Indian poultry industry has been recording modest growth over the past decade and currently it is evolving through the phase of automation. Big names in poultry feed manufacturing are setting-up automated plants to scale up their production and reduce dependence on manpower. The automatic pellet feed plants has fully equipped in house laboratory that monitors the quality of the feed.
Automatic feed production involves mechanical operations, such as auto batching system which is wholly a computerized management system. Though automation in poultry feed sector is in its initial phase, and still majority of feed manufacturers use semi-automated machines for various purposes, such as grinding, spraying, mixing, etc., the future prospects of the industry seems promising and it is forecast to see increased automation by 2020.
Automation in poultry feed manufacturing plays an important role in the reduction of the cost of production. This has led to lower price of high quality poultry feed, and thus, increased uptake amongst small and medium sized poultry farmers who majorly use traditional feed due to non-affordability.
As per RNCOS report titled “India Poultry Feed Market Opportunities” integrated poultry operations are also helping Indian poultry industry to become more organized. Contract farming has become one of the most profitable businesses in organized sector and there has been a paradigm shift in the structure of poultry farming from backyard to contract poultry farming through the concept of integrators. This transition has provided an opportunity to the small and medium-sized farmers to inculcate better production of poultry products, which as a result increase the demand for feed as well.
Through integrated farming, the farmers are not only able to deliver the feed for their captive purposes but also generate better margins via selling the feed in the market. Thus, it has been stated that integrated farming has paved the way for minimizing risks.