Commercial Cornish chicken farming is very popular, because it is among the most popular breed of domestic chicken which is mainly used for meat production purpose. The breed is also known as Indian Game chicken and it is available throughout the world.
The Cornish chicken breed was developed from the county of Cornwall in the United Kingdom by Sir Walter Gibert around 1820s. Cornish chickens and the crosses of this breed are very popular and widely used in the meat chicken industry. And most of the modern broiler chicken breeds were developed from the Cornish chicken breed.
The Cornish chickens are very heavy and muscular birds and they lay brown colored eggs. There are two varieties of Cornish chicken available namely the Cornish Game and the Jubilee Cornish Game. The Cornish Game is dark blue-green in color with brown patterning in the hens. While the Jubliee Cornish Game chickens are less stocky and much lighter than their counterparts.
Along with meat production, the Cornish chickens are also quite popular show birds. And you can produce excellent backyard meat bird when you cross the breed with Dorking or a Sussex chicken. But the breed is not good for commercial eggs production, they produce only 160 to 180 eggs per year.
However, if you are looking for show bird, or want to have a chicken breed for your backyard then Cornish chicken will be very good for you. And commercial Cornish chicken farming business will be profitable if you can do everything perfectly.
How to Start Cornish Chicken Farming
Cornish chickens are just like many other domestic chickens. They are very strong, hardy and active. So starting a commercial Cornish chicken farming business will be relatively easy.
Here we are trying to describe more information about starting and operating a successful Cornish chicken farming business from purchasing birds to caring and marketing.
Purchase Chickens
First of all, you have to purchase very good quality, disease free and healthy birds for starting Cornish chicken farming business. The Cornish chickens are very common and popular throughout the world. So you will probably be able to easily purchase the birds from any of your nearest poultry chick suppliers.
You can purchase either day old chicks or mature birds depending on the price and availability in your area. Purchasing day old chicks will save you a lot of money, but you will need to take extra care of the birds. You can also search your local online classified websites.
Housing
Making a good and comfortable house is important for Cornish chicken farming business. Because a good house not only helps the birds to stay healthy but also helps them to stay free from all types of predators and adverse weather conditions.
So, try to make a good house for your chickens. You can either use easily available materials such as bamboo or wood for building the house or the house can be of full concrete setup. It actually depends on your budget.
While making the house, install good ventilation system and ensure flow of sufficient amount of fresh air and light inside the house. And make the house in such a way so that you can easily clean the house.
The Cornish chicken is classed as a heavy breed. And a mature bird will generally require around or up to 5 square feet of housing space.
Feeding
This is the most important part of Cornish chicken farming business. Good quality and nutritious food not only helps the birds to grow better but also helps them to stay healthy and free from diseases or other health problems.
You can either feed your chickens with ready-made/commercial poultry feeds or prepare the feeds of your own. Commercial broiler poultry feeds are available in most of the areas around the world.
The Cornish chickens are excellent foragers. And allowing them to roam freely will reduce the feeding costs and definitely will increase the quality of meat. Never feed your chickens with contaminated feeds. And always try to provide them with enough clean and fresh drinking water as per their demand.
Breeding
Like many other domestic chicken breeds, the Cornish chickens are also naturally very good breeders. They will breed easily and produce enough fertile eggs if you keep good ratio of hens and roosters in your flock.
Generally one mature rooster is enough for breeding around or up to 10 hens.
Caring
The Cornish chickens are sometimes aggressive in nature. But they are relatively easy to handle, calm and friendly. The hens are good mothers, and the chicks grow faster and reach slaughtering age earlier than other chicken breeds.
Along with feeding good quality feeds and providing your birds a good shelter, taking additional caring will help your birds to grow better and stay healthy. Monitor your birds health on a regular basis for any signs of diseases or illness and take necessary steps as soon as possible.
Vaccinate your birds timely and keep good contact with a vet in your area. Always provide your birds with enough nutritious food and never feed them with contaminated feeds.
Marketing
Marketing chicken products is not a problem. Because chicken products generally have very good demand and value in the market.
So, you will probably be able to easily sell your products in the local or any nearest market. Although you should set your marketing strategies before starting this business.
These are the common ways and steps for starting and operating a successful Cornish chicken farming business. Hope this guide has helped you! Good luck & may God bless you!
