Bista had invested Rs 4 million in his farm even though putting money in poultry farming was considered a risky business due to uncertainty about the market. [break]
Abhinash Poultry Breeding Farm is considered a milestone in the commercialization of poultry industry outside the capital. Setting up a hatchery in Chitwan was a challenging task, as hot climate in Tarai districts were earlier considered unfavorable for poultry farming.
Today Abhinash Group - with Abhinash Feeds, Abhinash Hatchery, Abhinash Poultry and Narayani Poultry under its umbrella -- is one of the largest poultry producers in the country. "We are the largest producer of layers chicks in the country," Bista, who is also the president of Abhinash Group, told myrepublica.com.
The group produces 60,000 broiler and 25,000 layers chicks every week. The nation produces a total of 1.2 million broiler and 60,000 layer chicks every week.
Bista said growing demand for chicks from farmers and shortage of chicks in the market encouraged him to open a hatchery farm in Chitwan. "I started this hatchery farm in consultation with Indian experts, who provided me valuable inputs on the successful management of hatchery farms in hot areas like Chitwan," Bista added.
Abhinash Hatchery started with 2,000 parent chicks of Key Stone Brown - an Indian breed of layers.
Abhinash Poultry produces 800 kg of broiler chicken every day. The daily production of dressed chicken hovers around 350,000 kg.
Bista said Abhinash Group was preparing to increase chicken production by increasing number of broiler chicks at Narayani Poultry from 60,000 heads to 150,000 heads. "We are planning to produce 400,000 chicks, including 50,000 layers, every week," he added.
The group is also hiring 150 more staffers to support its expansion plan. The fresh recruitment would double the group´s existing workforce to 300.
"The expansion of Narayani Poultry will be completed within six months," Bista said.
The group has invested over Rs 500 million in its ventures. It records an average annual turnover of Rs 120 million.
Today poultry business has expanded to different parts of the country. But it is not free from problems and challenges. Government´s indifference, frequent strikes and recurrence of bird flu are the major factors hindering the growth of poultry sector in the country, Bista added.
He also suggested the government to form Poultry Police for the effective management of this ever-expanding sector which has already seen investment of more than Rs 16 billion.
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