Budgeting a Layer Farm in Kenya: The Costs Farmers Forget

When farmers work out layer farm costs, most of the attention goes to the house and the layer cages. They are the biggest single costs, so that is fair. A budget that stops there will still run short.

Farms that struggle in their first year have often left out the smaller costs around the house. This guide lists the ones that are most often missed, so you can plan for them from the start.

Layer farm costs outside the house

• Site preparation, access roads and fencing.
• A borehole and water storage tanks, if mains water on your site is not reliable. Our guide to water systems for arid and semi-arid regions covers this in detail.
• Water treatment and testing, so your birds drink clean water from the first day.
• Feed silos and the system that carries feed from the silo into the house.
• A generator or solar system to keep fans, lights and water running when the grid goes down.
• The electrical installation that connects it all.
• A clean entrance with a footbath, a place to change clothes and somewhere to wash hands. See our biosecurity protocols for what a good entrance needs.
• A cool, clean store for eggs, trays and packaging, and the egg collection system that feeds it.
• Housing for staff who live on the farm.

The months before the first egg

Layers earn nothing while they are growing. Whether you rear day-old chicks yourself or buy point-of-lay pullets, you will pay for birds, feed, vaccines and labour for weeks before you sell a single tray. This is one of the layer farm costs that most often catches new farmers out.

Running costs that add up

Running costs are the layer farm costs you pay every month, whether eggs sell well or not.

• Feed, which is the largest running cost on most poultry farms. Price each feed from a recent supplier quote and allow for feed that is spilled or spoils in storage.
• Generator fuel and servicing, on top of the electricity bill.
• Staff wages, NSSF and SHIF contributions, overtime and protective clothing. Our guide to staffing a 30,000 bird operation shows how a team is usually put together.
• Vet visits, vaccines and medicines.
• Maintenance and spare parts for feeders, drinkers, fans and egg collection.
• Transport for feed coming in and eggs going out.
• Interest on any loan, starting from the month you draw it.

Saving for worn out equipment

A well built house lasts many years. Fans, generators and vehicles wear out much sooner. Set money aside every year so that replacing them does not come as a shock. Replacement is one of the layer farm costs that is easy to forget, because the bill does not arrive every month.

A simple way is to divide the cost of each item by the number of years you expect it to last, and put that amount away each year.

Putting your numbers together

Once you have these figures, enter them into the farm investment calculator in our Knowledge Hub to see your total layer farm costs in one place.

You do not have to build the whole farm at once. Our Modular Growth Programme lets you start with one house and add more as the farm proves itself.