NAIROBI, July 30 (Xinhua) -- At his home in Athi River, south of Nairobi, Kenya's capital, farmer Herman Kimeu keeps 300 improved Kienyeji breed chickens.
From the birds, the farmer gets fertilized eggs that he sells at 20 Kenyan shillings (0.18 U.S. dollars) each and further hatches some into chicks in an artificial incubator.
While selling of eggs is a good money-maker for him, his biggest business is the sale of the Kienyeji chicks that go from 1 dollar to 5 dollars depending on the age.
Kimeu sells a day-old chick at a dollar while a four-month goes for 5 dollars. Demand for the birds has risen tremendously in the east African nation as farmers seek climate-resilient chicken breeds.
The birds are not only fast-maturing but are also resistant to diseases and feed less, giving Kenyan farmers brisk business.
Moreover, they produce as much eggs as hybrid birds and have tender meat loved by consumers.
"I don't regret starting to rear the Kienyeji birds after ditching the layers hybrids. They have more profit because they are rarely disturbed by diseases and their eggs are fertilized enabling me to sell them at higher price than the unfertilized ones," said Kimeu.
The farmer hatches 300 eggs after every 21 days, with most of the chicks bought on order way before he hatches them.
"Right now I am processing two orders that I hope to complete by mid next month," he said.
Kenya is experiencing rapid change in climate, where temperatures are oscillating from one extreme to another as rains become scarce thanks to climate change.
The situation has led to increase in poultry diseases, mainly coccidiosis and Newcastle, both that kill birds in days if not treated, according to experts.
"The Kienyeji birds are resistant to some of these diseases, which are one of the things that have them popular," said Bernard Kariuki, a farmer in Kiambu County who also hatches and sells Kuroiler birds, another improved breed.
Before selling the chicks, he vaccinates them against various diseases including Newcastle, Marek's disease and fowl typhoid.
Besides the Kienyeji and Kuroiler birds, Kenyan farmers are also going for Kuchi and Kenbrow, other improved breeds.
The Kienyeji chicken has solved the challenge of low production, slow maturity and diseases, according to Fred Odour, a poultry specialist at agro consultancy Growth Point.
He noted that unlike the traditional or hybrid breeds, the improved breeds perform better than the two in terms of growth rate, attaining 3 kg at five months for the cocks.
The cocks go for between 10 dollars and 15 dollars depending on the size, premium prices as compared to broilers, which fetch an average of 5 dollars, and are prone to diseases.
"The hens lay between 220 eggs to 280 eggs per year, which is much higher than the traditional breeds but slightly lower than the hybrid. But if you do the math, the climate-smart birds are the best," he said.
According to Kenya Poultry Farmers Association, there are over 32 million chickens in the East African nation, of which 6 million are commercial hybrids.
