Page 141 - One Thousand Ways to Make $1000

A Smart Way to Market Broilers

W

HEN Mrs. Alice Moffet, who lives on the outskirts of Blue Island, Illinois,
decided it was up to her to help balance the family budget, she turned to
raising broilers to make money. After several months of experimenting with
marketing ideas, she hit upon a method that enabled her to earn more than a
thousand dollars from her venture.

“Like many others who start a chicken ranch, I thought all one had to do was
feed the little chicks, keep them warm, and when they were twelve weeks old,
sell them to the butcher. I knew nothing about marketing poultry. I soon
found out, however, that to make a big profit from broilers, they should be
dressed and packaged attractively before marketing.

“I followed the accepted practice of buying one-day-old chicks from
responsible hatcheries. Putting them in brooders, I carried them along until
they were twelve weeks old. In developing the pullets for market, I made
many mistakes which I have since corrected. I had permitted the chickens to
run in a large pen which made their flesh tough. Now I no longer let them run
about but keep them in a special ‘broiler plant’ and they bring better prices.
Keeping the chicks in the ‘broiler plant’ enables me to feed and care for 500
day-old chicks in a small space. At twelve weeks they are ready for market
and bring top prices.

“At first, I shipped the live pullets to the wholesale house, but I soon
discovered that the loss from shrinkage in shipping, regardless of distance, is
about 10 per cent, which cuts heavily into their market value. Pullets lose
weight when shipped due to handling and irregular feeding. The first time I
checked this loss against the price paid me by the commission companies, I
couldn’t understand it. I was doing a big business but wasn’t making money.
So I experimented with some marketing ideas. Instead of selling the pullets
alive, I dressed them and packaged them in attractive pasteboard boxes
labeled, ‘Milk-Fed Broilers.’ I sold them to the butchers who get a few cents
a pound more for dressed broilers attractively wrapped in waxed paper than