- ✓Understand what sets the coloured chicken apart from the white broiler
- ✓Recognise the six chickens in the range and their strengths
- ✓Choose the chicken that suits your market and your house
Why the coloured chicken?
The white broiler is sold at around 35 to 45 days. The coloured chicken stays on the farm for 8 to 14 weeks. It grows more slowly, but makes up for it with qualities that are much sought after in Côte d'Ivoire.
- Hardy: it copes better with management lapses and with heat.
- Firm, tasty meat, close to that of a village chicken: the “improved poulet bicyclette”.
- Flexible sale: from 8 to 14 weeks depending on the weight sought and the market.
- Outdoor run possible from 4 to 5 weeks, if the farm is fenced and protected.
It often sells better than the white broiler, per bird or by weight, at markets, in maquis (local eateries) and for festive occasions. But it eats for longer: profitability depends on the choice of chicken and the choice of selling age (lesson 3 of this track).
The six chickens in the range
| Chicken | Appearance | Strength | Target weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red broiler (Redbro) | Dark red, black tail, yellow skin and shanks | The heaviest in the range | About 2.4 kg at 56 days |
| Naked-neck red broiler | Same colour, featherless neck | Copes better with heat | About 2.3 kg at 56 days |
| Barred grey | Grey and black barred plumage, yellow skin and shanks | Growth close to the red broiler | About 2.3 kg at 56 days |
| Red hybrid, white skin | Red plumage, white skin and shanks | Slow growth, firm meat | About 1.6 kg at 56 days, 2 kg at 70 days |
| Naked-neck red hybrid | Dark red, naked neck, yellow skin and shanks | Very hardy, comfortable in strong heat | About 2 kg at 70 days |
| Naked-neck black hybrid | Black to grey plumage, naked neck, black shanks | “Village chicken” look | About 2 kg at 70 days |
Indicative Hubbard Premium performance. NEXTEKCI red broiler, barred grey and hybrid chicks follow the same benchmarks as the Hubbard Premium reference range (Hubbard Redbro, Hubbard JA).
Two families stand out: the medium-growth coloured chickens (red broiler, naked-neck red broiler, barred grey), at around 2.3 to 2.4 kg at 56 days, and the slow-growing hybrids, at around 2 kg at 70 days.
The naked neck is not a defect
Naked-neck chickens have fewer feathers: they lose heat more easily and suffer less when it is very hot. In an open-sided house in a hot area, or on an outdoor run exposed to the sun, this is a real advantage.
The colour of the plumage, skin and shanks also matters in your customers' buying decision: yellow skin for the red broiler, barred grey and red naked necks, white skin for the white-skinned red hybrid, black shanks for the naked-neck black hybrid. Look at what your market buys before choosing.
The two have very similar curves (about 2.30 kg against 2.38 kg at 56 days). The choice is mainly made on the look your customers prefer.
Which chicken for which market?
| What your market asks for | Recommended chicken | Indicative selling age |
|---|---|---|
| A 1.5 to 2 kg chicken, firm meat | Hybrids | 56 to 70 days |
| A 2 to 2.5 kg chicken | Red broiler, barred grey | 56 to 63 days |
| A large festive chicken (3 kg and over) | Red broiler | 70 to 84 days |
Then add your house and your climate: in strong heat, in an open-sided house or on an outdoor run, the naked necks (naked-neck red broiler, naked-neck hybrids) are the most comfortable.
With a type of chicken you do not know yet, start with a trial flock: you will see how it grows on your farm and how your customers receive it.
For the entrepreneur
- ›Before ordering, go round your customers: weight sought, colour of plumage and skin, sale per bird or by weight.
- ›The coloured chicken stays 8 to 14 weeks on the farm: plan the feed and the cash for the whole length of the flock.
- ›In a very hot area or on a sunny outdoor run, think of the naked necks.
For the technician
- ›Learn to recognise each type of chicken: plumage, skin, shanks, neck.
- ›Write the type of chicken received on the flock sheet: the weight targets are not the same.
- ›Report early any flock that drifts away from its weight benchmarks.
The 3 questions to ask your technician this week
- What type of chicken do we have in this house, and what is its target weight at 56 days?
- Do our customers mostly ask for a 2 kg chicken or a large festive chicken?
- Do the birds suffer from the heat in the hot hours, and would a naked-neck chicken be better suited?
Key points
- •Coloured chicken: 8 to 14 weeks on the farm, against 5 to 6 for the white broiler.
- •Hardy, with firm meat, it often sells better, per bird or by weight.
- •Red broiler, naked-neck red broiler, barred grey: about 2.3 to 2.4 kg at 56 days.
- •Hybrids: slow growth, about 2 kg at 70 days.
- •The naked neck loses heat more easily: an advantage in strong heat.