Invented in the Netherlands, the Feed Calculator is a new piece of technology available for Zambian farmers who want to mitigate high input costs. This smart phone application enables farmers to produce chicken feed which meets industry standards, using local ingredients.

“Feed Calculator was designed to offer guidelines to poultry farmers to reduce the cost of stock feed,” says Peter Meijer, managing director of Single Spark, the company behind the invention.

Feed accounts for more than 60% of poultry farmers’ input costs. This led to many farmers abandoning the sector or down-scaling their production. Meijer said the Feed Calculator provides all ingredients that are suitable for rearing chickens and guidelines on how to optimise local ingredients to make feed. “This allows local farmers to produce the quality feed used by commercial farmers,” he said.

The Poultry Association of Zambia (PAZ) executive director Dominic Chanda said the Feed Calculator will provide a much-needed solution. “The price of stock feed is very high and we welcome the Feed Calculator technology – it will help address the high input costs that poultry farmers face,” Chanda said.

According to PAZ, local poultry production declined by more than 15% in the last few years due to rising input costs and cheap imports.

The download of the application is for free, but a paid subscription is needed for full functionality. The prices are available on request. The developers will add feed guidelines for other livestock in time.

For information: www.feedcalculator.com