The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: chris3000 on August 03, 2012, 10:50:15 pm

Title: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: chris3000 on August 03, 2012, 10:50:15 pm: I currently slaughter, pluck, gut and package chickens and ducks for friends for a beer here and there ..... but I have now been approached by a couple of Shoots who have asked what I charge to pluck, gut and package the game for their visitors.

What kind of price would people expect to pay? I know I should work out the cost based on my time - but I would like to know what people would expect to pay

Thanks

Chris
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: Womble on August 03, 2012, 11:57:06 pm: I'd gladly pay a couple of quid for a chicken. Any more than that and I'd rather do it myself or buy from the supermarket!
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: Buffy the eggs layer on August 04, 2012, 07:14:48 am: I think that you will struggle to get paid apropriately for your time especially for chickens. Even if you only charged the minimum wage for each bird, people might find that a makes it expensive. Not that that should stop you charging a fair price for your time and skill.
The exception to that I think would be larger birds such as geese or turkeys especially for the seasonal market. People will pay more for a special occasion bird such as a christmas goose or thanksgiving turkey. I also think that the prospect of dispatching birds that size is more daunting to most smallholders than dispatching chickens.
I think you need to work out how long it takes you and possibly charge a price per Lb for the birds. The bigger they are the more they cost to prepare. I know that my neighbour would love to have geese if she knew someone who offered your services and I would probably keep a few turkeys.
Shame you dont live near me :(
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: Sylvia on August 04, 2012, 07:49:45 am: When I do people's chickens I charge £2-50p. up to ten chickens, £2, 10 -20 and £1-50p. over 20 birds plus deisel if I'm going to their place to do it. I've never been asked to do geese or ducks but they would be considerably more because of the work that goes into them. Hope this helps you :)
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: Beeducked on August 04, 2012, 08:01:13 am: Well I would gladly pay a fiver for a duck to be plucked. Hate doing it and it take me ages!
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: hughesy on August 04, 2012, 12:15:03 pm: You'll have to work out what you can do in an hour then decide what you think is an hourly rate of pay acceptable to you and do the maths to give price per bird. Don't forget you need to consider any other costs incurred not just your labour.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: the great composto on August 04, 2012, 12:25:33 pm: I would be happy to pay 2.50-3.00 to have a chicken prepared. Above that it becomes uneconomic to raise the birds. do you think you could process a bird in 5 mins? that would be a peak of 36.00 per hour before costs if that was possible with enough custom.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: chris3000 on August 04, 2012, 12:30:48 pm: Thank you all for your replies

I have done some sums - checked with my future customers and the following is what we are going with:

Chickens (copying Sylvia :eyelashes:) - Slaughter, Pluck, Gut, Package

1 - 10 @ £2.50
11 - 20 @ £2.00
21+ @ £1.75

Ducks, Geese, Turkeys & Game - Slaughter, Pluck, Gut, Package

£2 per kg

Hanging

£0.20 per day

I will see how this fairs this year and if needs be adjust

Thanks again for your help
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: the great composto on August 04, 2012, 12:35:21 pm: Good for you - looks like a plan - i hope the new national franchise has a branch near me eventually ;D ;D
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: graham-j on August 07, 2012, 11:08:45 pm: Hi,There is a guy locally to me that dose it but only in the game season.He charges £2.50 for a chicken and an extra 50p for ducks which he fishinesses with hot wax.He only dose ducks on Tuesdays so he only has to heat the wax once.
What are you planning on doing with all the waist,heads,feet,guts etc.

Graham.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: Sylvia on August 08, 2012, 07:51:21 am: I bring it home. The dogs eat the heads and feet, the guts goes in the wormery.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: TinkleCottage on August 21, 2012, 06:40:54 pm: I'm looking for someone in Lancashire who will dispatch and dress 12 quails for me. Anyone out there?
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: tinwheeler on August 22, 2012, 12:43:59 pm: Sounds like a fair price, I'm looking for someone to do turkeys for me at Xmas in Brecon Beacons. Anyone know of someone local(ish) to me?
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: SteveHants on August 22, 2012, 06:37:00 pm: I hope you have a machine - I cannot imagine a task more onerous than hand-plucking pheasants of all creatures by their hundreds.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: nicandem on September 23, 2012, 08:32:47 pm: I was offered to have the shot geese prepared last year up near Dundee... £5 per bird... a couple of lads paid but my OH doesnt mind plucking if I draw.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: nic99 on September 24, 2012, 11:47:43 am: Oooooo Nicandem - where was this place near dundee? I would be very interested in using them next year. Do they only do it at certain times of year ie. shooting season or will they take them all year round? Do they only do geese or will they take other poultry? Do they have to already be dead when they receive them? Feel free to PM me if you don't want to put address/phone number etc on here.
Title: Re: How much would you pay to have your poultry / game slaughtered and prepared?
Post by: Mrs Snoodles on September 24, 2012, 05:49:56 pm: the prices shown here seem pretty cheap to me. Even if I hot dip my chickens beforehand, I can't do them in less than 45 mins, not nicely anyway. We rear our birds big though, roughly about 10lb and everything is done by hand.