His gadgets can help you start a backyard business

MANILA, Philippines - An incubator for custom hatching of poultry eggs and another more sophisticated one for those of ostriches, or cages for chicken brooding, growing and laying at every possible scale.

These are just a few of the many poultry gadgets and equipment made by Filipino inventor Jose Abellar, owner and president of Abellar Equipment Philippines.

There are a number of doable businesses in poultry that even small-scale entrepreneurs can do, be it in the rural or urban areas, or in a big farm setting or simply at the backyard,” said Abellar.

One such business is backyard poultry-raising through the use of a steel cage module called “Brooder, Grower, Broiler cage assembly” or simply BGB cage, which is made of sturdy welded wire.

“Growing the birds in BGB cages is more beneficial than growing them in a colony system. The metal cage is very hygienic. The birds have a better feed conversion because they are confined in a small area where movement is limited. There are usually no runts in each batch because of enough feeding space and ventilation,” Abellar explained.

Two feet wide, 1.5 feet tall and 16 feet long, the BGB cage, with its steel support, stands two feet from the ground and has four compartments, each with an area of two feet by four feet for a combined 100-bird capacity.

Thus, brooding can be done right in the cage. Then, when the chicks are about three or four weeks old, 25 can be placed in each of the four compartments, where they will be raised for about 35 to 40 days.

The divisions prevent the overcrowding of chicken at any one part of the cage and make it convenient to handle them during medication and other procedures. Feeders on both sides of the cage are very convenient to fill and refill.

Using the same cage module, an entrepreneur can also grow pullets for egg production. After brooding, the birds will be raised in this cage until they are 16 weeks old and ready for transfer to the layer house.

The module can also be expanded to raise capacity since the cages can be joined together forming a straight line. At 100 birds per module, it will take only 100 modules to expand that capacity to 10,000. For this purpose, Abellar has a rail-based feed dispensing system that can distribute feeds in just 10 minutes.

Moreover, the BGB cage can be used to house ready-to-lay pullets of 16 weeks old. Day-old chicks usually cost P30 each, and after raising them for 16 weeks, they are usually sold at only P160 each. Thus, many egg producers buy ready-to-lay pullets since these are supposed to have been fully vaccinated and will start generating income in just a few weeks.

Another possible business is custom hatching using Abellar’s incubator, which caters mostly to fowl breeders. This incubator, with a capacity of 360 eggs, can hatch different batches of eggs of various quantities in a continuing operation.

Abellar’s another line of incubators is for ostrich eggs. “This incubator features a digital thermostat, the first of its kind introduced in the Philippines,” said Abellar. “It has a fully automated egg turner that operates according to the time programmed by the owner, depending on his requirements. This machine also includes such other features as electronic thermostat, heater pilot lights, built-in water pan, external water-refill receptacle, magnetic door locks, panoramic glass viewing doors, fiberglass housing and low wattage.”

Abellar’s products will be showcased with those of various firms from around the world during the staging of Agrilink, Foodlink and Aqualink 2009 at the World Trade Center Metro Manila on Oct. 8-10. “This international event, the country’s best agri trade fair, not only helped me meet clients, but also offered me insights on how I could further contribute to the industry,” Abellar stressed.

Supported by some 20 national trade associations with ABS-CBN as media partner, Agrilink, Foodlink and Aqualink constitute the country’s biggest and most prestigious annual international trade show on agribusiness, food and aquaculture.

More information can be obtained from event organizer Foundation for Resource Linkage and Development (tel. 8384549, 8384852, fax 8384573 or email [email protected]).