How to Track Egg Production and Feed Costs
Two numbers, recorded daily and reviewed weekly, reveal most production problems before they reach the bank account. Here is how to measure them properly.
The two numbers
Record two things daily, per house: the number of eggs collected and the weight of feed used. Once a week, calculate feed per egg and cost per egg. Those two figures show whether feed is being converted efficiently, whether production is falling, and where money is leaking — long before it appears in your accounts.
Eggs and feed are the two halves of the same equation. Counting eggs without measuring feed tells you production is falling but not why. Measuring feed without counting eggs tells you costs are rising but not whether you are getting anything for them. Together, they describe the health of the operation.
This guide assumes you are already keeping some records — if not, start with our guide to keeping farm records without buying software, which covers the five fields that make everything below possible.
The daily record, per house
Five fields, one line a day. Anything more elaborate tends to be abandoned within two weeks.
| Field | Example | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Date | 2026-09-29 | Comparison week to week, season to season |
| House / pen | Layer house 2 | Problems are almost always localised |
| Eggs collected | 412 | Production volume |
| Feed used (kg) | 38 | The largest recurring cost on most farms |
| Note | Water line repaired | Explains anomalies later, when memory has faded |
Step 1: weigh feed the same way every day
Fix a routine
Weigh or measure feed at the same time each day, from the same storage point, using the same container. A scoop is acceptable if it is always the same scoop and you know its weight. Consistency matters more than precision: a rough number measured the same way every day is more useful than an exact number measured differently each time.
If feed is delivered weekly, fill a known quantity into the house and record how much is consumed. Do not estimate from the invoice alone — feed is spilled, stolen by rodents, and eaten by birds other than the ones you are counting.
Step 2: count eggs at the same point in the day
Counting early in the morning and again in the evening produces a different number than a single count at the end of the day. Pick one practice and keep it. If you collect in several rounds, total them before recording — a single daily figure is far easier to work with than a scatter of partial counts.
Step 3: the three weekly calculations
Set fifteen minutes a week. Three calculations turn raw entries into management information.
Feed per egg (grams)
Total feed used in the week (kg) x 1000, divided by the number of eggs collected. This is the efficiency measure: lower is better, and sudden increases deserve investigation.
Cost per egg
Feed cost for the week divided by eggs collected. Add other recurring costs if you want a fuller figure, but start with feed — it is usually the largest and the most sensitive to management.
Laying rate (%)
Eggs collected divided by the number of birds in lay, expressed as a percentage. This tells you whether the flock is performing or whether the problem is feed-side.
Worked example
Numbers below are illustrative only, to show how the arithmetic works:
| House | Feed used | Eggs | Feed per egg | Birds in lay | Laying rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| House 2 | 38 kg/day | 412 | ~92 g | 500 | 82% |
| House 3 | 38 kg/day | 360 | ~106 g | 500 | 72% |
Same feed, same flock size, different outcome. House 3 uses roughly 15 percent more feed per egg — a real cost, every single day. The numbers do not tell you the cause; they tell you where to look. Water, ventilation, feed quality, bird age, disease pressure and lighting are the usual suspects, in roughly that order.
What the trends mean
| What you see | Where to look first |
|---|---|
| Eggs down, feed unchanged | Water, ventilation, light hours, disease, disturbance |
| Eggs steady, feed up | Feed spillage, rodents, feed quality change, measurement error |
| Both down | Flock-level issue — check health and environment before changing feed |
| Feed per egg rising gradually | Often normal with bird age; compare against the flock’s own history, not an absolute target |
| Sharp change overnight | Almost always environmental or a measurement mistake — check the note column first |
For context on what drives feed conversion, the FAO’s guidance on poultry nutrition and feeding explains how commercial diets are formulated and why ingredient quality varies between batches — which is why a feed change can move your numbers without anything else changing. Its analysis of variability in feed composition is worth reading if you mix your own rations.
Four mistakes that ruin the numbers
- Weighing feed differently each day. Different scoop, different time, different person — the figures stop being comparable.
- Recording from memory in the evening. Errors creep in silently, and the record loses credibility with lenders and buyers.
- Counting eggs across the whole farm. Farm totals hide the house that needs attention.
- Never reviewing. Numbers that never change a decision are a cost, not an asset.
Where AI genuinely helps
AI does not collect the data and cannot tell you why a house is underperforming. Used carefully, it removes the tedium around the edges: turning a week of short entries into a summary with exceptions highlighted, drafting questions for your vet or nutritionist before a visit, and comparing feed quotations that arrive in different formats.
What to avoid: asking a general AI tool to diagnose disease or design a ration from incomplete records. The output will look confident and may be wrong. Our guide to practical AI uses in agribusiness sets out the applications worth pursuing, with the same caveat. If you want software to help, our guide to farm record apps lists options by category.
Questions about the numbers
How long before the numbers are useful?
Two weeks gives you a baseline. Four weeks lets you see trends. One full production cycle tells you what normal looks like for your farm — and that is when the numbers become genuinely powerful.
Do I need a scale?
A scale is better, but consistency is essential. If you use a scoop, weigh it once and record the weight so every subsequent scoop has a known value.
What is a good feed conversion figure?
It varies with breed, age, feed quality and climate, so no single figure is universal. The useful comparison is your own flock, this month against last month, house against house. Treat any external “target” with caution.
Should I record costs beyond feed?
Eventually yes — labour, medication, replacements and energy all matter. Start with feed and eggs. Adding everything at once is the fastest way to abandon the whole system.
How this guide was checked: The measurement method is Fynbrex guidance based on practices common to small and medium poultry operations; the worked example uses illustrative figures and is labelled as such. References to poultry nutrition, diet formulation and feed composition variability were checked against FAO material. No result is guaranteed: outcomes depend on record accuracy, flock health, local conditions and appropriate professional advice. Animal health and nutrition decisions remain with qualified people. Last reviewed: September 2026.
The weighing kit
To track this properly you need two things: a feed scale and a hanging feeder you can weigh from (Valley Farm Supply stock both), plus a record you will actually keep up with (a simple notebook, or whatever you already carry). Accurate grams in, accurate cost per egg out.
One email a month on what actually changed my numbers.
Start with two numbers – eggs and feed, per house, every day – and let the weekly calculation do the arguing.
Eggs and feed, per house, every day. Add the weekly calculation and you have a management system that costs nothing.