Farmers take to emu rearing for profit

Farmers take to emu rearing for profit

Mangalore Today News Network

Udupi,October 23, 2011: An emu feeding training was held in the plantation of Barkuru Koodli K. K. Naikar, in which members of the Sumukha Farm in Bangalore shared their experiences with rearing emus. 

Emus are reared for meat, eggs, oil, and pelt and the income starts pouring in three years later. A 3-year-old female emu lays 30 – 35 eggs annually, with each egg costing Rs. 1000 to Rs. 1,300 in the market. The eggs can be artificially incubated and hatched and the young emus can be sold for around Rs. 4,000 each. The female lays eggs from October to March every year. 

Speaking on the occasion, Naikar said that emu rearing is extremely profitable if combined with agricultural activities. He said that emus live for 35 years and lay eggs for 25 years. A kilogram of emu meat costs Rs. 400 – Rs. 500. The meat is free from oil and fat with only the skin containing some oil. The skin can be removed and sold for a larger price because each kilogram of emu oil costs Rs. 6,000 since it is used to treat cancer and cardiac ailments and burn injuries.
An emu egg is 15 times larger than a hen’s egg and the bird itself grows 5 – 6ft in height. The bird should, therefore, be fenced as it is very difficult to catch them if they escape. 

Shashidhar and Sunil of Sumukha Farm were the resource persons. B. Sudhakar Shetty, the Mumbai-based entrepreneur; Y. Ganapathy Kamath, the Barkur-based entrepreneur; Rathnakar Shetty, an expert in emu feeding; Rajeeva Shetty; K. Sathyanarayana Udupa; Shantharama Shetty; Dr. Hanumanthappa, the director of Brahmavara Agriculture Science Centre; Dr. Shivanna; and Dr. Dhananjay were also present. 

The guests were also treated to the sight of 15 emus grazing.