What to charge for a bird?

[PlumpChicken]

I will have $6.56 into each bird. This is cost of chick and cost of feed. I have more family and friends who want chicken than I can supply. I am just looking for a price to charge that is fair for my work and fair to my customers. I guess anything over $7 per bird will put me profitable.

 

[Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay]

I will have $6.56 into each bird. This is cost of chick and cost of feed. I have more family and friends who want chicken than I can supply. I am just looking for a price to charge that is fair for my work and fair to my customers. I guess anything over $7 per bird will put me profitable.

A "profit" of 44 cents per bird isn't worth it.

Lets look at this on a "Return to Management" philosophy. You feed your birds for 8 weeks, 65 days, for the sake of argument lets say you devote one hour per day to the birds, so you have 65 hours of labor. A "profit" or 44 cents per bird on 50 birds is $22 or $0.338/hour. Even if your labor is only half youare still only paying yourself $.677/hour.

That is not much of a return for the effort and risk you are taking with the birds.

 

[loanwizard]

If you want to raise Freedom Rangers, I will buy every one that you can produce for $7.00 processed and vac sealed....

If you have more demand than supply, then you are not charging enough. Go to 10.00 per bird and then maybe you might have some left over or you might make some money.

Why are you working for free?

 

[mi chicken]

if they are meat birds they cost u 8 dollors in feed. so i would charge them 12 dollors . low 15 high u have to get that to aleast break even

 

[jdc]

I get $3.50/lb. The last batch of hens averaged 5.5 lbs dressed. I pay $2.00 for processing and can usually come out around $7.00-$9.00 per bird total. I mostly grow birds for personal use and the extras that I sell pays for processing and some feed. I do not buy enough feed to make it worth buying in bulk. I do batches between 25 and 50 at a time.

 

[PlumpChicken]

A "profit" of 44 cents per bird isn't worth it.

I don't plan on charging $7.00 per bird I was just using it as an example.

This is how I have things worked out in my mind.

• 60 Cx chicks (straight run) $1.56 per = $93.60
• Finishing weight of 8 lbs on average with a ratio of 2.5:1
• 20 lbs of feed into each bird or 0.40 x $12.50 (bag price) = $5.00 of feed into each bird
• 20 lbs x 60 birds = 1,200 lbs of feed = 50 lb bags = 24 50 lb bags.
• 24 x $12.50 = $300.00 OR
• 60 birds x $5 = $300.00 into feed

I have a setup and all the feeders/waters and lamps and other equipment. I plan on having my customers pay for there own processing. Which I stated was $1 per bird in a previous post and my wife pointed out to me that I was wrong it was in fact $2.00 per bird and .50 more for them to cut the birds into an 8 piece.

Total cost in my mind per bird is $1.56 for chick and $5.00 for feed for a TOTAL of $6.56 per bird. So if I did in fact charge $10 per bird my profit per bird would be $3.44 x 60 (if all 60 live) = $206.40

This is just a rough breakdown for a beginner. If anyone has anything to point out or to add please do so.

Thanks!

 

[PotterWatch]

Don't forget to factor in the cost of bedding that is used during brooding as well as electricity to heat the brooder.

 

[PlumpChicken]

I guess I used 2 squares of pine shavings last time I had chicks. I think they were around $4 or $5 each. I have no idea on how to measure the cost of the electricity used for the lamps.

 

[birdman1960]

I process my own, around here, central wis. $3.00 per bird to get them butchered and vacuum sealed, so I pay myself 2.50 for the work, and allow .50 for the shrink seal package, I can do about 4 an hour, working by myself, using a whizz bang type plucker I built, ( also rent it out to cover those costs) I charge $2.75/lb, using a certified produce scale to weigh them. For family and friends, I offer my scratch and dent birds, (wing bone poking through the skin, or skin torn, water too hot...) for 2.50/lb...

 

[MamaRudey]

Everyone in my area charges $25 a bird, their usually always 5#, so that is $5 a pound.