I WAS A MATATU TOUT, NOW I’M A COMMERCIAL GUINEA FOWL FARMER SUPPLYING MAJOR HOTEL
When Jefferson Mwamburi visited his relatives in Thika, he was a young man with little or no experience in agribusiness. Like most 25 year olds he was basically trying to understand his purpose in life and hoping for a better day.
He had tried working as a bus conductor in Nairobi but life in the city had proven too expensive and unsustainable for him. He would wake up early in the morning and then spend the rest of his day manoeuvring through the city’s traffic before going to sleep at the wee hours of the night.
His measly income coupled by the rising cost of living meant that meeting basic needs was next to impossible. He was not able to save or invest in anything despite working for over 18 hours a day.
His trip to Thika, a town within the Nairobi Metropolitan region, was in preparation for yet another longer journey back to his rural area in Taita hills. He had given up in life and he just wanted to retire and focus on peasant farming or something else.
But just before he could leave Thika, his host shared 10 guinea fowl eggs with him – a gift for Mwamburi’s ageing father who lived back in the village. Little did the young man know that this was his biggest breakthrough in life yet.
When he went back home, he did not give all the eggs to the old man. Instead he gave him 5 eggs and gave the rest to one of the brooding hens in the house to see if they would hatch.
In the end, he was very lucky because out of 5 eggs, 3 hatched. Out of the 3 keets that hatched, 2 were females and one was a male presenting him with a perfect combination for setting up a larger farm.
That was back in 2011 and fast-forward to 2014, Mwamburi’s population of guinea fowls had grown exponentially to 500 birds despite him selling at least 10 birds to local hotels every month.
Today, the young man from Ndebwa village of Taita Taveta county is popularly referred to as Kijana wa kanga (the young man who farms guinea fowls).
His small farm has become a full-time business and already he has established links with two restaurants in Voi town that order mature fowls from his farm on a monthly basis.
He sells a mature bird at Ksh.2,000, an egg for Ksh.50 and day-old chicks at Ksh.500.
*Low Maintenance*
According to Mwamburi, as compared to chicken, guinea fowls require low maintenance. They are free-range animals meaning they can eat insects and weeds in the field and therefore two to three kilos of maize is normally enough to feed his entire farm daily.
Another advantage with keeping guinea fowls over chicken is that they don’t destroy crops. Thus even if you leave them to roam freely in the compound, there will be no conflicts with neighbors.
These birds are also naturally more resistant to poultry diseases. You only need to vaccinate them against Newcastle disease and de-worm regularly after every three to four months.
*Expanding His Business*
Apart from guinea fowls, Mwamburi has expanded his farm to accommodate turkeys and indigenous chicken. He sells a mature turkey at Ksh.5,000 and a three month old one at Ksh.3,500.
And because he is among the few people in Taita Taveta with a KWS license to rear wild birds, he enjoys some sort of monopoly.
Demand currently outstrips supply meaning he is able to meet his needs, support his family and invest in expanding his farm as he seeks to tap into a wider market.
Mind you, he now works for less than 8 hours a day meaning he is able to spend more quality moments with his loved ones.
However, it is all not rosy, one challenge he has to grapple with is inbreeding.
Since few people in the area keep these birds, there is a high chance that closely related fowls may mate and this might produce unhealthy chicks.
He overcomes this challenge by buying new cocks regularly from neighbouring farms.
*Expert Tips on Guinea Fowl Farming*
*It takes about 5 months for a bird to mature and start laying eggs and once they start, they lay a single egg each day for 3 months after which they seek to brood.
*In order to venture into this business, you will need a KWS license which can be obtained at the service headquarters in Langata, Nairobi. This goes for Ksh.2,000.
*You can start this business on a small plot of land although you may be required to upgrade as the population grows.
*Guinea fowls are roaming birds and they prefer to walk around freely. They hatch 100% of their eggs.
*There are several species of guinea fowls but the “helmeted pearl” is the most popular of them all.
*On a good month and with an average farm of 500 birds you can comfortably make Ksh.100,000 in sales.
*Finally*
For the former matatu conductor, the sky is the limit. His dream is to set up a big brand and supply the entire coastal area and Kenya at large.
Keeping in mind that he started his venture with nothing in his pockets, his story is a clear revelation that sweat capital is the most important form of investment one can give to their business.
By
Justine Nyachieo
Business Man & Mentor
Timothy Angwenyi
Business Consultant
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