Golden Egg Experiment

[PapaBear4]

So I've always wondered how much I pay for my eggs. I know a lot of people say that's a dangerous question to ask. But does anybody actually know? I could probably figure it out but it would only be a very rough estimate. I've not been a strict record keeper.

I'm launching an experiment to find out. More of a case study really. We're going to start from zero and raise up a flock of six happy, healthy, and productive hens. We'll track all of our expenses along the way. And while we're going to try to be frugal, we're not going to blatantly cut corners to improve our numbers.

We're going to answer two big questions:
- How much does our first dozen eggs cost?
- How long do they have to be laying before we average out to farm stand price (nominally $3/dozen)?

I'm sure we'll find out lots of other things along the way as well.

So, now my questions for all of you.
1) Has anybody done this before? How'd it turn out?
2) Are there any other burning questions you'd like to see answered along the way?
3) Do you have any awesome cost saving tips I might be able to use, or at least investigate?

I'll be posting weekly over on my blog and will post updates and DIY stuff here as well.

Thank you BYC community for all that you do. I've learned so much on here and hope to be able to give back as much and more.

Homestead Bear
No Clucking Around - Golden Egg Experiment

 

[PD-Riverman]

So I've always wondered how much I pay for my eggs. I know a lot of people say that's a dangerous question to ask. But does anybody actually know? I could probably figure it out but it would only be a very rough estimate. I've not been a strict record keeper.

I'm launching an experiment to find out. More of a case study really. We're going to start from zero and raise up a flock of six happy, healthy, and productive hens. We'll track all of our expenses along the way. And while we're going to try to be frugal, we're not going to blatantly cut corners to improve our numbers.

We're going to answer two big questions:
- How much does our first dozen eggs cost?
- How long do they have to be laying before we average out to farm stand price (nominally $3/dozen)?

I'm sure we'll find out lots of other things along the way as well.

So, now my questions for all of you.
1) Has anybody done this before? How'd it turn out?
2) Are there any other burning questions you'd like to see answered along the way?
3) Do you have any awesome cost saving tips I might be able to use, or at least investigate?

I'll be posting weekly over on my blog and will post updates and DIY stuff here as well.

Thank you BYC community for all that you do. I've learned so much on here and hope to be able to give back as much and more.

Homestead Bear
No Clucking Around - Golden Egg Experiment

I started with a few young layers, kept up with feed cost for 6 full months--exactually---no free ranging, and no kitchen scraps. It cost me slightly under $2($1.92 I think without dragging my book out) per dozen to feed them. No other cost figured into it. If you were to start with 1 day old chickes------you ever heard of the "Golden Egg" the hen layed-----well your first egg about 6 months later will be your Golden Egg----You are going to have ALOT invested in that first egg---LOL.

I did not figure the cost from chick to layer because """I""" will sell the layers in a couple years and recoup that start up cost then. You might do different?

I did this test to see what store bought feed would cost me per dozen, now any free ranging or extra's will cut the cost per dozen.

 

[lazy gardener]

Quote: Interesting thread topic.

Ways to cut costs:

ferment your feed. Shop around for feed deals. My feed store has an unadvertised feed that is $2 less than the usual bag that they trundle out to the truck when a customer asks for layer pellets! But, they don't have it listed on their product board. The only way I found out was to ask. Same exact ingredients without the advertising hype. Plain bag. Be sure the feed you buy is fresh. By the time it has been out of the mill x 6 weeks, it is already getting rancid. Grow sprouts for the flock in the snow season. Don't leave feed out over night, especially crumble or pellets. Rats and mice can easily empty a feeder. and they are amazingly adept at climbing and jumping. Keep your feed in vermin proof containers, usually this means metal, with a secure lid. Good storage will help prevent feed spoilage.

Be a scavenger for building materials: My coop door and windows are all Anderson thermopane. Better quality than the windows and doors in my house. I picked them up at the town dump for free. 2 home made incubators. The first one cost about $20. The second one, about $30. If you can wire a lamp, you can build an incubator.

Shavings eat into your profit margin. Switch to a deep litter system in coop and run. I only buy shavings when starting chicks. They then move out to a grow out coop before they are 2 weeks old (sometimes at 48 hours old) and benefit from DL in coop and run. I collect bagged leaves in the fall. Some folks bring leaves to me. Most leaves, I pick up, already bagged and ready for storage. They keep me in DL until the following leaf season. DL in your run will actually cut your feed costs while improving your flock's immunity and giving them healthy gut flora, as well as cutting down on soil pathogens/parasites.

Energy costs: Heating pad brooders cut way down on the amount of electricity used to brood chicks. Provide lighting for your layers during the fall and winter. A 7W CFL kept my birds laying well all winter. Otherwise I'd go from Oct to mid Feb w/o eggs. No eggs = lots of feed bought with no egg sales to pay for the feed.

Balance free ranging with predator load. I had to give up true free ranging b/c of heavy hawk predation. Unless I am outside to protect my flock, they can't free range. I even had a hawk fly into my run 3 months ago.

Hatch chicks for flock replacement. Sell the extras. Sell your older hens. Eat your cockrels. Cull poor producers, birds that are showing ill health, older birds. Depending on flock size, only keep one roo. My roo happily services 24 hens, and he would be delighted to add a few more to his harem. Good fertility. He is 3 or 4 years old now.

Barter: I traded one hen "that I intended to remove from the flock anyways" for a pint of home made maple syrup. I was giving her away, but did not turn down the maple syrup!

Toss the overgrown garden produce into the run.

Tell your customers why your flocks eggs are better than the ones from the grocery store. Once my customers get a taste for eggs from birds raised on FF and sprouts, they are hooked.

 

[aart]

I've kept pretty close track of all my expenses, in a spread sheet file, since I started chicken 3 1/2 years ago.

I do not count the cost of building coop, run, and purchased equipment into the equation(ever read the $64 tomato?).
I do not count the cash and barter taken in from selling cockerels/older hens....or the meat/broth I ate from slaughtering them.

My goal was to cover cost of feed and bedding with egg sales($3.50/dz) and I've done that.
Even covered hatching and feeding replacement chicks until point of lay.