The Düýeguş farm aims to expand its ostrich population to 10,000 from the roughly 2,000 birds currently kept at the facility in the Akbugday district of Ahal province, the newspaper Bereketli toprak reported Thursday.
According to Velmyrat Velmyradov, director of the Düýeguş complex, the incubation unit is equipped with modern technology that maintains optimal temperature and humidity. Incubation of ostrich eggs lasts 42 to 46 days, and chicks are kept in specially equipped facilities until three months of age.
The complex includes spacious enclosures and outdoor areas for birds, a feed mill and storage facilities, processing units for meat, leather and feathers, as well as a veterinary station and an administrative building.
Ostriches lay eggs from March through October. A single egg weighs between 1.2 and 2 kilograms (2.6 to 4.4 pounds), equivalent to about 25 to 30 chicken eggs.
The report said producing 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of ostrich meat requires less land, feed and water than raising cattle or small livestock. Ostriches reach slaughter weight in 10 to 12 months, yielding an average of 40 to 45 kilograms (88 to 99 pounds) of meat per bird.
The Düýeguş farm was established in 2022 as a modern agro-industrial enterprise built to meet all standards for ostrich farming in Turkmenistan.
