What are your dead birds costing you — and is your flock paying?

Every bird that dies was already paid for: the chick, the vaccine, the heat, and the feed it ate before it went. Put in your own numbers — the figures below are an example — and see the money, your efficiency score and how long the investment takes to pay back.

Your numbers

Chicks placedper cycleMortality %birds that die before saleSale weight (kg)average live weightDays to saleage at saleFeed conversion (FCR)kg feed per kg live weightFeed price / kgyour currencyChick priceper day-old chickSale price / kg livewhat the buyer paysOther costs / birdvaccines, litter, power, labourCycles per yearflocks you run a yearMoney investedhouse, equipment, set-up

Birds lost this cycle

Already paid for: 87 in chicks, care and feed eaten

Sales you never made

192

What those birds would have sold for at your price

Margin per cycle

527

Cost to produce: 1.37 per kg · you sell at 1.60

Efficiency score (EPEF)

319

Average — room to tighten

Yearly return on investment

21.1%

3,162 a year over 6 cycles

Payback

4.7 yrs

Years for profit to repay the money invested

The same flock at different mortality levels

Mortality	Birds lost	Margin / cycle	Per year	EPEF
2%	20	598	3,590	329
4%	40	551	3,304	323
6%	60	503	3,019	316
8%	80	455	2,733	309
10%	100	408	2,447	303
15%	150	289	1,733	286

Each extra point of mortality moves your margin by about 24 per cycle. On thin margins, that is often the whole profit.

How to read it — small flocks

Under 5% losses is good; 3% is excellent. If you lose more than 8%, stop and fix brooding heat, water and litter before adding birds. Count the dead every morning — the first week tells you most.

How to read it — commercial and lenders

EPEF blends survival, weight, speed and feed use into one number: 300 is average, 350+ good, 400+ integrator level. Lenders look at steady mortality, margin per kg and payback — typically 4–7 years on a new house.

What to do about deaths

Warm, dry, draught-free brooding; clean water always available; correct stocking; a biosecurity gate; and a vet when losses jump suddenly. Record them daily so you can see the trend.

Don't expect the jackpot in year one

Most growers take 3–5 cycles to settle their routine and 2–3 years to reach steady, optimised results. Aim first for predictable, not perfect.

Planning figures only, not financial advice. Birds that die are assumed to have eaten about a third of a full grow-out's feed. Read the companion stories: why mortality is a margin number and the realistic road to a steady return, or compare with regional benchmarks.