Festive Season Timing (The Calendar)

The “Christmas Countdown” Calculation

To hit the December 25th peak, you must work backward based on the breed you chose in Section 1.

Broad Breasted Whites (20-22 Weeks): You should receive your Day-Old Poults (DOPs) in the last week of July or the first week of August. This gives them 5 months to reach a massive 15kg weight.
Local/Heritage Breeds (30-36 Weeks): These grow slower. To have a large local turkey ready for Christmas, you must start them in March or April.
The “Cold Storage” Buffer: If you have access to a large freezer, you can slaughter in early December when the birds hit peak weight and keep them frozen. If you are selling “Live Birds,” your timing must be perfect to the day.

The Turkey Production Calendar

Month	Activity	Goal
May/June	Market Research & Hatchery Booking	Secure your poults and identify 3 potential big buyers.
July (Week 4)	Arrival of Poults	Start the high-intensity “First 4 Weeks” care.
August/Sept	Growth & Vaccination	Focus on frame building; keep mortality near zero.
October	The “Teenage” Appetite	Birds eat the most here. Ensure your “Feed Cash” is ready.
November	Marketing Kick-off	Start taking deposits; show photos of birds to hotels.
December	The Harvest	Deliver birds; collect the balance of your payment.

The “November Pivot”

By November 15th, you must weigh your birds.

Too Small? If your Toms are only 8kg, you have 4 weeks to “power-feed” them. Increase their light to 20 hours a day and ensure they have 100% high-quality Finisher mash.
Too Big? If they are already 15kg in mid-November, they will be 22kg by Christmas (too big for most ovens!). You can “slow them down” by increasing their green forage and reducing the commercial grain slightly to save money.

Case Study: Kwame’s “Delayed DOP” Disaster in Accra

Kwame waited until September to order his poults because he was waiting for a loan. His birds arrived on September 15th. By Christmas, they were only 14 weeks old and weighed 6kg—too small for the premium hotel market he wanted. He had to keep feeding them until March (Easter) to get a good price. He spent three extra months on labor and feed, which turned his expected KES 100,000 profit into a KES 20,000 loss. Timing is the difference between a businessman and a bird-keeper.

Important Things to Keep in Mind

Book Your Hatchery in May: Thousands of farmers want poults in July. If you call the hatchery in June, they will tell you they are “sold out” until October.
The “New Year” Carryover: Always keep 10% of your birds for the New Year/January 1st market. Many families miss out on Christmas turkey and will pay a premium for a “New Year Roast.”
Feed Price Spikes: Prices of maize and soya often go up in December because of transport strikes or holiday closures. Buy your “December Feed” in November.