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Ostrich Farming Business Plan [Sample Template]

Are you about starting an Ostrich farm? If YES, here is a complete sample Ostrich farming business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE.

Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting an Ostrich farming business. We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample Ostrich farm marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for Ostrich farming businesses. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.

Ostriches have been consumed as far back as the third century BC. The birds were also used for chariot competition races as well. The egg shells of these birds were in earlier times used to store water. Ostriches are the only birds where all their parts are valuable, as the feathers are used for dusting and their hides as quality leather that is used mostly in vehicles.

If you are intending to start this business, you must consider your location carefully, especially as these birds are reared in arid conditions.

Also, you might want to consider what mode of rearing the birds you want to use as whatever mode you choose would determine your overall costs and capital needed for the business. Those who intend to scale down on costs might want to use the free range method as opposed to the battery cage method.

To know if it would be worthwhile going into the business, you would need to prepare a business plan that would give you an idea of what you intend going into. If the idea seems daunting enough, you might consider hiring a business consultant that would help you write out one for a fee.

However, several free sample templates are available online if you don’t mind writing it yourself and are running on a tight budget. Below is a sample of an ostrich farming business plan;

A Sample Ostrich Farming Business Plan Template

1. Industry Overview

south africa had the monopoly of the ostrich market for a century and a half, until mid 1980s, when some US farmers imported breeder ostriches with the intention to ranch the ostriches. However, the government of South Africa soon banned exportation of the birds as it didn’t want to lose its monopolistic hold on the market.

Ostrich farms when compared to other type of farming are quite cheaper to run, causing a lot of beef producers in America to turn to ostrich farming.

A typical ostrich lays about 40 eggs annually, with the hatched chicks reaching market size in a short time span – 14 months. An ostrich produces 1,800 kilograms of meat, 50 square meters of leather and 36 kilograms of feather in a year, making it a very profitable venture.

Most female ostriches during their lifetime can produce more, with a single female ostrich producing 72,000 kilograms of meat, 2,000 square meters of leather and 2,000 kilograms of feather. The rise in demand for ostrich meat is due to the fact that it tastes similar to beef but is healthier in the long run than beef. However, getting the meat is quite expensive as demand far outweighs supply.

Even though most ostriches are produced in Africa, more American farmers have joined this profitable business, especially as not only are the birds easy to raise but even a newbie can raise the birds and start the business successfully. Also, the fact that every part of an ostrich is valuable, farmers are making more than their investment into this business.

The skin of an ostrich yields more than that of an average cow, and also is used for leather products especially bags, as most fashion stores consider the leather equal to that of crocodiles or snakes. Aside bags, the leather can also be used to produce jackets, shoes, wallets and belts.

According to statistics, there are currently 3,000 ranches dealing with ostriches in the united states of America, with the number growing as more and more ranches are joining the business. This means that there are at least 600,000 ostriches being raised in ranches across the United States, with global demand rising to about 3 million.

There is a huge growth potential for the ostrich market, even though the industry is yet to gain a 1% share of the total market. Having at least a 1% share in the total market would mean that more ostriches numbering about 4 million would need to be farmed and slaughtered to be able to meet growing demand.

2. Executive Summary

Fiery Ostrich Farms intends to be one of the leading ranches in Anchorage – Alaska as well as the United States in catering to domestic and commercial customers. Our ostriches which were imported from South Africa and are mostly the ‘African Blacks’ strain have gone through quarantine and have passed the virus check.

Due to the fact that we have the best birds in the industry, we intend to favorably compete with other ostrich farms and ranches in Alaska and the United States as a whole. Our farm is large enough for our birds and we intend engaging in a free range mode of farming system.

Due to this fact, we intend to hire the best hands that will ensure that we not only make enough profit to sustain and grow us but that we become industry leaders as well. We have training structures in place to ensure that our staff always undergoes training to better enhance their skills and productivity.

We also intend to take hygiene seriously and so we would put measures in place to ensure that this is achieved, by providing quality feeding for our birds and giving them shots to guard them against any diseases every now and then. Because we know how the American public is growing constantly aware of what they eat and how healthy it should be, and so we intend to intensify publicity to ensure that demand for ostrich meat comes up.

We intend to retain a high number of our customers by giving them an excellent customer service that will leave them not only satisfied with our services but loyal to us as well. Our customer care executives are adept and have been trained to ensure that customers are treated right all the time.

Because we know that we cannot grow independently of the community which we would be operating in, we intend to ensure that we participate in relevant community programs and donate to certain charities within the community.

Fiery Ostrich Farm is owned and run by Bernard Morrison and his wife, Mitchell. These two are farmers with several years of experience of raising beef and other livestock to great success. They therefore have the required experienced that is needed to move this business to huge heights.

3. Our Products and Services

Having critically studied the market, we at Fiery Ostrich Farms intends to deal in all kinds of products related to Ostrich that is intended to meet all the requirements of our customers. Aside from selling ostrich meat, eggs and other related products, we intend to offer our services so as to boost our revenue generation, and improve the bottom line of our business.

We intend not only to generate income from Anchorage alone, but the whole of Alaska and invariably the whole of the United States as well. Listed below are the products and services we intend to offer our teeming customers;

  • Ostrich meat
  • Ostrich hide
  • Ostrich eggs
  • Young chicks
  • Ostrich feet
  • Ostrich eyes
  • Adult ostriches
  • Ostrich feathers
  • Training services
  • Consultancy services

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

  • Our vision is to become well known for producing ostriches that are grown in the best farming environment for others to rear or eat.
  • In achieving our vision, our mission is to become well known in Anchorage – Alaska and in the whole of the United States as the referral Ostrich farm. We also intend to be the reference point and model for start-ups who intend to start the ostrich farming business.

Our Business Structure

Due to our desire to build a business that does not only have a solid structure but also up to standard, we have made strategic decisions as regards labour, customers and overall business foundation for the entire business that will ensure that we are poised to become industry leaders.

First of all, we intend to offer more than just ostrich meat to our various customers as we intend to offer other ostrich products and services as well. This will allow us to be able to offer more niche services than our competitors and cement our lead over them. However, the offering of more services and products will require that we hire competent hands to handle the various tasks and responsibilities attached that will spring up.

We will ensure that we get only the best hands in the field. Our employees will be highly informed about our corporate culture and what our goals and objectives are. This is so that they are able to effectively communicate ad project our brand positively while attending to existing and potential customers. Listed below is the business structure we intend to build in our farm, Fiery Ostrich;

  • Farm Manager
  • Livestock Supervisor
  • Purchasing and inventory manager
  • Accountant/Cashier
  • Store Manager
  • Delivery Van Drivers
  • Marketing Team
  • Cleaner
  • Front Desk Officer
  • Security Guard

5. Job Roles and Responsibilities

Farm Manager

  • In charge of all operations run on the farm
  • Decides the overall budget for the farming needs
  • Negotiates contracts that will be beneficial to the farm
  • Responsible for making strategic decision that will act as a guide to the overall direction of the business

Livestock Supervisor

  • Takes care of all issues regarding the birds, from their general welfare to their feeding
  • Responsible for ensuring that reliable ostrich vendors are sourced for
  • Is responsible for ensuring that sick birds are separated from the rest of the healthy birds

Purchasing and inventory manager

  • In charge of all purchases done by the farm
  • Ensures that reliable vendors and suppliers are sourced as regards farm feeds and the birds
  • Works with the farm manager and the accountant to create a budget for the purchasing department
  • Works with the store manager to determine what is needed in the farm for better productivity

Accountant/Cashier

  • Balances all the financial books at the end of the month
  • Reconciles and checks for discrepancies between cash book and bank statement
  • Works with the farm manager to create a workable budget for the farm
  • Prepares tax information and ensure that it is accurately filed

Store Manager

  • Ensure that the store is kept clean and well ventilated at all times
  • Keep accurate inventory of all products entering and leaving the store
  • Works with the purchasing manager and informs him of whatever is needed in the store

Delivery Van Drivers

  • Ensure delivery of ostriches and products to accurate destinations
  • Supervise the loading and unloading of products from the van
  • Carry our light repairs on the van and generally maintain the vehicle
  • Keep an accurate log of all distances travelled.

Marketing Team

  • Introduce fiery ostrich farms to potential customers
  • Draft marketing strategies and policies that will help reach out to customers
  • Create and implement a marketing budget
  • Ensure that customers are aware of all the products and services offered by fiery ostrich farms

Cleaner

  • Take care of the environment and ensure that it is clean
  • Make sure the feeding area of the birds are hygienic enough
  • Ensure that the restrooms and administrative areas are kept clean

Front Desk Officer

  • Handle orders and requests by customers
  • Keep accurate log details of customers, their issues and the actions taken
  • Treat all customers complaints as urgent and act promptly on it
  • Have all the information regarding ostriches so as to be able to knowledgeably inform clients

Security Guard

  • Maintain a high level of awareness in and around the premises
  • Watch the birds and ensure that they do not stray our of the farm’s range
  • Handle any intruders either animal or humans that might seek to threaten the birds
  • Repair fences and install other security measures

6. SWOT Analysis

As experienced farmers and business people, we know that going into a business without carrying out a critical analysis and evaluation of the prospects regarding the business might lead to failure of the business. Our reputable business consultant not only determined our marketability but also carried out an analysis on whether we were best suited to start the business considering factors such as the economy, demand and location.

Our hired business consultant was able to evaluate our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and the likely threats we probably might face during the course of running the ostrich farm business. Below is the report from the SWOT analysis that was done on behalf of Fiery Ostrich Farms;

  • Strength

Our strength lies in the rare breed of birds that we are raising which would give us more in value compared to other breed of birds. Another advantage we have is that we are positioned in a strategic location that would allow our customers conveniently reach us. Also, we would be hiring the best hands to ensure that the business is run efficiently.

  • Weakness

The demand for ostrich meat is still low as not many people are aware of its benefits and so we would need to double efforts in ensuring that we increase awareness for ostriches through online and offline campaigns.

  • Opportunities

There are loads of opportunities that are available in this industry and this selling our products to leather manufacturers, researchers, hoteliers and distributors.

  • Threats

The threat of the heart water fever virus that affects the birds especially imported ones are a huge concern. However, we are confident of our abilities to handle this problem by following all proactive measures once the birds are brought in.

7. MARKET ANALYSIS

  • Market Trends

The market trend for Ostrich meat and its allied products is a slowly growing one and is slowly being taken serious by those who take their diet seriously especially as the meat is not only cheap but contains more protein than the regular meat.

Ostrich meat has also been known to be high in protein and iron and low in cholesterol, fat and calories. However, any entrepreneur intending to go into this business has to ensure that they actively engage in marketing the product as not many people are aware of the health benefits of Ostriches as compared to other meats.

In this bid, we intend to engage the public and thoroughly raise awareness about the benefits of incorporating ostrich into the diet into daily needs. We intend to do this by selling products to people via farmers’ market, food trade fairs and partnering with butcheries, meat marts as well as grocery chain stores so that more people can buy the meat whilst awareness is also gradually raised.

Lastly, we know how important the internet is and whilst we would make efforts to increase awareness physically, we would also deploy the internet and leverage on it to use in creating and promoting awareness for the benefits of taking ostrich meat. Other strategies that we would deploy to ensure we trend include branding our van with a unique logo and colour so that we would be easily recognized during deliveries and when we go out for road shows.

8. Our Target Market

Ordinarily, meat is a very good source of protein, however, ostrich meat is higher in protein than most meat while also low in calories, fat and cholesterol. This means our target market is not only limited to those that are fit and want to maintain this lifestyle but to the whole population in general, as most people are constantly looking for ways to eat healthier than they are presently doing.

To ensure that this is done, we intend to be located in various strategic locations in and around Anchorage, whilst also ensuring that our website is strategically positioned so that online searches would bring us to the top. To ensure that the aim of getting a large share of the market in general is achieved, we have conducted a market survey that has shown us what to expect from the market.

We intend to engage in wholesale and retail distribution of Ostrich meat to the following groups of people;

  • Households
  • Restaurants
  • Hotels
  • Sports men and women
  • Corporate executives
  • Students
  • Research Institutes
  • Health nuts
  • Car Manufacturers

Our Competitive Advantage

Fiery Ostrich Farms is a business established not only to make profit from several sources of revenue but also to be one of the topmost livestock businesses in Anchorage, Alaska as well as one of the leading farms in the whole o the United States. To achieve this, we would need to ensure that we have strategies that will enable us have a competitive advantage over our competitors in the same industry.

In a bid to achieve this, we are going to make sure that our business structure, corporate culture, and all other aspects that is necessary to run our farm business smoothly and efficiently, are up to standard.

We intend to ensure that are birds are raised in an environment that is favorable to the bird, because we want our birds to grow as healthy as possible, we intend to rear them via the free range system rather than the battery cage system, especially as we are against any form of unnecessary cruelty to animals and birds.

We intend to ensure that we hire only those who have the necessary vast experience required to run a farm smoothly without hitches. Knowing how essential it is to have a high level of productivity that would improve the bottom line of our company, we intend to make sure that each employee has welfare packages and also work in an environment that is not only conducive but also hygienic. Our workers will constantly undergo trainings so as to enhance their skill level and expertise.

We know that customers are the lifeblood of any business and so we intend to retain at least 95% o our customers. Retaining our customers will be done through several ways both online and offline. Chief on our list is in offering excellent customer service by listening to their complaints and inquiries and taking prompt action, taking their orders, and whatever suggestions and advices they might have to ensure that the business grows to become a leading brand.

9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

  • Sources of Income

Fiery Ostrich Farms is a farm that has been established with the sole aim of rearing and selling ostriches and related ostrich products. Our aim of starting this business is also to generate profit that will enable our business grow and expand as it should.

We intend to cater to the large growing ostrich market in Anchorage – Alaska as well as the whole of the United States of America by offering our consumers a wide range of products for either private or commercial purposes. Fiery Ostrich Farms therefore intends to generate income from the sale of the following products and services;

  • Ostrich meat
  • Ostrich hide
  • Ostrich eggs
  • Young chicks
  • Adult ostriches
  • Ostrich feet
  • Ostrich eyes
  • Ostrich feathers
  • Training services
  • Consultancy services

10. Sales Forecast

While the majority of the public might not be purchasing ostrich meat for now, there certainly are those who knowing the benefits for their health and pocket will continue to buy the meat for their household and even restaurants will always have it on their menu for their customers.

Due to this fact, we are well positioned to be the top supplier of ostrich meat, and hide in Anchorage – Alaska, and because of several analysis that has been carried out are quite optimistic that we can recoup our investment in one year of operation.

Our bold statement is due to the fact that we hired a business consultant with experience in the livestock business, which carried out several market surveys on our behalf. The survey was carried out based on information gathered from similar start-ups in Alaska especially those close to or around our location. Below are the sales projections which are to determine the viability for Fiery Ostrich Farms;

  • First Fiscal Year-: $280,000
  • Second Fiscal Year-: $560,000
  • Third Fiscal Year-: $1,200,000

N.B: The above assumptions are primarily based on certain factors that must remain stable, such as a stable or an increase in demand, no economic downturn, and no major competitor arriving in same location within a period of at least three years. Any change in condition might cause an increase or decrease in the projections.

  • Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy

Marketing is a very important aspect of the business process because it is not only a means of communicating the brand of the business but it is also a means by which revenue can be generated for the company. Due to the importance of marketing, we carried a market survey that will allow us to be able to reach out to potential customers and also penetrate the market.

This survey will enable us to be able to draft strategies that will ensure that our products and services compete favourably with that of our competitors here in Anchorage – Alaska and the whole of the United States of America.

To help us carry out an accurate survey that will invariably lead to drafting better strategies, we hired reputable and experienced livestock business experts, who not only helped us with a marketing survey but developed several marketing strategies on our behalf that would further help us at Fiery Ostrich Farms attract more customers.

Also, our marketing and sales teams has come up with their own strategies and in conjunction with the strategies drafted for us by our expert are now more charged to ensuring our corporate goals are achieved.

We do not intend to ignore technology knowing how powerful the internet is especially in the areas of marketing and reaching customers. We would ensure that our website is interactive enough so that customers can easily place their orders or reach out to us.

We also intend to ensure that our social media platforms are always active for customers that will like to reach us via that method. We intend to later develop a mobile app for customers that love to shop but do not want to be bothered in opening a site. Also, our mobile app, will allow customers know what products are available and when.

In essence, listed below are the marketing strategies that we at Fiery ostrich Farms intend to adopt in selling our products and services;

  • Introduce Fiery Ostrich Farms to commercial eating places like restaurants, hotels and diner.
  • Place adverts regarding our products in newspapers, local radio and television stations.
  • Throw a unique opening party that will generate the interest amongst the local community
  • Ensure that we are registered with livestock farmers and network intensively with them
  • Ensure our business is listed in yellow pages and local directories
  • Engage in direct sales and marketing
  • Encourage our customers to leave positive reviews on our website and also refer others to us
  • Engage in forum discussion and educating people on the benefits of ostrich meat

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

Even though more people are increasingly becoming aware of the benefits of taking ostrich meat both to their health and pockets, more work still needs to be done in ensuring that the awareness spreads so that ostrich meat can effectively compete with other meats in the market. To achieve this, we at Fiery Ostrich Farms intends to intensify publicity for our brand and all the products and services we offer.

In order to ensure that ostrich meat is more accepted, we intend to go on national television and partner with nutritionists so as to drive the awareness down to the people in Anchorage – Alaska and the whole of the United States of America. Furthermore, we will also engage in consultancy services and train other livestock farmers who want to venture into rearing ostriches or new farmers who want to try their hands on the ostrich farm business.

Some of the platforms we intend to engage in to promote and advertise Fiery Ostrich Farms include;

  • Ensuring that we are involved in and sponsor certain community programs as a means of creating awareness
  • Placing adverts on relevant media such as radio, television and local newspapers
  • Advertising on food blogs and healthy living blogs and forums
  • Actively engaging in and creating topics in online forums to increase the awareness of people
  • Ensuring that our fliers are colourfully produced and distributed in target areas
  • Making use of social media platforms lie Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat to promote our brand
  • Install our billboards in strategic and conspicuous locations all around Anchorage – Alaska
  • Ensure that our delivery van is well branded and communicates our brands in all the locations that it goes to.

12. Our Pricing Strategy

Having a pricing strategy is very important for any business that intends to engage in the sales of products and services. Choosing a price is usually dependent on several factors such as the overhead cost, running costs, down to the packaging of the product. The price needs to be set in such a way that it is affordable to the consumers and will not also make the business run at a loss.

Due to the above insight, we intend to ensure that we cut costs where applicable without compromising on the quality of our farm products and services. To attract customers to our business and increase patronage, we intend to lower the prices for our ostrich meats for the first three months of operation, as well as give customers incentives for a certain pound of meat bought from our farm.

  • Payment Options

Fiery Ostrich Farms is very interested in its customers and as such we intend to ensure that our payment policies are one that would be able to suit all the types of customers we intend to cater to. The payment options we intend to make available to our customers are;

  • Cash payment
  • Payment via credit cards
  • Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machines
  • Payment via check
  • Payment via online bank transfer

Because we have the convenience of our customers in mind, we have carefully chosen these platforms with a reputable bank that will ensure that all transactions go through without any hitch whatsoever.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

Every idea requires funding before it can become a reality. Without the necessary funding, the idea remains just an idea. Every entrepreneur knows that it is very important to generate funds that will ensure that a business idea comes to life and is operational till the business is able to generate funds that will ensure that it can adequately run on its own.

Most times the bulk of the capital is usually used to pay mostly fixed costs that are one time, or variable costs for a certain period of time. Some of the key areas that the start-up capital is usually spent on include;

  • Total fees for registering the business and other legal fees in the United States of America – $1,000
  • Insurance coverage (general liability, livestock and farm coverage, workers’ compensation) – $1,500
  • Start-up equipment (feeding equipment, drinking equipment) – $2,000
  • Livestock medicine plus veterinary charges – $2,000
  • Livestock feed – $20,000
  • Delivery van (fairly used) – $30,000
  • Licenses and permits form regulatory authorities – $500
  • Operational cost for the one year (employee salaries and bill payments) – $100,000
  • Other start-up expenses – $5,000
  • Cost of hiring business consultant – $2,000
  • Cost of medical charges for the birds – $700
  • Cost of inventory (young chicks and unhatched eggs) – $20,000
  • Cost of store equipment and hardware (security, bio-security, ventilation) – $10,000
  • Cost of launching a website – $300
  • Marketing expenses including promotion activities to be carried out prior to farm launch – $5,000
  • Cost of party for ostrich farm launch – $5,000
  • Miscellaneous – $5,000

From the above report, we would need an estimate of at least $210,000 so as to be able to successfully set up our Ostrich farm in Anchorage – Alaska. The amount stated above especially operating costs will be till the business is able to grow ad successfully pay off its workers and other bills at least for one year.

Generating Funding/Startup Capital for Fiery Ostrich Farming Business

Fiery Ostrich Farms is a business that is owned and run by Bernard Morrison and his wife, Mitchell. Due to the fact that they are quite passionate about the business, they do not intend to have external investors share equity with them and so would majorly limit their capital generation to few sources.

The areas where they intend to generate their start-up capital from are:

  • Generate part capital from personal savings
  • Apply for loan from a commercial bank

N.B: All paper works for the commercial bank loan were submitted by our lawyers and just recently, we have been finally approved with the capital we needed from the bank to the tune of $160,000. Personally, we have been able to generate $50,000 from our personal savings and we intend to include our land which will be used for the farm as part of the equity.

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

Every serious entrepreneur establishes a business with sustainability and eventually expansion in mind. Factors to ensure that a business is sustained usually falls on such areas as the retention rate of existing customers, the productivity rate and competence of their employees, as well as ensuring the business has multiple sources of income to boost its revenue base.

While most customers might not be having ostrich meat as their dietary needs right now, we know that it is important that we continually intensify publicity efforts towards making sure that a large segment of the market starts eating ostriches especially as it is very beneficial to the health and quite affordable on the pockets. One strategy we would use to attract more customers is in trying to sell the meats and other ostrich products cheaper than our competitors.

Also, we intend to ensure that we not only hire the right hands in ensuring that our business is run efficiently, we also have measures in place to ensure that our employee welfare is packaged in such a way as to enhance productivity, thereby improving the bottom line of the business. We also intend to ensure that our employees are constantly trained in using new technologies and methods to help raise and sell the birds.

We know that if these two paramount factors are properly put in place, we would not only be able to successfully have a high retention rate for our customers but also ensure that our hired hands are amongst the best in the industry, which will invariably contribute to the growth and expansion of our business.

Check List/Milestone

  • Business Name Availability Check: Completed
  • Business Registration: Completed
  • Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
  • Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
  • Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
  • Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
  • Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
  • Application for business license and permit: Completed
  • Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
  • Conducting feasibility studies: Completed
  • Generating capital from family members: Completed
  • Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
  • writing of business plan: Completed
  • Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
  • Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
  • Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
  • Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing / Promotional Materials: In Progress
  • Recruitment of employees: In Progress
  • Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
  • Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
  • Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
  • Opening party / launching party planning: In Progress
  • Establishing business relationship with vendors – wholesale suppliers / merchants: In Progress
  • Purchase of trucks: Completed