Do hatcheries/breeders make money?

[Ragna]

When you say this does it mean they'll put you in their pocket and then control just about every aspect of your operations?

No, they will give you loans

 

[lazy gardener]

Any one wanna buy a bridge? I wish you the best with your venture, but I see it as a quick way to work very hard while loosing a lot of money.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

So it sounds like if you'll be selling chicks to your family's business, you already have a market so you'll have an immediate income once under way.
To produce 1500 chicks a week, you'll need lots of incubator and hatcher capacity and a fairly large climate controlled building, as well as room for expansion. It won't be simple but that part is easy.
In my opinion, the hard part is where are you going to get 8000+ fertile eggs a month? From other farms or from your birds?

 

[Ragna]

Any one wanna buy a bridge? I wish you the best with your venture, but I see it as a quick way to work very hard while loosing a lot of money.

What raising chickens?

 

[Ragna]

Any one wanna buy a bridge? I wish you the best with your venture, but I see it as a quick way to work very hard while loosing a lot of money.

If raising chickens is a bad business how come we still have chicken in our grocery stores

 

[The Moonshiner]

So it sounds like if you'll be selling chicks to your family's business, you already have a market so you'll have an immediate income once under way.
To produce 1500 chicks a week, you'll need lots of incubator and hatcher capacity and a fairly large climate controlled building, as well as room for expansion. It won't be simple but that part is easy.
In my opinion, the hard part is where are you going to get 8000+ fertile eggs a month? From other farms or from your birds?

His family runs a slaughter house. They won't be buying chicks.
They buy ready to slaughter birds and I don't believe he will need to sell 1500 a week to them that's just what they buy total a week now.

 

[Ragna]

So it sounds like if you'll be selling chicks to your family's business, you already have a market so you'll have an immediate income once under way.
To produce 1500 chicks a week, you'll need lots of incubator and hatcher capacity and a fairly large climate controlled building, as well as room for expansion. It won't be simple but that part is easy.
In my opinion, the hard part is where are you going to get 8000+ fertile eggs a month? From other farms or from your birds?

Well my intent is to raise them to 12 or 14 weeks. And have enough chickens to steadily supply 1500 a week.

 

[lazy gardener]

B/C factory farming is a far cry from humane farming practices. To be competitive, you would have to operate under similar factory farming standards. I'm not saying you can't do it. What I am saying is that to turn a profit, you will have to have the right "upscale" market.

 

[The Moonshiner]

If raising chickens is a bad business how come we still have chicken in our grocery stores

Ya but the other side of the coin is if its such an easy and profitable business then why aren't all of us here not making a living doing it?
Chicken in the stores are because of about three companies funding and controlling the operations of chicken farms.
There was a show about it out a while back.
Maybe someone knows what the name of it was and can chime in.
It would be a good watch for you. That's why I asked about if the USDA would have you in their pocket.
The families that owned the farms had to play by the companies rules and most hated how they were forced to raise the birds.
It didn't look like much fun for them.

 

[Ragna]

Ya but the other side of the coin is if its such an easy and profitable business then why aren't all of us here not making a living doing it?
Chicken in the stores are because of about three companies funding and controlling the operations of chicken farms.
There was a show about it out a while back.
Maybe someone knows what the name of it was and can chime in.
It would be a good watch for you. That's why I asked about if the USDA would have you in their pocket.
The families that owned the farms had to play by the companies rules and most hated how they were forced to raise the birds.
It didn't look like much fun for them.

I'm not trying to run a small family farm.. I want to go larger