Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)

Sai Happy Hens Farm - Free range poultry farm in Tamil Nadu

Register

Click Here!

shwethasvmg

New Member
India’s first ever free range poultry farm in Tamil Nadu


Sai Happy Hens Farm is home to 7500 poultry birds. It is quoted as ‘home’ because hens live here in natural environment having free outdoor access to get ample of fresh air, sunlight and feed on grass, bugs and grains unlike in the commonly found battery caged poultry farms.

“Presently in our country organic is over rated! If the animals are raised in stressed conditions then no matter how good feed is given to the poultry birds or other livestock animals the food produced will neither be tasty nor nutritious,” speaks out firmly Mr. Manjunath Marappan on his thoughts on today’s poultry farms that have turned into intensive industrial breeding units where the birds are raised in battery-cages leaving no space to fully stretch their limbs or spread their wings. The birds live just to produce eggs confined in the limited space forever! To revive the old practices of backyard poultry in commercial setup he established Sai Happy Hens farm along with his partner Mr. Ashok Kannan in the year 2010. It is nation’s first ever free range poultry farm selling eggs commercially. 1500-1800 is the egg production/day. The shelf life of egg is 15 days.
IMG_4578.jpg

“Birds are free to roam around in the daytime while in the evening they rest in the shed. Birds lay eggs in the nest boxes. Our farm set up didn’t dent our pockets nor is stressful for birds in the name of technology or boosting egg production. It is the poultry farm having natural environment as it used to be in good olden days,” adds Mr. Ashok. The birds are never given any non-therapeutic antibiotics, weight inducing hormones. “We are against the artificial lighting and forced molting practices for increasing the productivity instead we let the chicken grow as naturally as possible. We adhere to the standards stated by UK based organization Royal Society Prevention Cruelty Animals (RSPCA). It is elaborative mentioning do’s and don’ts in all aspects of poultry farming such as feed, green pasture and medication etc.” The farm spreads in 25 acre but at the moment 10 acre area is used for commercial poultry operations. It is located at Tamil Nadu.
Happy hens farm.jpg
Sai Happy Hens Farm

Three native breeds are reared in the farm namely Gramapriya, Kaveri and Kadaknath breed. Kaveri chicks are sourced from Karnataka, Gramapriya from Hyderabad and Kadaknath from Kerala. The chicks are purchased quarterly at the farm.



The nutritive mix of grains, greens, health supplements, hydroponic fodder and herbs such as brahmi, basil, turmeric, neem, etc. are fed to the birds. In addition during the day, hens also peck on worms, seeds and grass in the natural environment. "On need basis we also give ayurvedic concoctions to the hens," asserts Mr. Manjunath. Birds are vaccinated as per the prescribed and standard norms. “As we have provided innate atmosphere to the birds for usual growth and have multiple breeds, they are resistant to the diseases and sturdy to survive. Besides we also have multiple species of animals in our farm such as cow, horse, dogs and cats etc. Hence as most of the elements of ecosystem are already present in the farm, we have the bio-security in the farm. It is overall the best possible natural environment created leaving less room for diseases or problems.”



Eggs are sold in Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune through e-commerce websites, organic stores and national retailers. Eggs are sold at Rs. 130/- for a pack of six. Speaking of premium price he explains, “Initially it was tough as buyers are used to compare it with normal white eggs. It was a challenge to clarify that egg is not a cheap protein! Consumers are ready to spend more than Rs. 150/- for a simple cocoa based chocolate but for a protein rich food they ask numerous questions! Further our production levels are different because birds are reared in open surroundings. However, with amazing flavour of the eggs and nutritive quotient end consumers could understand and appreciate the uniqueness of eggs produced at Sai Happy Hen Farm and slowly accepted the price difference.”



When asked about the direct sales, Mr. Ashok replies, “We do participate occasionally in Farmers’ Market but rest we want to keep our focus on production as we believe a farmer should be a farmer. If we diversify into delivery then it is a complete new business that could hamper our farming operations and we do not want to compromise on our production.”



In future, expansion is on cards at Sai Happy Hens Farm with commencing franchise operations. Mr. Manjunath reveals, “We are looking forward for giving the franchise to the people who want to grow food ensuring the welfare of hens and maintaining the standards we have established. We also shall be selling chicken next year. Lastly we want to create more awareness on animal welfare for livestock farming.”



Duo concludes, “We have learnt and are still learning on poultry farming from senior people residing in remote areas across Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. We have gained the knowledge from them and applied it on the larger scale. We believe agriculture provides the bio-diversity. It was a huge debacle that previous generation moved away from farming but it is vital to return back now.”



Contact details:

Sai Happy Farms Pvt Ltd

Email: eggs@thehappyhensfarm.com

Web: http://www.thehappyhensfarm.com
 
Last edited:

Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)

faridmazroui

New Member
I have a farm in United Arab Emirates which i grow varieties of salads using Hydroponic method under greenhouses, with help of desert air-conditions it is very profitable. The farm is 8 hector and the rest of it i want to start free range poultry farming using Kroiler breed of chicken for eggs as well as meat i need a contact of first grade breed so i can purchase 1000 chicks layers and 1000 chicks broiler.
 

Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)


Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)

pjshiva

New Member
@shwethasvmg
Hi Shweta I'm also trying to accomplish same on some smaller scale at Maharashtra, as I'm just starting up..As compared to you it's just 1:17 ...I wish if u guys can enlighten me with some knowledge of your about rearing.. thnx in advance
Pj_study@yahoo.co.in
Or
What's app me on 8805897585
 

Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)

Top