When it comes to the combination of great taste and healthiness, ostrich is truly one of the most superior meats in existence. It may be unusual for some to think about the planet’s largest bird in this manner, but the taste of ostrich meat is superior. Top class hotels also pay well for this top class meat specie.
Every part of ostrich production is profitable – from the meat, eggs, chicks, oils, plumes and hides to the whole ostrich. Ostrich meat is red meat with a difference: it is similar in taste and texture to that of beef; but unlike beef, it is characteristically high in protein yet low in fat. It is therefore quite clearly a preferable table meat from the health point of view and is increasingly recommended by nutritionists, especially for the elderly and people living with chronic diseases that require modified diets.
Contact us for consultancy or attend Jovana Farms seminars nearest to you and discover how to breed ostrich! Can’t attend? Order for self-tutorial VCD and book. Visit us at: www.jovanafarms.com, E-mail:[email protected] or Call: 080 33262 808, for more details. Choose also the nearest venue from the advert box in this page or in our website.
The ostrich is very adaptable and thrives under extreme conditions. Your ostrich may outlive you! It can live for up to 100 years and can remain productive i.e. laying eggs for up to 45 years. The ostrich hen can lay between 30 and 100 eggs per year with an average of 45-50 eggs.
The ostrich lays the largest egg of any living bird. Oddly enough, however, the ostrich egg is one of the smallest in relation to the size of the bird. Measuring 17 to 19 cm in length, 14 to 15 cm in width and weighing up to 1900 g, the ostrich egg is only just over 1 percent of the female’s body weight.
Ostrich products
Today, ostrich farms are considered to be among the most profitable agricultural projects. They are often referred to as “the farms of the future” because of the large variety of possible products and hence their high profit potential. Ostriches are raised commercially for their meat, oil, skin and feathers. It is a delight to watch a flock of them racing down with vacant eyes. It is easy to include tourism as one of the income spinoffs from an ostrich ranch.
Ostrich skin is considered to be one of the most luxurious leathers, and some even place it on a par with crocodile and snake skin. Ostrich leather is thick, durable and extremely soft and can be manufactured into a variety of products, such as shoes, bags, jackets, etc.
Comparison with other livestock Farmers are interested in the birds because of the higher and faster financial returns of ostrich projects. When compared with traditional livestock, ostriches rate very highly. Whereas a cow produces a calf that reaches marketing weight after 654 days from conception, yielding 250 kg of meat, an ostrich produces not less than 40 chicks annually that reach marketing age after only 407 days from conception (42 days incubation + 365 days of age) and yield 1 800 kg of meat, 50m2 of leather and 36kg of feathers each year. This production ability makes ostrich farming an extremely viable and highly economical proposition for producers.
It is not difficult to raise ostriches successfully. As with traditional farm animals, the critical time is the first period of the ostrich’s life. An ostrich chick requires good care, a balanced diet containing all essential nutrients in optimal quantities, and the right temperature must be maintained during brooding up to the age of four months.
The income generating potential of ostrich production is yet to be maximised in the country. The meat is still gaining acceptance and the leather has yet to attain a critical production level to excite the international market. This is the time to invest in this emerging niche. For now, breeding stocks are still being developed locally making the sale of eggs, chicks and breeders very profitable and it will remain so for a while.
Hello farmers! You are invited to take advantage of availability of a limited stock of our excellently reared ostriches for breeding and slaughtering.
Our ostriches are always a sure bet, exceeding farmers’ expectations in terms of performance and profitability in all the farms across the country where they are being used.