Haitula: Kavango West poultry king
Omwene-TupopilaHaitula is a full-time poultry farmer and agroprocessor in Lihaha village, Mpungu district of Kavango West region.
Haitula’s farming journey started as a part-time farmer assisting his parents. In 2019, Haitula registered his agribusiness after completing his studies and was unsuccessful at finding employment.
He started processing and selling cow butter and sour milk.
He later added Marula oil to his agro-processing products. In 2020, Haitula saw a gap in the market and started farming with poultry. He currently farms with broilers, layers and quails. He sells fertile and table eggs, live chickens and quail chicks, as well as meat for both.
Like any other farmer, Haitula’s journey is not without challenges. On many occasions, Haitula constantly needs to ask his siblings to buy chicken feed for him in Windhoek and send it to him.
“There are no agricultural shops near my village, so sometimes I have to drive as far as Rundu or even Tsumeb,” he said. He added that he constantly source his layer chicks from Windhoek.
When asked about his best experiences, Haitula said he really enjoys interacting with his chickens.
“Most people think I am weird when seeing how I interact with my chickens, but I enjoy it. I enjoy teaching them how to feed on their feeder and drink from the nipples on their cages,” he said.
Selling out his first batch of eggs and broiler chickens were also some of his best experiences.
On character building, Haitula said that farming taught him to be patient.
“Do not expect a quick return on investment in farming. Farming is a long journey, and it will test your patience. If you take care of your animals, they will take care of you too. Lastly, do not wait to have enough capital to start; start with what you have, and grow and expand your agribusiness over time,” he advised.