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West Java to breed sentul chickens
For the birds: Sentul chickens are seen in the West Java Husbandry Agency’s Livestock Research Center in Ciawi, West Java
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span class="caption">For the birds: Sentul chickens are seen in the West Java Husbandry Agency’s Livestock Research Center in Ciawi, West Java. The West Java administration has been developing the breeding Sentul chickens, a chicken breed found in Ciamis regency and known for its high productivity in both meat and eggs.(Courtesy of the Agriculture Agency’s Livestock Research Center)
The West Java administration, which has been developing local poultry resources in a bid to improve the wealth of its people, has begun focusing on breeding Sentul chickens, a chicken breed found in Ciamis regency and known for its high productivity in both meat and eggs.
The Agriculture Ministry’s Livestock Research Center recorded that the Sentul chicken was one of 32 native Indonesia chicken breeds and among eight identified as originating from West Java.
Sentul chickens are considered a good breed as egg-laying flocks or for meat production.
Sentul chickens produce more eggs than other native breeds, which produce some 70 eggs per year on average.
With intensive care a sentul chicken can produce up to 150 eggs per year, according to the West Java Husbandry Agency. Moreover, sentul chickens gain weight faster than other native breeds.
“We are working on providing great grandparent stocks for [potential] breeders,” Dodi Firman Nugraha, head of the West Java Husbandry Agency said recently in a phone interview.
West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan encouraged breeders to pursue sentul chicken farming as the province had already managed to develop great-grandparent stocks, parent stocks and day-old chicks (DOC).
Originating from West Java’s Ciamis regency, sentul chickens can now be found in other areas throughout the province, including Sukabumi, Bogor, Depok and Cirebon, with a combined population of between 10 million and 15 million, out of a total population of 30 million chickens of various breeds in West Java.
“We have also sent the chickens to Kalimantan and Sumatra [two areas outside Java],” Dodi said, highlighting the growing demand for the commodity.
A live sentul chicken is sold for Rp 34,000 (US$2.5) by breeders. While at the market, the meat of a whole chicken, which can reach up to 2 kilograms, is priced at Rp 40,000, said Dodi.
The chicken is named after a local fruit from Ciamis known as kecapi or sentul, which is yellowish in color and somewhat resembles the color of the chickens’ feathers.
But, it is the folklore surrounding the history of the sentul chicken that is truly unique. Legend has it that the sentul chicken is a descendant of a fighting rooster owned by Ciung Wanara, a famous prince in Sundanese folklore.
West Java Husbandry Agency’s data showed that the province produced 661,000 tons of poultry last year — 30 percent of which was consumed by people in West Java, a province with a total population of roughly 46.5 million people.
