This archive report was first published on 7 September 2019.
Published on September 7, 2019, by Winnie Lelei, a seasoned author with the Nation.
Joseph Kyengo, a 70-year-old poultry farmer from Maekani in Machakos County, has found a lucrative business in hatching chicks using a paraffin-powered incubator.
Initially, Mr. Kyengo kept around 100 chickens for meat and eggs but found the business costly due to high feed and treatment demands, with the market unwilling to pay more. He now maintains a flock of 20 Kienyeji hens and four cockerels, sourcing fertilized eggs for his incubator.
The paraffin incubator, acquired from the Agricultural Technology Development Centre (ATDC) in Katumani, Machakos County, cost Sh14,000, which Mr. Kyengo paid in installments. He also received training on how to use the machine for successful hatching.
According to John Masila, an agricultural engineer at ATDC, the ideal incubator temperature for chicks to hatch is 38°C, with humidity between 50% and 70% during the last few days. The turning of eggs is necessary to prevent the developing embryo from getting attached to the shell, but this is not required from day 19 onwards.
Mr. Kyengo uses a pencil to mark the eggs, allowing him to track the egg-hatching process. The machine has a capacity of 200 eggs and works by heating the air in the compartment through conduction, with vapour from a tin of hot water maintaining humidity for the hatching process.
After 21 days, the chicks begin to break out of their shells unaided. Mr. Kyengo takes them out one by one, ensuring their fur has dried out, to prevent harm to those still struggling out of their shells.
From 200 eggs, Mr. Kyengo gets 180 chicks, selling them at Sh100 each when they are day-old. Two-week-old chicks sell at Sh150, with some clients preferring older chicks due to fewer challenges.
