Starting a Broiler Poultry Business in Nigeria: A Beginner's Guide to Getting the Feeding Cost Right
By Emekume Vincent
Poultry farming remains one of the most accessible agribusiness ventures in Nigeria today. Unlike crop farming, which ties up capital in land and waits on a full growing season, broiler production turns capital around in as little as six to eight weeks. But there is a catch that trips up many first-time farmers: **feed, not chicks, is what determines whether a broiler business makes money or loses it.** Feed typically accounts for 65 to 75 percent of total production cost, which means a farmer who understands feeding can succeed even with modest capital, while one who ignores it can lose money despite having healthy, fast-growing birds.
This piece walks through how a beginner can start small — with just 25 broilers — and use that first cycle to learn the feeding economics before scaling up.
Why Start Small
Twenty-five birds is a deliberately modest number. It is small enough that a mistake in the first cycle — an outbreak, a feeding error, a market miscalculation — costs the farmer a manageable sum rather than a life-changing loss. At the same time, it is large enough to produce real data: real feed conversion figures, real mortality rates, and a real sense of how quickly local buyers absorb the birds. That data is what should inform the decision to scale to 100, 500, or more birds later.
Understanding the Three Feeding Stages
Broilers pass through three distinct feeding phases, and each uses a different feed formulation:
**Starter phase (Week 1–2):** High-protein crumbles or mash to support rapid early growth. Chicks eat relatively little at this stage — around 0.6 kg per bird across the two weeks — but the feed itself costs more per kilogram than later-stage feed.
**Grower phase (Week 3–4):** A slightly lower-protein mash as birds build frame and muscle. Consumption roughly doubles from the starter phase.
**Finisher phase (Week 5 to market, typically week 7–8):** The bulk of total feed intake happens here, as birds pack on weight before sale. A single bird can consume more than 2 kg of finisher feed in this stage alone.
Across the full cycle, a broiler typically consumes about 4 to 4.5 kg of feed to reach a market weight of roughly 2.2 to 2.8 kg live weight — meaning total feed weight eaten is nearly double the bird's own body weight.
## What This Looks Like in Naira, for 25 Birds
Using current 2026 market feed prices (which fluctuate with maize and soybean costs, so farmers should always get fresh quotes before buying):
| Feed Stage | Feed per Bird | Total for 25 Birds | Approx. Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | 0.6 kg | 15 kg | ₦5,400 |
| Grower | 1.4 kg | 35 kg | ₦11,900 |
| Finisher | 2.3 kg | 57.5 kg | ₦18,860 |
| **Total** | **~4.3 kg** | **~107.5 kg** | **≈ ₦36,160** |
That works out to roughly **₦1,446 in feed cost per bird** across the full cycle — a figure every beginning farmer should memorize, because it is the number that determines the minimum price a bird must sell for to be profitable once chick cost, medication, and overhead are added.
## The Full Cost Picture
Feed alone does not make the business. A realistic startup budget for 25 birds also includes day-old chicks (roughly ₦900–₦1,300 each depending on hatchery and breed), vaccines and basic medication, feeders and drinkers, litter material, and a heat source for brooding. Altogether, a 25-bird cycle typically requires **around ₦85,000 to ₦95,000** in total startup capital.
Against this, 23 to 24 surviving birds sold at current market rates — commonly ₦10,000 to ₦13,000 per live bird depending on location and season — can generate revenue in the region of **₦250,000 to ₦265,000**, leaving a net profit in the range of **₦160,000 to ₦175,000** for a first cycle. These figures will shift with local prices, so they should be treated as a planning benchmark rather than a guarantee.
## Three Lessons Every Beginner Should Take From the Feeding Numbers
1. **Buy feed in bulk, not by the cup.** Feed bought a derica at a time from local sellers costs noticeably more per kilogram than a full 25 kg bag bought at once.
2. **Match feed purchases to the growth stage.** Buying all finisher feed on day one wastes money if prices drop, and buying too little risks running out mid-cycle when prices may have risen. Buy starter feed upfront, then purchase grower and finisher feed in stages as the birds approach each phase.
3. **Track feed against weight weekly.** A bird that eats normally but isn't gaining weight signals a health or feed-quality problem before it becomes a costly loss. Catching this in week three is far cheaper than discovering it in week seven.
## From 25 Birds to a Real Business
The 25-bird cycle is a training ground, not the destination. A farmer who completes this first cycle profitably, with good survival rates and reliable local buyers already lined up, has effectively proven the model on a small scale. The natural next step is to reinvest the profit into a 50- to 75-bird cycle, and from there scale toward the 500-bird range that most commercial hatcheries and feed suppliers price their bulk discounts around.
Poultry farming in Nigeria is not short on opportunity — the demand for chicken meat continues to outpace consistent local supply. What separates farmers who profit from those who struggle is rarely the birds themselves; it is almost always the discipline applied to feeding.
