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Poultry Based Development

Overview

ESAF has initiated several programmes to support the development of entrepreneurs in the poultry sector. Through the project, ESAF supported 26 poultry-based farmers of Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri districts in Tamil Nadu. ESAF collaborated with KVK Krishnagiri to train dairy farmers on the management of chicks, storage of eggs and disease prevention. ESAF provided Gramapriya variety of chicks to the members and the eggs produced have been sold as Desi eggs under the brand name Navajyothi.

The poultry farmers were also supported with feed mixing units to provide quality feed to chicks on time. They were also provided with the best variety of cages, as per the recommendation from KVK-Krishnagiri, to keep the chicks safe from predators and thieves.

Project Objectives

To organise capacity building programmes and improve the entrepreneurial abilities of members through improved poultry practices, use of rearing cages, better feed preparation and feed mixing practices.

To improve the socio-economic conditions of poor farmers in remote areas by promoting micro-entrepreneurship through backyard poultry farming.

To provide capacity building training on poultry services to members of Farmers’ collectives. This gives dairy farmers access to finance, insurance and cattle management services.

Activities

  • Awareness programmes in villages on microbusiness opportunities in backyard poultry farming.
  • Selection of beneficiaries.
  • Provision of training in backyard poultry farming for 60 people.

Impacts

20 members were involved in purchasing and selling branded eggs. The eggs, branded as Navadanya, were bought at a rate of Rs. 8/ egg and sold at a rate of Rs. 10 per egg. 30,000 eggs were sold in the past three months. This venture earned the members an average income of Rs. 1,000 each.

Through a feed mixer unit, two members produced and supplied feed to 20 members. They earned an income of Rs. 8,000.

Prosperity through poultry

The story of Navajyothi, an eggsample

Navajyothi Farmer Producer Company (FPC) is one of the most active FPCs in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu. Recognizing the high demand for desi eggs in the local market, ESAF decided to support the farmers by aiding them in setting up poultry units. ESAF, in collaboration with KVK Krishnagiri, trained 26 farmers on various aspects of poultry management.

The selected farmers were provided high-tech cages and 1,000 matured birds of Gramapriya breed. The Gramapriya breed is a local variety that usually lays 200-225 eggs a year. The Navajyothi FPC branded the eggs as ‘Navajyothi’. The branding gave it great market visibility and increased its demand.

When the poultry farmers were troubled by the high cost and unavailability of quality feed, ESAF rose to the occasion and supported the Navajyothi FPC with a chicken feed mixing machine. The feed mixing machine helped the FPCs to provide the farmers with quality feed at a reasonable rate. 5.5 tons of the feed were produced and sold after the FPC received the mixing machine. Through ESAF, the FPCs were able to provide a fair income to the farmers involved in the production of feed.

ESAF’s intervention transformed the lives of the poultry farmers of Krishnagiri. ‘Navajyothi’ eggs are very popular in the market and the farmers no longer worry about their dwindling incomes.