Help with chicken math needed. :D

[mikeinri]

So the animal stall and fencing is going in now. Stall to show up two Fridays from now. This is for a horse and maybe a donkey. This will give me a very big area for the ladies to freerange.

So I need some help with chicken math. If a small farmer could help me.

What is a rough idea of a profit margin for 1 dozen eggs if it is sold for $3. Are we talking aobut 1/3 profit or less? After feed and egg cartons of course.

I know some areas are dif cost wise, so just a rough guess.

 

[duckinnut]

Let me put it this way,dont be looking for a winter house in Florida!!!

The small time backyard chickeneer is lucky just to break even with the cost of food,water,boxes, electricity if applicable and all the other little things along the way. Thats not counting the initial start-up of housing and penning costs before you even get an egg. Even with all the free boxes I amassed I might have been making maybe 80/90 cents a dozen,now with those gone maybe 50 cents a dozen . Food costs have risen also dipped into the number as well. There are so many factors that have to be added into the formula. I figured if I sell as many as I can to pay for the feed and boxes and have fresh eggs in my fridge,I'm ahead of the game although not financially. But didnt get into it to make a million either. What started as a 4H project and hobby for my kids turned to a sideline that just about pays for itself.

 

[nickie]

There's monetary profit from keeping chickens?

Kidding.

Anywho, if I scratch out what I spent to build my coop and get my birds and leave out coat of electric and only include in my monthly expenses the cost of feed I make $0.25 a dozen when charging $3.

 

[ozark_chickies]

I agree with Duckinnut. I have a hobby that is paying for it's self. Where I live too many people keep chickens, for me to make much profit off a dozen eggs. As long as I can buy their feed with "egg money", and keep a few for myself I'm happy.

 

[mikeinri]

Seems like everyone is adding in the cost of their coops. That is considered startup costs and should never be expected to pay for itself in a short term.

I'm also hoping you aren't giving the chickens perriere bottled water when you are adding in the cost of water.

It cost less than $10 a month for my well pump to supply the house water.

Containers are expensive! I found some for just under .30 each. That’s just the cost of doing business. You must use new containers for egg sales. But, a way around this is "pick your own" eggs. The customer can bring their own egg carton for you to refill. That way you are not selling them in used cartons.

Now for the big ticket. The feed....

This is where all the money goes. Some study into how much feed can be reduced by free ranging the ladies might help. Freshly cut chicken salad. Cut the cost of feed and you may have something.

Chicken poop for $$$. I thought that was funny when I heard it.

Breeding and selling chickens. I see no profit in chicks. It is a LOT of fun though

I don't know about other people’s taxes but mine are over 4k a year. If I declare myself a farm they get cut in half with all the farm perks. Add that in the cost. 2k a year can buy a few coops.

So crunching the chicken math let me rephrase........"IF" you could make $1 on a carton of eggs, would it be worth it?
Chicken math is just like Kramer crunching the numbers on the recycles!

 

[mikeinri]

I did some reading on feed. After some thought I think it would interesting to try weaning the chickens off the feed (by their choice) through range and feeding them greens. This would be more nutritious then feed and eliminate the largest cost in chicken farming.

Three sisters farming, the Indians used it for 100s of years. They never spent money on seed and fertilizer either. That idea can be part of the ground floor of the plan. Beans and squash minced up, the chickens will be eating better than me.

Maybe weigh the chickens and the amounts of food used to come up with some real numbers so that the process can be scaled up. I'm also thinking of other garden foods that grow like weeds.

This will be a fun experiment!

Now if you do some chicken math on the feed you buy and crunch the numbers after you cut the cost by 80% what would we have?
And this is fun too!!

 

[DMRippy]

I am only looking to pay for feed, any profit is just gravy to buy more chickens. I already reduce my feed bill by using spent grains from a brewery (40%) I figure they laying girls need to make me about $6 a day in eggs to sell to feed everyone - chicks, roos, and non laying pullets and I have about 100 chickens. Now with that said the farmers market in the next county gets $4 a doz so I am thinking when everyone gets in full swing and I get my laying flock up to par at trip once a week to sell my eggs might be worth it and I have heard there is also a place that I could sell my roos pretty easy for dinner so really all in all I am hoping this works to pay for feed and some profit.

Chicks and hatching eggs are just side money I am going to depend on the layers to pay for feed. I get farm fresh eggs, meat and some money... it is all good.

Just a side note: I had a business and here if your electricity is used in a product you are reselling you don't have to pay taxes on your utilities or at least electricity. Might want to check into it and you need a tax exempt number too so you don't pay sales tax on your feed. Here that is almost 10% so that is 10% more feed you can buy.

If you want to make a profit you have to run it like a business. Keep records, receipts, count your eggs, get rid of birds not holding their own. There is no room in this business for slackers in the flock... no out put, no return on the investment, they got to go.

Good luck!

 

[Buff Oreo]

let me just say this- unless you live in florida or cali, you shouldnt be charging 3$. 2 dollars is good, and 2.50 is getting there, but it all depends on where you are and how you are raising your chickens. organic feed? charge more. purina? 2 bucks right there.

 

[<3 N.C Chicken Chick <3]

I got my coop for free. I was verry luckey. Then today I got plywood, 2 by 4's and paint. Everythig was under 10 dollars, except the paint which was pricey! 21 dollars!

the bad part is that I have no chance to sell eggs, sometimes I get 1 others none

You could sell chicks, or auction off chickens on this site.

 

[DMRippy]

The stores for just plain brown eggs charge $3 organic 4 and 5. I think you can charge what the market will bare. If the market is $3 in your area than charge $3. In my area there is a market for $4 farm eggs. I would think in part of California farm eggs might be $5-6. I just read someone volunteered to pay $5 a doz up north so charge what you can but don't over charge.