Local poultry farm 'set to double in size'
Agriculture is one of Namibia's most important sectors: Around 70% of the country's population depends directly or indirectly on it for their income and livelihood, mostly in the subsistence sector.
Many young Namibians, particularly graduates, see agribusiness as a way to save money for self-sufficiency.
In a review of records, Namibia's top four educational institutions have injected almost 84 000 graduates into the labour market in the last five years, adding to the pressure to create jobs in the failing economy.
According to statistics from the University of Namibia (Unam), the Namibian University of Science and Technology (Nust) and vocational training schools around the nation, Namibia Media Holdings found that Unam produced 21 350 graduates, NUST 14 111 and vocational training institutes 37 975.
Julius Tonata Moongo, the proprietor of JnS Farming, was once a struggling graduate determined to alter his circumstances.
"After my first degree, I needed something to keep me busy and bring me a little something to sustain myself because finding a job was difficult”, he said.
He began JnS Farming in 2016. His agribusiness is a poultry farming agricultural enterprise that sees him farming with a variety of dual-purpose chicken breeds and selling fertilised eggs for hatching as well as live birds - from day-old to mature, depending on stock availability.
Aside from chicken, they also breed and sell ducks, quails, pigeons, guinea fowls and other poultry, as well as pigs.
Goals
The company has several goals, one of which is to provide inexpensive organic products. But the goal he cherishes is the one that allows him to hire others in order to assist them create some form of income as well.
“We have two full-time employees and three casual employees who work as needed," he said.
Another distinguishing element of JnS Farming is its abundant stock. Moongo claims to have enough hatching eggs and industrial incubators for hatching. The company has two incubators, one for 880 eggs and another for 2 160 eggs. That is why they always have supply.
The firm began with broiler chickens, but the market was not accommodating since people had misconceptions about broilers getting injected with growth-enhancing chemical substances, he said.
“People assume that most chickens are genetically manipulated to grow bigger or faster, hence they didn't sell, so we moved away from broiler chickens and towards dual-purpose kinds that are significantly more robust."
He admitted that it is true that chicken diseases can wipe out your entire stock, and that they had to learn this the hard way in their early years in the business. He overcame this by ensuring that their herd is always kept in a very clean environment and by emphasising biosecurity.
Overall, Moongo said he is proud of his company's growth and expects that it will double in size and become a full-fledged poultry producing enterprise soon.
In a review of records, Namibia's top four educational institutions have injected almost 84 000 graduates into the labour market in the last five years, adding to the pressure to create jobs in the failing economy.
According to statistics from the University of Namibia (Unam), the Namibian University of Science and Technology (Nust) and vocational training schools around the nation, Namibia Media Holdings found that Unam produced 21 350 graduates, NUST 14 111 and vocational training institutes 37 975.
Julius Tonata Moongo, the proprietor of JnS Farming, was once a struggling graduate determined to alter his circumstances.
"After my first degree, I needed something to keep me busy and bring me a little something to sustain myself because finding a job was difficult”, he said.
He began JnS Farming in 2016. His agribusiness is a poultry farming agricultural enterprise that sees him farming with a variety of dual-purpose chicken breeds and selling fertilised eggs for hatching as well as live birds - from day-old to mature, depending on stock availability.
Aside from chicken, they also breed and sell ducks, quails, pigeons, guinea fowls and other poultry, as well as pigs.
Goals
The company has several goals, one of which is to provide inexpensive organic products. But the goal he cherishes is the one that allows him to hire others in order to assist them create some form of income as well.
“We have two full-time employees and three casual employees who work as needed," he said.
Another distinguishing element of JnS Farming is its abundant stock. Moongo claims to have enough hatching eggs and industrial incubators for hatching. The company has two incubators, one for 880 eggs and another for 2 160 eggs. That is why they always have supply.
The firm began with broiler chickens, but the market was not accommodating since people had misconceptions about broilers getting injected with growth-enhancing chemical substances, he said.
“People assume that most chickens are genetically manipulated to grow bigger or faster, hence they didn't sell, so we moved away from broiler chickens and towards dual-purpose kinds that are significantly more robust."
He admitted that it is true that chicken diseases can wipe out your entire stock, and that they had to learn this the hard way in their early years in the business. He overcame this by ensuring that their herd is always kept in a very clean environment and by emphasising biosecurity.
Overall, Moongo said he is proud of his company's growth and expects that it will double in size and become a full-fledged poultry producing enterprise soon.
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