THE CLUCKING of hens fills the air as I enter a sprawling poultry farm at Kurumbapatti on the outskirts of Namakkal. As the gate opens, pipes spray sanitiser over the car. As I step out, the same thing happens to me. Drenched in sanitiser, I walk into the layer farm (where egg-laying poultry is raised for commercial purposes).
Inside, I am surrounded by hens in cages. Thousands of them in an enormous hall—in total, the facility has around 54,000 hens. In the first hall, the only space that did not have hens in cages was taken up by trays of eggs, stacked to a height of over 10 feet. The bird droppings fall on the ground, while the eggs fall in an adjacent tray. A small tray above the egg-tray is filled with granules. A huge drum with maize, jovar and soyabean in granule form moves from one end of the hall to the other and drops 110gm of granules in front of each bird. As the drum moves, the hens pull their heads into the cage. As soon as the food drop is made, the heads come out excitedly.
Namakkal has been excited since the FIFA World Cup began in Qatar last month. “Exports have gone up by 2.5 crore eggs this month, of which around 1.5 crore have gone to Qatar,” says K. Singaraj, president, Tamil Nadu Poultry Farmers Association. Before the increased demand, Namakkal used to export around two crore eggs a month to the Middle East and the Maldives.
Namakkal is a small town in west Tamil Nadu—360km southwest of Chennai and 250km south of Bengaluru. It is close to the picturesque Kolli hills and the closest river is the Cauvery. The name Namakkal, according to historians, was derived from namagiri, meaning single rock. Atop this rock—a hillock at the centre of the town—is a fort, built in the 17th century by king Ramachandra Naicker. But, the town’s most noteworthy feature now is its poultry farms—around 1,100 of them. They produce five to six crore eggs daily (of the 18 crore produced in India). This has made the town, which is the headquarters of Namakkal district, a poultry hub in India, second only to Hyderabad.
It all began in the early 1970s when Namakkal was struggling to keep its agriculture alive. While the Cauvery watered the southern part of the district, the rest went dry. As a result, farmers started small layer farms (around 100 chickens) in thatched-roof sheds. The farms grew to the next level in the early 1980s and the farmers (who now had 1,000 to 2,000 chickens) shifted from thatched roofs to tiled roofs. Slowly, the business began flourishing and many young entrepreneurs joined it.
But, the lack of scientific knowledge and frequent disease outbreaks among the birds led to major problems. To resolve this, the government of Tamil Nadu set up a veterinary college in Namakkal in 1985. The college was tasked with studying and resolving the problems of the local poultry industry. Then came the National Egg Coordination Committee, which worked towards fixing a fair price for eggs and avoiding exploitation by middlemen.
Slowly the business stabilised and exports grew, especially to the Middle East. But, as per Vangili Subramanian, president, Tamil Nadu Egg Marketing Society, the growth in exports dwindled because of “various issues, including bird flu”. Now, Namakkal has another chance to ramp up its exports and it seems to be better prepared.
C. Panneer Selvam of Abi Egg Traders says that Namakkal has been preferred by Qatar because of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the higher cost of eggs in Turkey. Namkkal eggs cost $31 at the port of delivery for a box of 360, whereas the eggs from Turkey cost $34. Apart from the lower cost, the quality of Namakkal eggs is also a decisive factor. The weight is 52g per egg, which is the export standard because larger eggs may break, and the eggs are printed with the manufacturing date and expiry date. The shelf life of eggs is 21 days. Apart from this there are the hygiene and sanitisation standards.
As I experienced, a vehicle entering a farm is sterilised and disinfectants are sprayed on the passengers. “Poultry farm premises and buildings should comply with requirements for isolation from the environment and strict observance of principles of hygiene and disease prevention,” Shreya P. Singh, Namakkal collector, tells THE WEEK. “We maintain the standards.” A poultry farm is also methodically prepared for the entry of each new batch of hens.
They begin laying eggs from around the 30th week. “The eggs are from middle-aged birds, from 35 weeks to 60 weeks,” says Panner Selvam. “After 60 weeks, they are sent for meat.” If cared for well, birds can be productive till 80 weeks. Veterinarian Periyasamy, who uses only one name, works for the animal husbandry department. He says a low level of antibiotics are used as growth promoters and that this cannot be termed hormones. The aged birds are sent to north Kerala and parts of north Karnataka, where people prefer chewy chicken.
Poultry farm owners take utmost care to avoid disease outbreaks. “The dead and diseased birds are immediately disposed of and all norms prescribed by the government and the animal husbandry department are followed by the farm owners,” says the collector. In fact, Namakkal was recently declared a bird flu-free hub.
Till a few years back, samples had to be sent to Bhopal to test for bird flu. But, now the testing is available at the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chennai. According to Singh, the animal husbandry department ensures periodical vaccination for the chicks.
Apart from exports, Namakkal is the major supplier of eggs for the mid-day meal schemes in Tamil Nadu. “These eggs are the cheapest protein source and cannot even be called non-vegetarian as it is lifeless (they do not hatch as they have not been fertilised by roosters),” says Periyasamy. “The government has realised this,” adds Panneer Selvam, “and it is supporting the growth of the business.”