[Athi River, September 25, 2024] The Daystar poultry farm project started by the School of Applied Human Sciences in 2022 has registered growth both commercially and as a demonstration farm for students taking Agriculture.

Started in 2022 in collaboration with the University of Maryland, the project now has 2,500 broilers and 830 layers, up from the initial 500 birds at project inception.

In an interview with the Infospot, the Poultry Project Coordinator and Lecturer in Agriculture, Ms. Helen Nafuna revealed that the farm buys day-old chicks from Kenchic.

According to Ms. Nafuna, the birds are grown within safety standards and fed correctly with homemade feeds comprising maize germ, rice bran and soya meal. She further revealed that the project plans to introduce medicinal weed to feed the chicken. The farm has only 2% mortality rate of the birds, thanks to good nutrition, sanitation and ventilation. The homemade feeds supplement feeds bought from the shops.

According to the Dean, School of Applied Human Sciences, Dr. Kennedy Ongaro, the poultry farm is a learning lab for students studying Agriculture.

“The farm ensures that the students we graduate will become poultry specialists with what it takes to invest in poultry farming, creating jobs for themselves and others,” said Dr. Ongaro further stated that the poultry farm will also serve as a learning centre for community-based organizations (CBOs) and other groups within the community. The farm will also be open to research organizations and suppliers of inputs.

Dr. Ongaro added that plans were underway to bring in milk goats.

With a daily production of 24 crates of eggs, the poultry farm sufficiently is able to supply eggs and broiler chicken to the University kitchen as well as the community all year round.

A tray of eggs costs Ksh 450 while a piece of chicken goes for Ksh 500.  The poultry farm has five employees and is operating at a profit.