How a Poultry Farm in Zhytomyr Region Reduces Costs with Its Own Feed
In the town of Popilnia, located in the Zhytomyr region, a local poultry farm has implemented its own feed production line, allowing the enterprise to cut its egg production costs in half. Thanks to this decision, the farm houses 260,000 hens under one roof and demonstrates an effective model of savings for the industry.
This is reported by AgroReview
Own Feed: A Path to Financial Stability
The main part of costs in poultry farming comes from feed, which accounts for up to 65% of the cost of eggs or poultry meat. Traditionally, farms purchase ready-made feed at a price of 7,000–9,000 UAH per ton, paying additional costs to intermediaries. In Popilnia, they decided to change their approach: they installed their own production line that allows them to prepare feed from both their own and purchased grains. The cost of corn for production is 4,500–5,000 UAH per ton, which provides savings of up to 4,000 UAH on each ton of feed. Given the scale of the farm, this allows them to save tens of millions of UAH each season.
“Feed accounts for 60–65% of the cost of eggs or chicken. The rest includes electricity, veterinary drugs, labor, and depreciation. When grain prices rise alongside diesel and fertilizers, ready-made feed becomes even more expensive because the processor adds their own margin.”
Farms that rely on the feed market are the first to feel price pressure. Those with their own feed base or a full-fledged feed mill have protection against price fluctuations. The Popilnia poultry farm has also automated the feeding process, minimizing human factors and reducing personnel costs.
Entry Costs in Poultry Farming and Opportunities for Development
To start in poultry farming in 2026, it is sufficient to organize a mini-farm with 1,000 laying hens. The costs for the poultry house will range from 500,000 UAH, depending on the condition of the premises and equipment. The purchase of day-old chicks will cost 120 UAH per head, while the first batch of feed will be 50,000–80,000 UAH. With proper organization, the return on investment is expected within 16–24 months, and the profitability of laying hens remains at 35–60%.
Producing feed independently allows for a reduction in the cost of one egg to 1.5–2.3 UAH, while the retail price reaches 8–9 UAH each, and wholesale batches are sold for 45–55 UAH per dozen. Thus, having an own feed base ensures a stable difference between production costs and selling prices.
A separate direction is organic poultry farming. Currently, there are only four certified organic farms in Ukraine, and organic eggs are sold at 2–3 times the price of regular ones. This segment remains open, and demand from restaurants and retail chains is steadily increasing.
Before starting, it is important for the farmer to determine the main direction of activity: laying hens provide a stable cash flow, while broilers offer greater one-time profits but with a shorter cycle and dependence on market prices for chicken. It is also necessary to calculate the availability of an own feed base, as without it, profitability decreases by half. Equally important is to choose sales channels before starting operations: this could be the local market, restaurants, supermarkets, or a personal delivery service. Each option has its own requirements for packaging and certification, and also affects the level of margin.