive you might have gotten the suitable data you possibly can based mostly your resolution on. Broilers nonetheless ship the quickest turnover while you price range off breeder tables, assume 3.6 kg by day 35 and 5.1 kg by day 42 per hen, and guard that feed with good kind, timing, and warmth administration. Layers pay you in calm, weekly money as soon as they’re at point-of-lay. Hy-Line’s requirements (110.7 g/hen/day in lay, 6.07 kg to 17 weeks) are the sincere baselines to plan purchases and egg pricing.

Costs will preserve shifting, each for chicks and for 25 kg luggage, so deal with them like climate and verify them weekly. Proper now, respected Nigerian listings put Topfeeds Layer Mash round ₦19,659.99 and Chikun Layer-1 round ₦20,757, whereas Point-of-Lay pullets sometimes put up within the ₦6,200–₦7,500 band. In the meantime, maize, the spine of feed, fell about 33 p.c from February to June 2025, which is easing some strain downstream. Construct your plans off immediately’s quotes, however preserve the price range elastic, as a result of feed stays the largest value line in poultry (typically close to 70 p.c).