Biotech crops modify the face of agriculture - CNBC Africa

Biotech crops modify the face of agriculture - CNBC Africa

Agric financing for chicken abattoir.

Farmers just like any other business,may need to lean on a financial arm for support at a point in time.Many farmers dont know the opportunities they have to access these facilities, or how to access them and grow. Farming is a lucrative venture duly supported by government,financial giants,cooperative bodies and micro finance schemes. Agricultural loans are of various types , can be accessed at various levels and have different amounts as per the size of the project.These loans can be accessed corporately or as individuals,depending on amount involved,most of these loans can only be accessed when the farm has an insurance cover. Agricultural loans and agricultural insurance are intertwined,you cannot do one without the other; before you try to access the loan make sure you are insured.The basic requirement for the loan are as follows; 1) application form. 2) farm records; showing productivity and profitability. 3) Registration record/licence of farm. 4) account details. The banks that give out such loans include bank of agriculture, and first bank ,they also require you have an account with them that is operational. To secure an agric loan from a micro finance bank is easy and readily available; see the process Facility range: N50,000 (minimum) to N500,000 (maximum) Methodology: Individual, group and corporate Duration: 1-12 months Grace period: 30-60 days Prospective clients must be practicing farmers with verifiable evidence of existing farm investments. Benefits: No collateral Provides capital for farming activities Flexible repayment structure Low interest rates.

Promoting economic growth with phones.

Information is vital to growth of any economy.The rate at which information is generated,disseminated and utilized is rapidly changing how businesses are run thus imparting the economy.

   Information communication technology has changed the playing field in various strata of the economy,with the advent of mobile phones,internet ,apps, and cloud services.

 Telecommunication has been utilized to collect data,analyze data,process the data and disseminate this as information to individuals and corporations. This facilitates  perfect operations in these fields resulting in economic development.


 The possibilities of telecommunication as a growth driver of the economy is endless..The world itself is a global village, making communication and transfer of documents across continents at the speed of a click.

      The role of telecommunication as a force for economic change are as follows:

 1) Education: this gives access to books,articles,journals learning aids and teaching aids. Telecommunication also facilitates obtaining degrees online,by provision of online universities and self-help courses,which open up individuals to wealth of information and advanced technology which they can apply to their various fields.

 2) Health: this gives access to unique health care facilities,interaction with experts all over the world and exposure to latest medical procedures and diagnostic tools.

This is so very useful in the rural areas where they can access a medical personnel by simply making a call,joining in conference calls and also telemedicine

. 3) Agriculture: this allows forum discussion, dissemination of real live updates on weather,price, improved seeds, insurance, pest control and animal management.

There are several programs that transfer information through info graphics,animation or videos educating farmers so that they cut losses and expand the business.

 4) Time management: with telecommunication every aspect of production is simplified making work fast and easy.  Every information can be easily accessed, and quickly disseminated,thus saving time and over head cost.

 The role of telecommunication as a growth driver for the economy is made possible and workable because of the mobile phone,one in every 3 people has a phone even in rural communities,there is an access to pay phone points.

 Telecommunication is a game changer in the business world and especially the agricultural sector where so many innovations and strategies are springing up to ensure food security. One of such programs is the phone -a-farmer initiative® . This concept  aims to boost the agricultural value chains in various sectors.

PROCESSING POULTRY FOR PROFIT.

All categories of poultry can be raised and processed for profit. The time of maturation of these birds differ hence the venture could be short term or a long term venture depending on your finances . Whatever the category, processing and packaging as premium chicken still is the best approach as it attracts high market value.

BROILERS: PROCESSING AND BY-PRODUCTS.

The 42-day rapid return on investment in broiler production makes it a lucrative business.The beauty of the venture is that no part of the birds is a waste,all by-products is a money-spinner. 

 The processing of the birds are done in processing plants which come in various capacities depending on your type of venture.

The birds are processed in the following sections; Stunning, the birds are stunned before slaughtering to prevent blood in the meat,thus tainting the meat.

 Slaughtering: this is done using the slaughtering cone, the birds are placed in cones and slaughtered. 

 Scalding tank: birds placed in scalding tank operated at proper temperature to prevent cooking the birds. 

   

 De-feathering; the feathers are removed in the defeathering machine,that ensures the birds are clean . \

Evisceration; the visceral removed, also the head/ neck is removed. Washing; the birds are passed to the washing section where they are hosed down with clean water. The birds are then sent to packaging unit. 

 The packaging unit is the last phase of processing,the birds are packed using clean transparent bags and these are sent to chillers for onward supply to supermarket. Investors in this venture can make more money by processing other birds from other farms at a price,this will also reduce over head cost.

The investor can position himself as a producer/ processor in an area bringing more opportunities to that zone.

This can also be another empowerment opportunity for young school leavers,who can easily raise broilers and process in this plant and sell as premium chicken . The investor can also work with other farmers ,who will sell to him and he will process and sell as premium chicken thus increasing his finances without increasing his cost of production.

 Broiler waste can also be collected and processed to produce bio-gas and also electricity.The waste is channeled to a digester fed with anaerobic bacteria to give bio-gas for cooking and also energy.This can be transferred to grid which can power the poultry farm and save overhead by reducing electricity bill. 

 The feathers are collected in a vat,washed and dyed.These are then used as fashion accessories, pillow stuffing's,table decor,office decor and writing materials. 

The blood collected can be processed and included into feed of animals.

Breeding pigs for profit.

Pigs   are mono gastric animals usually bred for commercial purposes. The raising of pigs is for reproduction, fattening and sale. Pigs properly managed and housed in a clean environment reproduce at a fast rate and bring about good return on investment.
 
                                       Breeds of pigs.
   There are various breeds of pigs available such as land race,large white,Duroc and Hampshire. The indigenous breeds available have been crossed over time with exotic breeds such that some of their traits are passed down.

   The cross with indigenous breeds ensures that the pigs are hardy and are stable in this environment. Pigs must be chosen for high productivity, sexual soundness, rapid growth,good mothering ability and excellent health and breeding soundness.

                                         Selection of stock. 
 When setting up a farm, your stock must be chosen from proven sources with excellent health and breeding records.
 Boars, to be chosen must be from a sow with high reproductive capacity at least 8 -10 piglets/litter. The boar must be active with 10-12 rudimentary teat. The boar must be from a disease-free stock, with no record of lameness .
 The boar must have well developed feet with uniform curve at the back and must be long in length. The boar must be selected from stock with well developed sex organs.
 The boar must be at least 8 months to be suitable for service.

                                                           Gilts. 
 These are virgin females, they must be selected from fast growing weaners. The gilts must have good body conformation, strong legs and feet. The gilts are selected from sows with good mothering abilities and high farrowing rate of 9-11 piglets/litter.
 The gilts must not have any defects such as inverted teats,or fat deposited at the base of their teats. 

                                                          Housing.
 A piece of land of about 120×60 ft can house about 400 full grown pigs.    The land should be fenced to keep out predators.
There must be a borehole to supply water on the farm . The pens are solid structures with dwarf walls that have metal gates,the floors are cemented but roughened to prevent falling of pigs. Houses should have in built feeding troughs and feeding troughs.

                                                               Feeding.
 Pigs are to be fed a balanced ration for optimal growth, development and reproduction. The ration should not be fatty to prevent the pigs from depositing fat to produce fatty pork instead of lean meat. Feed can be sourced locally or commercial feed can be purchased. Feed ingredients are as follows,maize,p.k.c, wheat bran, brewers waste,full fat soya,vegetables, fishmeal, with salt and minerals.

                                                             Breeding. 
Boars are put to work at about 9 months of age when they are sexually matured. Gilts are mated at about 8 months, the gilts are growing and also feeding their fetuses, thus the nutrition must be such to cater for the growth and development of the fetuses, the gilts are flushed 3 weeks to the mating by increasing feed intake.
     When the gilt is on heat and ready for mating stands to pressure and allows the boar.The mating is down twice at 24hr interval.The gestation period is113 days,the sow is moved to farrowing pen 2 days to expected delivery. The farrowing house must be warm and have extra floor covering to prevent damage to knees and feet of piglets.

The piglets are exposed to colostrum immediately after birth.The sow milk does not contain enough iron so iron injection must be given to the the piglets.

                                                    Management of piglets. 

They should be started on creep feed at about 9 days, this is high in protein and stimulates rapid growth. The piglets have 2 teeth on the upper and lower jaw, that have needle points that can damage the udder, this must be clipped
   .Boars that are to be fattened must be castrated to remove the smell taint from the pork when sold.Tail tip is cut to prevent tail biting..  Deworming and antibiotic treatment are given at stipulated times.

BROILER PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING.

The raising of broilers for profit is no new venture, but not many people know the rapid turn over potential in this venture. Broilers are birds raised for meat, they grow rapidly and have good feed conversion ratio.The beauty of this venture is that the birds mature at a fast rate within a short time span of 8 to 10 weeks, and the farmer gets to make a steady income every 8/10 weeks. The fast food industry major in the use of broilers for most of the dishes they serve ,because of the taste , the quality of the breast meat and the size . The broiler can also be processed and hygienically packed as premium birds and sold in stores and retail outlets. The raising of the broiler starts from the day old, which must be from a good hatchery as the type of breed purchased has a lot to do with the outcome of the venture. The main purpose of the broiler production is to produce birds with good breast muscle, that reach market size at the appropriate time and have high return on investment. The Cobb broiler chicks will give good breast meat, have good feed conversion ration, reach a weight of 2.24kg in 42 days, mortality rate is 2- 4% and the feed intake is about 4-4.2 kg, the average weight in the first week is about 160gm . The cobb broiler will give a high return on investment. The management of the day old chicks include the brooding stage, the birds are kept warm using a source of heat that is monitored, the temperature of the house should be monitored , feed and water should be available for the chicks, a brooder guard should be available to keep them near the heat source and their must be shavings on the floor , there must be extra lightening for the birds so as to access feed which promotes growth in broilers. The birds are fed on broiler starter from 0-5 weeks. The growing/finishing stage the birds are fed with the broiler finisher from 6 weeks to slaughter when they reach market weight.The health status of the birds are important if they are to perform optimally,thus vaccinations, vitamins, antibiotics and worming are important. The birds must have access to good quality feed, and clean water always. The production is a continuous one so the flock should be replaced as soon as they reach market size. The Cobb broiler breed is more than just appearance, its efficient feed conversion is a plus in this era where feed costs are high and also its well suited for hotter temperatures.